In 1532, Spanish conquistadors under Francisco Pizarro first made contact with the mighty Inca Empire that ruled parts of present-day Peru, Ecuador, Chile, Bolivia and Colombia. Within 20 years, the Empire was in ruins and the Spanish were in undisputed possession of the Inca cities and wealth.
The Inca Empire had been collecting gold and silver for centuries and the Spanish soon found most of it. A great amount of gold was even hand-delivered to the Spanish as part of Atahualpa’s ransom.
The long-term effects of the arrival of the Spanish on the population of South America were simply catastrophic.
While this is the case for every group of Native-Americans that encountered Europeans from the fifteenth century onwards, the Incan population suffered a dramatic and quick decline following contact with the Spaniards.
The single greatest cause of death of the Incas by far was disease. Old World diseases like Smallpox and Measles brought over unknowingly by colonists and conquistadors wreaked havoc on native populations at a greater rate than any army or armed conflict.
The fact that the Inca did not have as strong of a writing tradition as the Aztecs or Maya is one reason why it is more difficult to estimate population decline or any events after conquest.
Beyond the devastation of the local populations by disease, there was also considerable enslavement, pillaging and destruction from warfare. Thousands of women were taken from the local populations by the Spanish and used by conquistadors as personal slaves.
Another significant effect on the people in South America was the spread of Christianity. As Pizarro and the Spanish subdued the continent and brought it under their control, they forcefully converted many to Christianity, claiming to have educated them in the ways of the “one true religion.” With the depopulation of the local populations along with the capitulation of the Inca Empire, the Spanish missionary work after colonization began was able to continue unimpeded. It took just a generation for the entire continent to be under Christian influence and eradication of their culture.
Paco Arevalo
Links
- Cruiser forum cruiser forum
- Flickr More Photos
- Nautical Terms Nautical dictionary
- Noonsite noonsite
- Piracy World current piracy status
- Sailed route and current location Current Location
History
Calendar
Blog Stats
- 19,403 hits
-
Recent Posts
- Closing the loop 14/11/2016
- Fiji 14/11/2016
- Tonga 10/10/2016
- Palmerston – Cook Islands 10/10/2016
- Society Island – French Polynesia 10/10/2016
- Tuamotu Archipelago 25/06/2016
- Slides of Marquesas 25/06/2016
- Islas Marquesas 28/05/2016
- Ecuador to Marquesas 26/05/2016
- Leaving South America 27/03/2016
- Argentina to Chile (TransAndean Highway) 03/03/2016
- Iguazu Falls 02/03/2016
- Antarctica 25/02/2016
- Looking back 05/12/2015
- Galapagos 06/05/2015
- Panama Canal – Colon to Balboa 17/04/2015
- Zip line in Panama 10/02/2015
- Cusco – Peru 07/12/2014
- Machu Picchu 25/11/2014
- Lima – Peru 22/11/2014
- Sailing to Panama 31/10/2014
- Colombia (Cartagena and Barranquilla) 29/10/2014
- Lost City – Colombia 13/10/2014
- Reflecting in the past 26/08/2014
- A bit of fun on wheels 25/08/2014
- Hot air ballooning 27/07/2014
- At Ocean World Marina 24/07/2014
- While in Perth 22/07/2014
- Puerto Plata to Santa Marta 21/07/2014
- Dominican Republic Noth Coast 11/07/2014
- Turks and Caicos 24/04/2014
- Bahamas 24/04/2014
- Mahi Mahi 24/04/2014
- Mexico 24/04/2014
- New Zealand South Island 22/12/2013
- New Zealand 20/12/2013
- Toronto in a flash 07/12/2013
- It is all about Turkeys (Thanksgiving in the U S of A) 30/11/2013
- Semuc Champey 13/10/2013
- Copan ruins – Honduras 08/10/2013
- Tikal 01/10/2013
- Antigua and Lake Atitlan 25/09/2013
- Guatemala (Part one) 05/06/2013
- End of my 2nd 30 year term and the beggining of the third 01/06/2013
- Cuba to Rio Dulce (Guatemala) 23/05/2013
- Cuba ( part 2 ) 18/05/2013
- Robbed by an ATM 27/04/2013
- The Caribbean (Revisited) 25/04/2013
- Cuba (Part One) 14/04/2013
- Ile a Vache (Haiti) 14/04/2013
More Photos click here
Advertisements