Battle of Las Salinas

Battle of Las Salinas

Part of: Spanish Conquest of Peru

Battle of Las Salinas

date	April 26, 1538
place	near Cusco
output	decisive victory for Nueva Castilla

Parties to the conflict
Nueva Castilla , (" those of Pachacámac ")	Nueva Toledo , (" Chilean People ")
Commander
Gonzalo Pizarro Hernando Pizarro Pedro de Valdivia	Diego de Almagro Rodrigo Orgóñez †
Troop strength
over 700 men	500 men 6 cannons
losses
	150 dead

The battle of Las Salinas was a decisive military confrontation during the conquest of the Inca Empire between the armed forces Hernando and Gonzalo Pizarros on the one hand and those of the rival conquistador Diego de Almagro on the other hand on April 26, 1538. Both sides claimed the authority of the to represent Spanish crown. The Pizarro people were known as " those of Pachacámac ", while the Almagros were known as the " Chilean people ".

After an hour of slaughter, Pizarro's victory became apparent: after Almagro's capture and the death of his deputy Rodrigo Orgóñez on the battlefield, the Pizarristas took possession of Cusco . Almagro was executed on July 8, 1538.

background

The conflict between the Pizarro brothers and Almagro stemmed from a dispute over rule over the Inca metropolis of Cusco since the early Spanish division of the Inca Empire. While Almagro had ruled Cusco since 1537, the two Pizarro brothers also claimed rule. Almagro's ventures had led him to victories several times before, but although he initially took the city by surprise, Pizarro's troops in the region were far stronger, leaving Almagro few options in his defense. Sixty-three-year-old Almagro, paralyzed by illness, overestimated his luck and entrusted Rodrigo Orgóñez with the military leadership of his troops.

Almagro's men made their first mistake when they failed to guard the Guáitara Pass , which dominated the entrance to Cusco. The enemy defied the sierra they crossed and appeared on the coast with their forces. At a council of war in Cusco, Almagro even considered a new round of negotiations with the Pizarro brothers. Orgóñez is said to have interrupted with the remark: "It is too late, you have freed Hernando Pizarro and so there is nothing left but to fight him."

Orgóñez marched with his 500 men towards the former indigenous salt mine of Cachipampa , which is about 5 km south of Cusco. He was later criticized for this choice of battlefield because the rugged terrain very limited the use of cavalry , which made up more than half of his troops. In addition, his infantry were poorly armed, as many had only one pike . His army is said to have had fifteen muskets . A battery of six field snakes , on the other hand, gave him a distinct advantage over his opponents.

Pizarro's force consisted mainly of infantry and numbered over 700 men. His cavalry was surpassed by Almagro's strong powers of seasoned knights, but in addition to his old conquistadors, he could draw on a contingent of Imperial arquebusiers who had recently arrived from Santo Domingo . This feared troop had large-caliber firearms that had only recently been developed for the bloody fighting in the Netherlands .

The effect of the battle between the Spaniards on the indigenous population was marked by tension and hatred: word of the impending battle between the Almagrists and the Pizarrists spread at lightning speed. Numerous indigenous people flocked to the battlefield with joy to watch the impending battle between the Christians in the hope that all Christians would perish at their own weapons and neither side would achieve a victory. Orgóñez sent Paullu Inca and his people up on a hill with instructions to kill everyone who fled, regardless of whether they were Almagro supporters or Pizarro friends. Paullu Inca - a brother of the rebellious Manco Cápacs - himself claimed the dignity of Sapa Inca and traveled and fought with his followers in Almagro's entourage.

The battle

Orgóñez placed his infantry in the center and a cavalry division on each wing. Pizarro's force reflected this distribution, with Alonso de Alvarado commanding one cavalry corps while Hernando Pizarro took over the other. Gonzalo Pizarro commanded the infantry battalion that made the first attack across the small river that separated the two troops. Orgóñez's musket fire created disorder in Gonzalo's ranks, but the boggy ground prevented Orgóñez from using his cavalry to play his advantage. Meanwhile, Pizarro's Imperial forces on the other side opened murderous fire of double-barreled weapons.

While the infantry was engaged in fighting in the marshes, Pizarro and Orgóñez brought their cavalry into play. Under the orders of Orgóñez on one side and Pizarro on the other, the left and right wings of the cavalry merged into one row on either side. A shock followed when the two of them met at full gallop to the battle cries “For the King and Almagro!” And “For the King and Pizarro!”. Orgóñez was wounded by a musket shot and torn from his horse during his desperate fight. When he was surrounded by six enemy men, he asked for an officer to whom he could surrender. Hernando Pizarro's servant Fuentes then captured him and severed his head with great cruelty. His death shook his cavalry so much that, despite their superiority, they fell behind in their confusion. Almagro's second officer Gonzalo Calvo de Barrientos also fell during the fight.

Meanwhile, Almagro's infantry fought without a chance against the superior firepower of Pizarro's men. After an hour of brave struggle, she began to pull away in the direction of Cusco. Almagro helplessly watched the way from his litter on a hill. The spectators of the roughly two-hour battle then stormed the slaughter area to plunder the two hundred dead.

literature

• William H. Prescott : History Of The Conquest Of Peru . BiblioBazaar, 2006, ISBN 1-4264-0042-X .

Individual evidence

1. ^ Prescott, p. 1054. Some authorities put the dead at 200. Many more were wounded on both sides, but the cavaliers seemed almost not to notice their injuries: "No account is given of the wounded. Pedro de Lerma is said to have received seventeen, yet was taken alive from the field! "
2. ↑ Kirkpatrick, FA: "The Spanish Conquistadors", Goldmanns Yellow Pocket Books 859, Munich, p. 147
3. ↑ Engl, Liselotte and Theodor: "Lust an der Geschichte - Die Eroberung Perus", Munich, 1991, ISBN 3-492-11318-4 , p. 227
4. ^ Zeuske, Max: "Die Conquista", Leipzig, 1992, ISBN 3-361-00369-5 , p. 113
5. ↑ Kirkpatrick, FA: "The Spanish Conquistadors", Goldmanns Yellow Pocket Books 859, Munich, p. 148
6. ↑ Kirkpatrick, FA: ibid