After Columbus made his fateful (and accidental) discovery of the New World, European nations were frantic to get in on the possible wealth that was to be obtained. The westward push that followed was hectic and at times could be classified as very nearly insane. A good majority of the voyages of "discovery" were made by Spanish conquistadors who were more interested in profit then anything else. In Last Days of the Incas by Kim MacQuarrie, we are exposed to the devastation that was poured down on the indigenous tribes of the Americas, all in the name of expansion, gold, and God.
The book begins with the initial discovery of Peruvian ruins in the early 20th century. There was some controversy over what city the ruins actually were, though it was many years before anyone questioned the theories of the man who discovered them, Hiram Bingham. It is from this point that the author takes us back to the beginning of the end, the Spanish decision to allow Francisco Pizarro to take an army of conquistadors and priests into the center of the Incan empire. Pizarro had the steel and audacity to lead 168 conquistadors into an audience with the emperor of a nation of 10,000,000 people and 2,500 miles. The emperor had the self-assurance and conceit to believe that his numbers and stength would defeat the "bearded white men". A robed priest stepped forward to read the proclamation that gave Pizarro the right by the Spanish king and the Pope to claim all lands and people past the 9th meridian for Spain and the Christian God. It didn't matter that the Incan's had never heard of either Spain or the Pope. In the eyes of the "civilized" world, the order was in effect and Pizarro and his men were free to do as they wished to subdue the nation and bring it's wealth (in gold, silver, and slaves) home for themselves and their king. They even went so far as to strip the very sheets of gold from the walls of the sacred Sun Temples before the eyes of the horrified priests and worshippers.
After being assailed by conquistadors and priests, puppet kings and military rebellions, and possibly worst of all, slavery and plague-like sweeps of disease that decimated thousands, the Incan empire was crushed under heel and went the way of the Aztecs and the Mayans. Those that could fled and those that couldn't were enslaved and so the city that was a beacon of beauty and civilization in the middle of the jungle crumbled into ruin and became nothing but a legend until it was discovered at the turn of the 20th century.
The author has managed to compile an amazing amount of material in this book and he has done something very rare for a book of this type: he has filled it with a warmth and a compassion for his subjects. It's not overtly heart-warming but one does get the sense that he is deeply saddened by what happened to the natives of Peru. It lacks the clinical viewpoint of most non-fiction studies. The book is packed with maps, engravings, period journal entries, merchant documents, and church documents that provide a fascinating look at the way society viewed such an invasion. Be forwarned however that this is not light summer reading. This is a densely-packed, 544-page book. It will keep you busy for quite awhile but it is worth it.
-------------------------------
Hardcover: 544 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster (May 29, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 074326049X
Buy This Book
