Gonzalo Pizarro
Encyclopedia
Gonzalo Pizarro y Alonso (1502 – April 10, 1548) was a Spanish
conquistador
and younger paternal half-brother of Francisco Pizarro
, the conqueror of the Inca Empire
. Out-of-wedlock son of Captain Gonzalo Pizarro y Rodríguez de Aguilar (senior) (1446–1522) who as colonel
of infantry
served in the Italian campaigns
under Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
, and in Navarre
, with some distinction, and María Alonso, from Trujillo
. He was the half brother of Francisco
and Hernándo Pizarro
and the full brother of Juan Pizarro
.
, Gonzalo Pizarro accompanied his eldest brother, Francisco Pizarro, in his third expedition for the conquest of Peru in 1532. Gonzalo was also the brother of Hernando Pizarro
and Juan Pizarro
. A lieutenant of his brother Francisco during the conquest, Gonzalo Pizarro was one of the most corrupt, brutal and ruthless conquistadors of the New World
, being far less restrained towards the natives and the Inca than his older brothers.
After Inca emperor Atahualpa
was captured in the Battle of Cajamarca
and later executed on July 26, 1533, the Pizarro brothers
and their followers marched towards the Inca capital of Cuzco to complete the conquest, capturing the city on November 15 after a brief battle
with the Inca forces under Quizquiz
holding it after previously defeating the central government and massacring the nobility of Cuzco. Some sources suggest the Spaniards were well received after vanquishing the northern forces having occupied the capital for nineteen months, but that fact is highly uncertain.
Soon discords arose between Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro
concerning their leadership in the newly conquered land of the Incas. As a result, Almagro left Cuzco in 1534 and was given the honor of Spanish King Charles I
to explore the southern part of Peru (modern-day Chile) and look for more treasures there. Upon his departure, Gonzalo and Juan were appointed by Francisco as garrison
s of Cuzco without Almagro knowing it.
Gonzalo and Juan Pizarro
both looked after the settlements
in Cuzco, while their eldest brother Francisco explored the west coast of northern Peru and founded the city of Lima
in 1535. Gonzalo, Juan and his younger brother Hernándo ruled Cuzco with dictatorship
, greed, corruption
, and brutality, torturing and executing those who refused to accept Spanish rule. Their corrupt rule also brought a rebellion by the Incas under Manco Capac
, who began to fight for equal rights and demanded freedom from harsh Spanish rule. The Incas fought the Spaniards in a number of siege
s and battles for control of the land and temporarily captured Cuzco on May 6, 1536. The Incas were later defeated by the heavily armed Spanish soldiers led by Gonzalo and Juan. Smallpox
was also spread among the natives and many perished.
When Almagro returned from Chile disappointed in not finding any gold, he captured and imprisoned Gonzalo and Hernándo in 1537. They eventually managed to escape and re-join Francisco Pizarro on their return to Lima. When Gonzalo and Hernándo noticed that Almagro also wanted to take control of Cuzco, they fought against him in the Battle of Las Salinas
in April 1538. In the course of these events, Almagro left for Lima
for a negotiation with Francisco on who would control Cuzco. Gonzalo and Hernándo heard of Almagro's threatening intentions and led an army against him, defeating his forces and later condemning him for treason. Almagro was executed on July 8, 1538, under Hernándo's orders.
. Not satisfied and at the urging of Francisco Pizarro, he led an expedition east of Quito with Francisco de Orellana
in search of the fabled city of El Dorado and, "The Country of Cinnamon" ("País de la Canela
"). In Quito, Gonzalo was able to recruit 220 Spaniards and 4,000 Native Americans. The second-in-command, Orellana, was sent to Guayaquil
to recruit more troops and horses. Gonzalo Pizarro and his followers left Quito on February 1541, a month before Orellana, who was able to bring 23 men and several horses. By March both met at the valley of Zumaco and started their march towards crossing the Andes
. After following the courses of the Coca
and Napo
rivers, the expedition started running out of provisions. About 140 of the 220 Spaniards and 3,000 out of 4,000 natives had died. On February 1542, they decided Orellana would continue sailing down the Napo river in search of food along with 50 men.
After a brief time, Gonzalo thought the expedition was a whole failure and decided to take a route north back to Quito with 80 of the remaining men, unknowingly relinquishing the success to Orellana, who ended discovering and exploring the entire length of the Amazon River
. This episode in the life of Gonzalo Pizarro was fictionalized in Werner Herzog's
film, Aguirre: Wrath of God.
Upon his return to Quito, Gonzalo learned that the Almagristas (as the followers of Almagro were called) had assassinated his brother Francisco Pizarro on June 26, 1541 in retaliation for Almagro's execution. By this time the Crown
's representative, Cristóbal Vaca de Castro
, had arrived in Peru amidst the confusion after Pizarro's death. Gonzalo Pizarro offered to help capture those responsible for his brother's death, but was refused. The Almagristas were finally defeated in the battle of Chupas
on September 16, 1542, and their leader, Diego Almagro El Mozo, was executed.
then appointed Blasco Núñez Vela
as Peru's first viceroy in 1544. Núñez introduced the New Laws
, which were framed by Bartolomé de las Casas
to protect the indigenous peoples. Many of the conquistadors living in Peru were against these laws since they could no longer exploit the natives. This prompted Gonzalo Pizarro and Francisco de Carvajal
to organize an army of followers with the intent of suppressing the New Laws. Many conquistadors turned against the Viceroy and joined Gonzalo's side, as his surname provided an effective rallying point. The rebel army defeated Núñez in 1546 at Añaquito
near Quito
. Although some, such as Carvajal, advised Gonzalo to proclaim himself King of Peru and to disown any further claim by the King of Spain to the land, Gonzalo refused.
Over the following months, however, the support for Gonzalo diminished when the King's new representative, Pedro de la Gasca
, arrived with the intention of offering pardon and repealing the New Laws. Most of Gonzalo's army deserted him just before the crucial battle at Sacsayhuamán
(in Spanish
Jaquijajuana), near Cusco
, that would determine the fate of the conquest. No longer supported with an army against the King's new representative, Gonzalo Pizarro surrendered and was beheaded
by the royal forces at field of battle, being the last of the Pizarro brothers to die a violent death (with Hernando dying of high age in Spain some three or six decades later).
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
conquistador
Conquistador
Conquistadors were Spanish soldiers, explorers, and adventurers who brought much of the Americas under the control of Spain in the 15th to 16th centuries, following Europe's discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492...
and younger paternal half-brother of Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess was a Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Incan Empire, and founder of Lima, the modern-day capital of the Republic of Peru.-Early life:...
, the conqueror of the Inca Empire
Inca Empire
The Inca Empire, or Inka Empire , was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in Cusco in modern-day Peru. The Inca civilization arose from the highlands of Peru sometime in the early 13th century...
. Out-of-wedlock son of Captain Gonzalo Pizarro y Rodríguez de Aguilar (senior) (1446–1522) who as colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
of infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
served in the Italian campaigns
Italian Wars
The Italian Wars, often referred to as the Great Italian Wars or the Great Wars of Italy and sometimes as the Habsburg–Valois Wars, were a series of conflicts from 1494 to 1559 that involved, at various times, most of the city-states of Italy, the Papal States, most of the major states of Western...
under Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba known as The Great Captain, Duke of Terranova and Santangelo, Andria, Montalto and Sessa, also known as Gonzalo de Córdoba, Italian: Gonsalvo or Consalvo Ernandes di Cordova was a Spanish general fighting in the times of the Conquest of Granada and the Italian Wars...
, and in Navarre
Navarre
Navarre , officially the Chartered Community of Navarre is an autonomous community in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Country, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and Aquitaine in France...
, with some distinction, and María Alonso, from Trujillo
Trujillo, Spain
Trujillo is a Spanish city of 9860 inhabitants , located in the province of Cáceres, in the Extremadura region. Famous for its monuments, it is a premier resort in Extremadura. It was the birthplace of Francisco Pizarro and his brothers, conquerors of Peru, as well as of Francisco de Orellana...
. He was the half brother of Francisco
Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess was a Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Incan Empire, and founder of Lima, the modern-day capital of the Republic of Peru.-Early life:...
and Hernándo Pizarro
Hernándo Pizarro
Hernando Pizarro y de Vargas was a Spanish conquistador and one of the Pizarro brothers who ruled over Peru...
and the full brother of Juan Pizarro
Juan Pizarro II
Juan Pizarro y Alonso was a Spanish conquistador who accompanied his brothers Francisco, Gonzalo and Hernándo Pizarro for the conquest of Peru in 1532.-Biography:...
.
Early years in Peru
Born in Trujillo, SpainTrujillo, Spain
Trujillo is a Spanish city of 9860 inhabitants , located in the province of Cáceres, in the Extremadura region. Famous for its monuments, it is a premier resort in Extremadura. It was the birthplace of Francisco Pizarro and his brothers, conquerors of Peru, as well as of Francisco de Orellana...
, Gonzalo Pizarro accompanied his eldest brother, Francisco Pizarro, in his third expedition for the conquest of Peru in 1532. Gonzalo was also the brother of Hernando Pizarro
Hernándo Pizarro
Hernando Pizarro y de Vargas was a Spanish conquistador and one of the Pizarro brothers who ruled over Peru...
and Juan Pizarro
Juan Pizarro II
Juan Pizarro y Alonso was a Spanish conquistador who accompanied his brothers Francisco, Gonzalo and Hernándo Pizarro for the conquest of Peru in 1532.-Biography:...
. A lieutenant of his brother Francisco during the conquest, Gonzalo Pizarro was one of the most corrupt, brutal and ruthless conquistadors of the New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
, being far less restrained towards the natives and the Inca than his older brothers.
After Inca emperor Atahualpa
Atahualpa
Atahualpa, Atahuallpa, Atabalipa, or Atawallpa , was the last Sapa Inca or sovereign emperor of the Tahuantinsuyu, or the Inca Empire, prior to the Spanish conquest of Peru...
was captured in the Battle of Cajamarca
Battle of Cajamarca
The Battle of Cajamarca was a surprise attack on the Inca royal entourage orchestrated by Francisco Pizarro. Sprung on the evening of November 16, 1532, in the great plaza of Cajamarca, the ambush achieved the goal of capturing the Inca, Atahualpa, and claimed the lives of thousands of his...
and later executed on July 26, 1533, the Pizarro brothers
Pizarro brothers
The Pizarro brothers were Spanish conquistadors who came to Peru in 1532. They all were born in Trujillo, Extremadura, Spain.The four brothers were:* Francisco Pizarro * Gonzalo Pizarro * Juan Pizarro * Hernándo Pizarro The Pizarro brothers were Spanish conquistadors who came to Peru in 1532. They...
and their followers marched towards the Inca capital of Cuzco to complete the conquest, capturing the city on November 15 after a brief battle
Battle of Cuzco
The Battle of Cuzco was fought in 1533 between the forces of Spain and of the Incas. The Spanish forces were led by Francisco Pizarro who, after executing the Inca Atahualpa, marched to Cuzco, the capital of the Incan Empire. As the Spanish force approached Cuzco, however, Pizarro sent his brother...
with the Inca forces under Quizquiz
Quizquiz
Quizquiz or Quisquis was, along with Chalkuchimac and Rumiñahui, one of Atahualpa's leading generals. In April 1532, along with his companions, Quizquiz led the armies of Atahualpa to victory in the battles of Mullihambato, Chimborazo and Quipaipan, where he, along with Chalkuchimac defeated and...
holding it after previously defeating the central government and massacring the nobility of Cuzco. Some sources suggest the Spaniards were well received after vanquishing the northern forces having occupied the capital for nineteen months, but that fact is highly uncertain.
Soon discords arose between Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro
Diego de Almagro
Diego de Almagro, , also known as El Adelantado and El Viejo , was a Spanish conquistador and a companion and later rival of Francisco Pizarro. He participated in the Spanish conquest of Peru and is credited as the first European discoverer of Chile.Almagro lost his left eye battling with coastal...
concerning their leadership in the newly conquered land of the Incas. As a result, Almagro left Cuzco in 1534 and was given the honor of Spanish King Charles I
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
to explore the southern part of Peru (modern-day Chile) and look for more treasures there. Upon his departure, Gonzalo and Juan were appointed by Francisco as garrison
Garrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
s of Cuzco without Almagro knowing it.
Juan Pizarro II
Juan Pizarro y Alonso was a Spanish conquistador who accompanied his brothers Francisco, Gonzalo and Hernándo Pizarro for the conquest of Peru in 1532.-Biography:...
both looked after the settlements
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in Cuzco, while their eldest brother Francisco explored the west coast of northern Peru and founded the city of Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
in 1535. Gonzalo, Juan and his younger brother Hernándo ruled Cuzco with dictatorship
Dictatorship
A dictatorship is defined as an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by an individual, the dictator. It has three possible meanings:...
, greed, corruption
Political corruption
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
, and brutality, torturing and executing those who refused to accept Spanish rule. Their corrupt rule also brought a rebellion by the Incas under Manco Capac
Manco Inca Yupanqui
Manco Inca Yupanqui was one of the Incas of Vilcabamba. He was also known as "Manco II" and "Manco Cápac II" . Born in 1516, he was one of the sons of Huayna Cápac and came from a lower class of the nobility.Túpac Huallpa, a puppet ruler crowned by conquistador Francisco Pizarro, died in 1533...
, who began to fight for equal rights and demanded freedom from harsh Spanish rule. The Incas fought the Spaniards in a number of siege
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
s and battles for control of the land and temporarily captured Cuzco on May 6, 1536. The Incas were later defeated by the heavily armed Spanish soldiers led by Gonzalo and Juan. Smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
was also spread among the natives and many perished.
When Almagro returned from Chile disappointed in not finding any gold, he captured and imprisoned Gonzalo and Hernándo in 1537. They eventually managed to escape and re-join Francisco Pizarro on their return to Lima. When Gonzalo and Hernándo noticed that Almagro also wanted to take control of Cuzco, they fought against him in the Battle of Las Salinas
Battle of Las Salinas
The Battle of Las Salinas was a military conflict and decisive confrontation between the forces of Hernando and Gonzalo Pizarro against those of rival conquistador Diego de Almagro, on April 26, 1538, during the Conquest of Peru...
in April 1538. In the course of these events, Almagro left for Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
for a negotiation with Francisco on who would control Cuzco. Gonzalo and Hernándo heard of Almagro's threatening intentions and led an army against him, defeating his forces and later condemning him for treason. Almagro was executed on July 8, 1538, under Hernándo's orders.
Expeditions with Francisco de Orellana
In 1541, Gonzalo was declared the governor of QuitoQuito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
. Not satisfied and at the urging of Francisco Pizarro, he led an expedition east of Quito with Francisco de Orellana
Francisco de Orellana
Francisco de Orellana was a Spanish explorer and conquistador. He completed the first known navigation of the length of the Amazon River, which was originally named for him...
in search of the fabled city of El Dorado and, "The Country of Cinnamon" ("País de la Canela
La Canela
La Canela, the Valley of Cinnamon, is a legendary location in South America. As with El Dorado, its legend grew out of expectations aroused by the voyage of Columbus...
"). In Quito, Gonzalo was able to recruit 220 Spaniards and 4,000 Native Americans. The second-in-command, Orellana, was sent to Guayaquil
Guayaquil
Guayaquil , officially Santiago de Guayaquil , is the largest and the most populous city in Ecuador,with about 2.3 million inhabitants in the city and nearly 3.1 million in the metropolitan area, as well as that nation's main port...
to recruit more troops and horses. Gonzalo Pizarro and his followers left Quito on February 1541, a month before Orellana, who was able to bring 23 men and several horses. By March both met at the valley of Zumaco and started their march towards crossing the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
. After following the courses of the Coca
Coca River
The Coca River is a river in eastern Ecuador. It is a tributary of the Napo River. The two rivers join in Puerto Francisco de Orellana....
and Napo
Napo River
The Napo is a tributary to the Amazon River that rises in Ecuador on the flanks of the volcanoes of Antisana, Sincholagua and Cotopaxi.The total length of 1075 km. Catchment area of 100,518 square kilometers...
rivers, the expedition started running out of provisions. About 140 of the 220 Spaniards and 3,000 out of 4,000 natives had died. On February 1542, they decided Orellana would continue sailing down the Napo river in search of food along with 50 men.
After a brief time, Gonzalo thought the expedition was a whole failure and decided to take a route north back to Quito with 80 of the remaining men, unknowingly relinquishing the success to Orellana, who ended discovering and exploring the entire length of the Amazon River
Amazon River
The Amazon of South America is the second longest river in the world and by far the largest by waterflow with an average discharge greater than the next seven largest rivers combined...
. This episode in the life of Gonzalo Pizarro was fictionalized in Werner Herzog's
Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog Stipetić , known as Werner Herzog, is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and opera director.He is often considered as one of the greatest figures of the New German Cinema, along with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Margarethe von Trotta, Volker Schlöndorff, Werner...
film, Aguirre: Wrath of God.
Upon his return to Quito, Gonzalo learned that the Almagristas (as the followers of Almagro were called) had assassinated his brother Francisco Pizarro on June 26, 1541 in retaliation for Almagro's execution. By this time the Crown
Spanish monarchy
The Monarchy of Spain, constitutionally referred to as The Crown and commonly referred to as the Spanish monarchy or Hispanic Monarchy, is a constitutional institution and an historic office of Spain...
's representative, Cristóbal Vaca de Castro
Cristóbal Vaca de Castro
Cristóbal Vaca de Castro was a Spanish colonial administrator in Peru.-Background:...
, had arrived in Peru amidst the confusion after Pizarro's death. Gonzalo Pizarro offered to help capture those responsible for his brother's death, but was refused. The Almagristas were finally defeated in the battle of Chupas
Battle of Chupas
After the assassination of Francisco Pizarro, in retaliation for his father's execution in 1538, Diego de Almagro II, El Mozo, continued to press claims as the rightful ruler of Peru and as leader of his father's supporters...
on September 16, 1542, and their leader, Diego Almagro El Mozo, was executed.
Gonzalo turns against the Spanish King
Emperor Charles VCharles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
then appointed Blasco Núñez Vela
Blasco Núñez Vela
Blasco Núñez Vela y Villalba was the first Spanish viceroy of Peru, from May 15, 1544 to January 18, 1546. He was charged by King Charles I with the enforcement of the controversial New Laws, which dealt with the failure of the encomienda system to protect the indigenous people of America from the...
as Peru's first viceroy in 1544. Núñez introduced the New Laws
New Laws
The New Laws, in Spanish Leyes Nuevas, issued November 20, 1542 by King Charles V of Spain regarding the Spanish colonization of the Americas, are also known as the "New Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians", and were created to prevent the exploitation of the...
, which were framed by Bartolomé de las Casas
Bartolomé de Las Casas
Bartolomé de las Casas O.P. was a 16th-century Spanish historian, social reformer and Dominican friar. He became the first resident Bishop of Chiapas, and the first officially appointed "Protector of the Indians"...
to protect the indigenous peoples. Many of the conquistadors living in Peru were against these laws since they could no longer exploit the natives. This prompted Gonzalo Pizarro and Francisco de Carvajal
Francisco de Carvajal
Francisco de Carvajal was a Spanish military officer, conquistador, and explorer remembered as "the demon of the Andes" due to his brutality and uncanny military skill in the Peruvian civil wars of the 16th century....
to organize an army of followers with the intent of suppressing the New Laws. Many conquistadors turned against the Viceroy and joined Gonzalo's side, as his surname provided an effective rallying point. The rebel army defeated Núñez in 1546 at Añaquito
Battle of Añaquito
After his unheard claims as governor of New Castile following the death of his brother, Gonzalo Pizarro pressed claims to be recognized as the ruler of the land he and his brothers had conquered. After the arrival of appointed royal viceroy Blasco Núñez Vela in 1544, Gonzalo succeeded to have him...
near Quito
Quito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
. Although some, such as Carvajal, advised Gonzalo to proclaim himself King of Peru and to disown any further claim by the King of Spain to the land, Gonzalo refused.
Over the following months, however, the support for Gonzalo diminished when the King's new representative, Pedro de la Gasca
Pedro de la Gasca
Pedro de la Gasca was a Spanish bishop, diplomat and the second viceroy of Peru, from April 10, 1547 to January 27, 1550....
, arrived with the intention of offering pardon and repealing the New Laws. Most of Gonzalo's army deserted him just before the crucial battle at Sacsayhuamán
Sacsayhuamán
-External links:* BBC Article...
(in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
Jaquijajuana), near Cusco
Cusco
Cusco , often spelled Cuzco , is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region as well as the Cuzco Province. In 2007, the city had a population of 358,935 which was triple the figure of 20 years ago...
, that would determine the fate of the conquest. No longer supported with an army against the King's new representative, Gonzalo Pizarro surrendered and was beheaded
Decapitation
Decapitation is the separation of the head from the body. Beheading typically refers to the act of intentional decapitation, e.g., as a means of murder or execution; it may be accomplished, for example, with an axe, sword, knife, wire, or by other more sophisticated means such as a guillotine...
by the royal forces at field of battle, being the last of the Pizarro brothers to die a violent death (with Hernando dying of high age in Spain some three or six decades later).