Peru - Lonely Planet Publications [359]
Get close-up looks at hundreds of recently discovered mummies and the strange Marvelous Spatuletail Hummingbird, near Leimebamba (Click here)
▪ BIGGEST CITY: CAJAMARCA, POPULATION 146,000 ▪ AVERAGE TEMPERATURE: JANUARY 18°C TO 28°C, JULY 16°C TO 25°C
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CAJAMARCA
076 / pop 146,000 / elev 2750m
The most important town in the northern highlands, Cajamarca is a dainty colonial metropolis cradled in a languid valley and stonewalled by brawny mountains in every direction. Descending into the vale by road, Cajamarca’s mushroom field of red-tile-roofed abodes surely confesses a secret desire to cling to its village roots. Fertile farmland carpets the entire valley and Cajamarca’s streets belong as much to the wide-brimmed-hat-wielding campesinos (peasants) bundled in brightly colored scarves, as the young city slickers who frequent the boutique restaurants and bars. In the colonial center, the capacious Plaza de Armas is bordered by majestic churches. From here, once-decadent baroque mansions spread out in concentric circles along the cobbled streets, many enclosing ethereal hotels and fine restaurants.
Things have changed slowly here. Only recently has the Yanacocha gold mine (see the boxed text on Click here) injected Cajamarca with an avalanche of cash and a steady stream of moneyed engineers. Not many tourists pass through this way, but dozens of sights from the town’s pivotal past, including the famous Baños del Inca, will keep those that make it here absorbed for days.
History
In about 1460, the Incas conquered the local Cajamarca populace and Cajamarca evolved into a major city on the Inca Andean highway linking Cuzco and Quito.
After the death of the Inca Huayna Capac in 1525, the remaining Inca empire, which then stretched from southern Colombia to central Chile, was pragmatically divided between his sons, with Atahualpa ruling the north and Huascar the south. Obviously not everyone was in concord, as civil war soon broke out and in 1532 Atahualpa and his victorious troops marched southward toward Cuzco to take complete control of the empire. Parked at Cajamarca to rest for a few days, the Inca emperor was camped at the natural thermal springs, known today as Los Baños del Inca, when he heard the news that the Spanish were nearby.
Francisco Pizarro and his force of 168 Spaniards arrived in Cajamarca on November 15, 1532, to a deserted city; most of its 2000 inhabitants were with Atahualpa at his hot-springs encampment. The Spaniards spent an anxious night, fully aware that they were severely outnumbered by the nearby Inca troops, who were estimated to be between 40,000 and 80,000. The Spaniards plotted to entice Atahualpa into the plaza and, at a pre-arranged signal, capture the Inca should the opportunity present itself.
Upon Atahualpa’s arrival, he ordered most of his troops to stay outside while he entered the plaza with a retinue of nobles and about 6000 men armed with slings and hand axes. He was met by the Spanish friar Vicente de Valverde, who attempted to explain his position as a man of God and presented the Inca with a Bible. Reputedly, Atahualpa angrily threw the book to the ground and Valverde needed little more justification to sound the attack.
Cannons were fired and the Spanish cavalry attacked Atahualpa and his troops. The indigenous people were terrified and bewildered by the fearsome onslaught of never-before-seen cannons and horses. Their small hand axes and slings were no match for the well-armored Spaniards, who swung razor-sharp swords from the advantageous height of horseback to slaughter 7000 indigenous people and capture Atahualpa. The small band of Spaniards was now literally conquistadors (conquerors).
Atahualpa soon became aware of the Spaniards’ lust for gold and offered to fill a large room in the town once with gold and twice with silver in return for his freedom. The Spanish agreed and slowly the gold and silver began pouring into Cajamarca. Nearly a year later the ransom was complete – about 6000kg of