THE INCA EMPIREBy Joaquín Martínez

It was situated about 11,000 feet above sea level high in the Andes Mountains.  It was a beautiful city. There were palaces, temples, schools, houses, and government buildings. It had gardens filled with exotic herbs, trees, and flowers.

The capital city of Cuzco was the heart of the empire.

The leader of the Inca people was the Inca. He was all-powerful. Everything belonged to the Inca. He ruled his people by putting his relatives in positions of power. Because punishment was harsh and swift, almost no one broke the law.

How was the Inca Empire?

Most of the buildings were made of stone.

The Incan were master builders. Their stonework is shaped so that each piece fit together perfectly. Inca stonework is still regarded as the best in the world. Building stones were quarried in the mountains. 

Jobs for the common people

Some people did life on the farm. Some boys were trained as artisans. Others were trained to be the servants and temple assistants of the royals. Craftsmen made bronze by melting copper and tin together. Weaving was probably the most important of all the arts. Both men and women were weavers.

Agriculture

To feed the millions of people in the Inca Empire, the Incas invented terrace farming so they could grow crops on the steep mountain slopes. They used systems of irrigation to catch the rainfall and the spring run off from the snow-capped Andes mountaintops.

Religion

The Incas believed that their ruler was the direct descendant of the sun god, Inti. Their ruler was a god. The Incas believed in many gods. They believed in the god of nature, the moon, of weather, of rainbows, and of planets.

Fall of the Inca Empire

The Spanish conquered the Incan civilization. Francisco Pizarro led the Spanish invaders. After a series of fierce battles, the Incas were defeated in 1531. The ancestors of the Incas still live in the modern day country of Peru today.