Titu Cusi
Encyclopedia
Don Diego de Castro Titu Cusi Yupanqui (1529–1571) was a son of Manco Inca Yupanqui
, and became the Inca ruler of Vilcabamba
, the penultimate leader of the neo-Incan state. He was crowned in 1558, after the death of his half brother, Sayri Tupac. He ruled until his death in 1571, probably of pneumonia.
During his rule at Vilcabamba, Peruvian Viceroy Francisco de Toledo wanted to negotiate with him. The negotiations were about Cusi leaving the fortress and accepting a Crown pension. After negotiations escalated, around 1568, Cusi was baptized
into the Roman Catholic Church
.
Titu Cusi made Túpac Amaru
a priest and custodian of Manco Inca's body in Vilcabamba
. Túpac Amaru became the Inca ruler after Titu’s death in 1571. His close companion Friar Diego Ortiz was blamed for killing Titu by poisoning him.
Titu Cusi is the 'narrator' and source of An Inca Account of the Conquest of Peru, a firsthand account of the Spanish invasion, narrated by him in 1570 to a Spanish missionary and transcribed by a mestizo assistant. The resulting hybrid document offers a unique Inca perspective on the Spanish conquest of Peru. The confusion and misunderstandings of first contact are described in the account, including mistaken beliefs that the Spaniards were gods. The section which describes the moment when Manco Inca, the father of the author and the brother of Atahuallpa, receives the first news of the Spaniards arrival from coastal tribesman is of particular note.
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...
, and became the Inca ruler of Vilcabamba
Vilcabamba, Peru
Vilcabamba was a city founded by Manco Inca in 1539 and was the last refuge of the Inca Empire until it fell to the Spaniards in 1572, signaling the end of Inca resistance to Spanish rule.- History :...
, the penultimate leader of the neo-Incan state. He was crowned in 1558, after the death of his half brother, Sayri Tupac. He ruled until his death in 1571, probably of pneumonia.
During his rule at Vilcabamba, Peruvian Viceroy Francisco de Toledo wanted to negotiate with him. The negotiations were about Cusi leaving the fortress and accepting a Crown pension. After negotiations escalated, around 1568, Cusi was baptized
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
into the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
.
Titu Cusi made Túpac Amaru
Túpac Amaru
Túpac Amaru, also called Thupa Amaro , was the last indigenous leader of the Inca state in Peru.-Accession:...
a priest and custodian of Manco Inca's body in Vilcabamba
Vilcabamba
Vilcabamba may refer to:* Vilcabamba, Peru* Vilcabamba, Ecuador, town in the province of Loja, Ecuador* "Vilcabamba" , a 2010 Science Fiction story by Harry Turtledove...
. Túpac Amaru became the Inca ruler after Titu’s death in 1571. His close companion Friar Diego Ortiz was blamed for killing Titu by poisoning him.
Titu Cusi is the 'narrator' and source of An Inca Account of the Conquest of Peru, a firsthand account of the Spanish invasion, narrated by him in 1570 to a Spanish missionary and transcribed by a mestizo assistant. The resulting hybrid document offers a unique Inca perspective on the Spanish conquest of Peru. The confusion and misunderstandings of first contact are described in the account, including mistaken beliefs that the Spaniards were gods. The section which describes the moment when Manco Inca, the father of the author and the brother of Atahuallpa, receives the first news of the Spaniards arrival from coastal tribesman is of particular note.
'When my father heard this, he was beside himself and said, "How dare those people intrude into my country without my authorisation and permission? Who are these people and what are their ways?" The messengers answered, "Lord, these people cannot but be gods, for they claim to have come by the wind. They are bearded people, very beautiful and white. They eat out of silver plates. Even their sheep, who carry them, are large and wear silver shoes. They throw thunder like the sky...Moreover, we have witnesses with our own eyes that they talk to white cloths by themselves and that they call some of us by our names without having been informed by anyone and only looking into the sheets, which they hold in front of them...Who could people of this manner and fortune be but gods?"'
Titu Cusi Yapanqui (1570), 'An Inca Account of the Conquest of Peru
External links
- Castro Tito Cusi Yupanqui, Diego de, Relación de la Conquista del Perú y hechos del Inca Manco II — 1570
- Jacobs, James Q. Tupac Amaru, The Life, Times, and Execution of the Last Inca.