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The Incas were the founders and rulers of the largest empire in all of pre-Columbian America. While this civilization began to emerge in the mountainous region of Cusco (in the southern Andes) towards the end of the 14th century, its dazzling continental expansion took place primarily in the 15th century under the reign of Emperor Pachacuti. This exceptional hegemony ended as abruptly as it did tragically with the Spanish invasion led by Francisco Pizarro in 1532.
At the time of its surrender, the Inca empire controlled a gigantic population estimated at 12 million inhabitants. This immense territory would today cover all of Peru and Ecuador, as well as vast portions of Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, and southern Colombia.
The Incas called their vast territory Tawantinsuyu, a word which, in the Quechua language, means "The four parts (or regions) of the world". This territory presented an incredible mosaic of highly distinct reliefs and climates: it encompassed a long desert strip on the Pacific coast (intersected by rich irrigated valleys), the high peaks and deep fertile valleys of the Andes mountain range, down to the mountainous peaks plunging into the Amazon rainforest to the east.
The term "Inca" originally designated only the sovereign (the Sapa Inca) as well as the nobility originating from the Cusco valley, the capital of the empire. By extension, this term is today often mistakenly used to refer to all the peoples included in the Tawantinsuyu. In reality, the empire was composed of dozens of small kingdoms and ethnic groups that kept their own cultural identity, although they were politically and economically tied to the central power in Cusco. Quechua (or Runa Simi) was imposed as the official language and was spoken in the majority of communities until the arrival of the Spanish, but at least 20 distinct local languages (often wrongly called dialects) survived in various parts of the empire.
One of the greatest achievements of the Incas was their ability to administer such a vast territory without knowing writing, the wheel, or currency. The economy was based on the mita, a system of mandatory and collective labor serving the state (for construction, agriculture, or the army) in exchange for a redistribution of wealth and food during periods of famine.
To unify the empire, the Incas built the Qhapaq Ñan, a monumental road network of more than 30,000 kilometers crossing mountains and deserts. These routes were traveled by the chasquis, tireless relay runners capable of transmitting a message from the coast to Cusco in just a few days. Lacking a writing system, the administration used quipus, complex systems of knotted cords of different colors, allowing imperial accountants (the quipucamayocs) to record censuses, food stockpiles, and military data.
The Incas developed a highly functional style of public architecture, distinguished by its advanced engineering techniques and stone masonry of unmatched finesse. The urban planning of their cities was rigorous: a system of large main avenues intersected by smaller streets, systematically converging towards an open central square surrounded by temples and municipal buildings. In coastal regions, builders commonly used adobe bricks mixed with straw.
In The Andes, the structures were generally single-story and made of stone blocks cut and assembled to perfection, without any mortar. For the construction of colossal sanctuaries like the great fortress of Sacsayhuamán near Cusco, massive polygonal blocks (sometimes weighing tens of tons) were fitted into each other with millimeter precision. Inca architecture, as evidenced by the spectacular citadel of Machu Picchu, integrated anti-seismic elements (inclined walls, trapezoidal doors) and reflected very ingenious adaptations to the natural mountainous relief.
The Inca state religion was deeply animistic and centered on the worship of the Sun (the god Inti). Emperors were considered the direct descendants of the Sun god, and were consequently worshipped as living deities. Gold, perceived as "the sweat of the Sun," was highly exploited, not as currency, but mainly for ritual and decorative purposes to mark the status of the ruling elite.
Religion dictated and dominated the entire political structure of the empire. From the great Temple of the Sun (the Coricancha) in the center of Cusco, radiated the system of ceques: imaginary lines traceable to the various places of worship (the huacas) distributed according to the different social classes of the city. Andean religious practices included consulting oracles, shamanic trances, public confessions, and numerous sacrifices as offerings.
Their cosmology was also guided by an extremely precise calendar, dictating an annual cycle of religious festivals in absolute harmony with the agricultural year. Through these ritual aspects and this fine observation of the stars, Inca culture presented very strong similarities with other great civilizations of Mesoamerica, such as the Aztecs and the Mayans.