An Inca Account of the Conquest of Peru (21 page)

39
. Manuscript (ff 146):
Teqse Viracochan que quiere dezir dios;
see note 9.

40
. For a good account of the background and history of the Pizarro brothers, see Varón Gabai,
Francisco Pizarro and His Brothers;
also Lockhart,
Men of Cajamarca
.

41
. Urteaga (46) and Carillo (56) each transcribes here “confusion”; Millones, “confrission” (14); Regalado de Hurtado, “confussion” (29); and Luiselli, “contrición” (62). My own reading of the manuscript here (ff 192) corresponds with that of Regalado de Hurtado.

42
.
Vila Oma
is not a personal name but a title for the highest priest, an office usually reserved for a brother, cousin, or uncle of the Inca.

43
. Urteaga and Carillo each transcribe here “conquestardose,” (47, 57, respectively); Millones, “conquestandosse” (14); Regalado de Hurtado, “conquistandosse” (29); and Luiselli, “contestándose” (63). My reading of the manuscript (ff 195) corresponds with that of Millones.

44
. ST (238):
Atun . . . cosa grande;
Academia Mayor (147):
hatun.

45
. As pointed out in the Introduction, the suffix -
cona
(or
-kuna
) indicates the plural in Quechua, but the text is not consistent here (compare note 28,
apoes,
and note 72,
yanaconas
).

46
. As Julien (
Reading Inca History,
305, n. 13) points out, this woman may have been Francisca Ynguill, who later became the wife of Juan Pizarro; see also Introduction.

47
. As pointed out in the Introduction,
coya
is not parallel to the European concept of “queen.” Most likely, this gloss must again be attributed to Marcos García.

48
. Lienhard notes here that this was probably the festival called
warakuq
or
warachikuq
(“to put on a loincloth or trousers for the covering of genitalia”). On this occasion, the orejones had their ears pierced so that the earplugs, the status symbol of the orejones, would be mounted (Lienhard,
Die Erschütterung der Welt: Ein Inka-Kónig berichted über den Kampf gegen die Spanier
[Augsburg, Germany: Bechtermünz Verlag, 1995], 167).

49
. Urteaga (57), Carillo (69), Millones (18), and Regalado de Hurtado (37) all transcribe here
mas de mil,
but Luiselli (72) transcribes
más de diez mil.
My reading of the manuscript agrees with that of the majority (see ff 162)

50
. Not in ST or Academia Mayor. Most likely
warakuq;
a participant in the initiation rite of the
wara,
a type of garment worn around the loin (see Lienhard,
Erschütterung,
172).

51
. Luiselli's transcription (73) adds here
se iban a lavar los pies
(“went to wash their feet”). Again, I have not found this to correspond to the manuscript (see ff 162), nor does it appear in any of the previous
transcriptions; see Urteaga (57), Carillo (69), Millones (18), and Regalado de Hurtado (37).

52
. Not in ST or Academia Mayor. Most likely
yauri,
“needle” or “scepter” (see Lienhard,
Erschütterung,
173).

53
. I have not found any sources that shed light on the question of whether this dispatch that was sent
por la posta
was an oral message, in
quipu,
or already in writing.

54
. This was 3 May 1536.

55
. “[A]lçandoles la perneta” or “alzar la pierna” (“to lift a leg”), a gesture of mockery or jest, especially in a crude, provocative, or threatening way.

56
. See the Introduction on some of the cultural and ideological ambiguities involving authorship in this text. While Titu Cusi was formally a convert to Christianity, it is somewhat implausible that he would praise what must doubtlessly be the Christian God in this context for intervening in the battle.

57
. As Urteaga (
Relación de la Conquista del Perú
70, n. 54) points out, the miraculous appearance of Santiago on a white horse, rushing to the aid of the Spaniards in battle, is commonplace in many Spanish chronicles of the conquest; and, as Luiselli (82, n. 39) points out, it is possible that we are here (and in other instances) dealing with an addition made by the Augustinian fray Marcos García. However, Guaman Poma de Ayala repeats it more than forty years later in his
Nueva corónica y buen gobierno
(see Introduction).

58
. Although kissing the hands of a monarch was Spanish royal protocol, it may also have been practiced by the Inca. Miguel de Estete, for example, describes that when Challcochima greeted his lord Atahuallpa in Spanish captivity, he “went up to him with great reverence, weeping, and kissed him on the face, hands, and feet, and the other chiefs who had come with him did the same” (quoted in Hemming,
Conquest of the Incas,
69).

59
. By
Anti,
Titu Cusi meant the Inca province of the Antisuyu, not necessarily the Andes mountains.

60
. The Spanish word used here in the manuscript is
documento
(“document”) rather than the usual
parlamento
(“speech”); as Luiselli (87) has pointed out (among others), this choice of word highlights the official character of this chapter's content and
documento
must therefore be understood in the sense of
instrucción
.

61
. Sacred objects and places, such as certain springs, boulders, hillsides, or mountains. Manuscript (ff 175):
guacas;
singular: ST (279)
Guaca;
Academia Mayor (706):
waka.

62
. Manuscript (ff 175):
villcas
; singular: ST (369):
Villca
; Academia Mayor (745):
willka
.

63
. Not in ST. Lienhard glosses here
uywa,
“pet” (
Erschütterung
172).

64
. The Incas mummified the bodies of their dead rulers.

65
. Actually Rodrigo Orgóñez, who would later side with Almagro against the Pizarros and who was finally assassinated by the Pizarros after Almagro's defeat.

66
. This was in July 1537. See Introduction.

67
. Pedro de Oñate, who aligned himself with Almagro against the Pizarros. He had previously met Manco Inca at Vilcabamba during an embassy on which he was sent by Almagro and was received hospitably by Manco Inca and seems to have been overall on friendly terms with him (see Hemming.
Conquest of the Incas,
233).

68
. Rabanto: probably Levantu or Llavantu, the ancient capital of the Chachapoya Indians. It exists today as a district called Levanto in the province of Chachapoyas in northern Peru. It is a great distance from Vitcos, and the journey would have involved crossing rugged terrain.

69
. Manco Inca had apparently here already picked up Spanish fighting techniques, including the use of horses and lances.

70
. The Guanca people had risen up several times against the Incas in pre-Hispanic times. When the Spaniards arrived in Peru, they readily allied themselves with them against the Inca armies commanded by Atahuallpa's generals.

71
. In the vicinity of Huancayo.

72
. Manuscript (180); not in ST; singular: Academia Mayor (759):
yana
. As noted in the Introduction, this form seems to hybridize Quechua with Castilian plural forms:
yana
-
cona
[or
-kuna
] -
s.

73
. Located in the province of Tayacaja, Huancavelica.

74
. Normally the Incas incorporated such local deities into their pantheon. The characterization of its worship by the Guanca as idolatry may reflect a Christian influence.

75
. Located at the Apurímac River.

76
. Orgóñez.

77
. This brother is otherwise known as Paullu.

78
. These had been captured by the Spaniards in separate battles not recounted here.

79
. The names of only five of those seven are known: Diego Méndez, Gómez Pérez, Cornejo, Monroy, and Francisco Barba (see Urteaga,
Relación de la Conquista del Perú,
92, n. 80). It is no accident that Titu Cusi omits to mention the “crimes” for which these Spaniards were on the run. They had been involved in the murder of Francisco Pizarro, Manco Inca's old enemy. Although historians have often wondered about the “inexplicable trust” that Manco Inca placed in these men (Luiselli, “Introducción,” 101), it is likely that their murder of Pizarro helped them to ingratiate themselves with Manco Inca.

80
.
Herrón
: A kind of horseshoes, which must have been imported to Peru from Europe.

81
. This was in 1544.

82
. As noted in the Introduction, most modern historians agree that Manco Inca left the throne to Saire Topa, also a minor. However, some uncles ruled on his behalf until Saire Topa surrendered to the Spaniards in 1557 and went to Lima and ultimately to Cuzco. In 1560 Titu Cusi officially succeeded as ruler of the neo-Inca state at Vilcabamba.

83
. Andrés Hurtado de Mendoza, Marquis de Cañete, was the third viceroy of Peru. His tenure was from 1556 to 1560.

84
. A repartimiento was a grant of land and Indian tributaries associated with a certain obligations on the part of the grantee. Saire Topa died in 1560.

85
. Juan Polo de Ondegardo was a corregidor, or municipal royal administrator, of Cuzco from 1558 to 1561 and from 1571 until his death in 1574. Martín de Pando was a mestizo and scribe who accompanied him and decided to stay in Vilcabamba after the embassy was complete. He later transcribed this text as dictated by Titu Cusi to fray Marcos García. Juan de Betanzos was a Spaniard who was married to Atahuallpa's sister-wife (and Francisco Pizarro's former mistress), Doña Angelina Yupanqui. He was fluent in Quechua. He had written a history of the Incas based on the traditions kept by his wife's family. See Introduction.

86
. Given Titu Cusi's stay in Cuzco as a child and his documented curiosity about other aspects of European culture, his claim of ignorance with regard to Spanish attempts at proselytizing seems less than credible.

87
. This took place in 1565.

88
. On 24 August 1566.

89
. Antonio de Vera was an Augustinian and the first to catechize Titu Cusi (in 1566).

90
. This person was Atilano de Anaya, a rich and respected citizen of Cuzco who had come along as the guardian of Doña Beatriz, the daughter of Saire Topa, who owned large tracts of land as a result of her then deceased father's surrender. As related in the narrative, Titu Cusi had arranged for a marriage between Doña Beatriz and his son Quispe Titu as a part of the peace settlement.

91
. Juan de Vivero was prior of the Augustinian convent of Cuzco. He catechized Titu Cusi in Vilcabamba in 1568 and also baptized Inca Tito.

92
. Fray Marcos García, also a monk from the Augustinian order in Cuzco, is the translator of the present account. He had been charged with the instruction of Titu Cusi in 1569, the year after the latter's baptism. After catechizing many Inca noblemen, he was finally expelled from Vilcabamba, most likely for attempting to suppress the ancient custom of polygamy (see Urteaga,
Relación de la Conquista del Perú,
106, n. 98).

93
. This was September 1569.

94
. Urteaga (107) and Carillo (128) transcribe here “ffecho,” Millones (34) and Regalado de Hurtado (67) “fecho,” and Luiselli (113) “hecho.” In my opinion, the manuscript (ff 193) is amibiguous here, but the context would suggest “hecho” in the sense of “relatado,” as in Martín de Pando's subsequent affirmation “lo relató y ordenó el dicho padre.”

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