Topic summary
Chimu
Extracted from the Wikipedia article Chimor.
Split inheritance
The Chimu capital, Chan Chan, had a series of elite residential compounds or cuidadelas that were not occupied simultaneously but sequentially. The reason for this is that Chimu rulers practiced split inheritance, which dictated that the heir to the throne had to build his own palace. After the death of a ruler, all the ruler's wealth would be distributed to more distant relatives.