Chalcuchímac

General Challcochima fighting the peoples of the north. Drawing by Waman Puma de Ayala .

Chalcuchímac (also Calicuchima , Challcuchima or Chalkuchimac ; * in Quito ; † 1533) was a general in the Inca Empire . In addition to Quisquis and Rumiñahui , he was one of the main military leaders of Atahualpa .

War and Captivity

In the Inca Empire, after the death of the Inca ruler Huayna Cápac, there had been a long civil war between the half-brothers Atahualpa (from Quito in the north) and Huáscar (from the capital Cusco in the south) over the succession. In April 1532 Chalcuchímac succeeded together with Quisquis in the battle of Quipaipan, Huáscar to defeat and take prisoner. The civil war was over and Atahualpa set out for Cusco. In November Atahualpa met Francisco Pizarro's Spanish troops in Cajamarca and was captured by them.

Chalcuchímac, who led the troops in the central Peruvian mountains, made no attempt at liberation so as not to endanger Atahualpa. When he received a message from Hernando de Soto that he should visit the ruler, he did not doubt the goodwill of the Spaniards and set off for Cajamarca. (According to other sources, he was persuaded by Hernando Pizarro .) There he was captured by the Spaniards. He was tortured and asked about the location of the great Inca treasures. Although he was badly burned, he did not testify while Atahualpa was present.

death

After Atahualpa's death, he accompanied the Spaniards to Cusco as a prisoner , as did the new ruler Túpac Huallpa appointed by Francisco Pizarro . When Túpac Huallpa died unexpectedly on the way to Cusco, Chalcuchímac was accused by Francisco Pizarro of having poisoned him. Shortly afterwards, the Spaniards found themselves in great distress when they were attacked by troops of the Quisquis at the Battle of Vilcaconga , and the young Manco , who was appointed Túpac Huallpa's successor a few days later, testified that Chalcuchímac had provided Quisquis with useful military information . Thereupon he was sentenced to death by Pizarro.

Chalcuchímac was asked to be baptized like Atahualpa in order not to be burned alive. But he refused. During his execution he repeatedly invoked his god Pachakamaq .

The news of his death was received with joy by the Incas in Cusco.

References and comments

1. ↑ Paíes de Jauja - Guerra entre el Inca Huascar y Atahualpa ( Memento of February 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive ).
2. ^ ^{A b} John Hemming: The conquest of the Incas. Macmillan, 1993, ISBN 0-333-10683-0 , pp. 69-70
3. ↑ Víctor Angles Vargas, Historia del Cusco Incaico , p. 123. Contemporary witnesses report that Atahualpa instilled fear in his subordinates.
4. ^ ^{A b} John Hemming: The conquest of the Incas. Macmillan, 1993, ISBN 0-333-10683-0 , p. 108
5. ↑ El Último Soberano ( Memento of the original from October 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
6. ↑ Víctor Angles Vargas, Historia del Cusco Incaico , p. 123. Chalcuchímac and other generals of Atahualpas like Quisquis killed many nobles in Cusco and caused destruction in the city. So they were hated by a majority in the empire, especially among the people of Cusco and the followers of Huáscar.

literature

• Víctor Angles Vargas: Historia del Cusco incaico . 3rd edition, Industrial grafica SA, Lima, 1998.