The Men of Cajamarca: A Social and Biographical Study of the First Conquerors of Peru

by James Lockhart

In November 1532, a group of 168 Spaniards seized the Inca emperor Atahuallpa in the town of Cajamarca, in the northern Peruvian highlands. Their act, quickly taken as a symbol of the conquest of a vast empire, brought them unprecedented rewards in gold and silver; it made them celebrities, gave them first choice of positions of honor and power in the new Peru of the Spaniards, and opened up the possibility of a splendid life at home in Spain, if they so desired. Thus they became men of consequence, at the epicenter of a swift and irrevocable transformation of the Andean region. Yet before that memorable day in Cajamarca they had been quite unexceptional, a reasonable sampling of Spaniards on expeditions all over the Indies at the time of the great conquests. The Men of Cajamarca is perhaps the fullest treatment yet published of any group of early Spaniards in America. Part I examines general types, characteristics, and processes visible in the group as representative Spanish immigrants, central to the establishment of a Spanish presence in the New World’s richest land. The intention is to contribute to a changing image of the Spanish conqueror, a man motivated more by pragmatic self-interest than by any love of adventure, capable and versatile as often as illiterate and rough. Aiming at permanence more than new landfalls, these men created the governmental units and settlement distribution of much of Spanish America and set lasting patterns for a new society. Part II contains the men’s individual biographies, ranging from a few lines for the most obscure to many pages of analysis for the best-documented figures. The author traces the lives of the men to their beginnings in Spain and follows their careers after the episode in Cajamarca.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

514 pages, Paperback

First published December 14, 1972

About the author

Academic and historian specialising in colonial Latin America and Nahuatl sources

Reviews

[Julio The Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes the sting and glory out of Pizarro. James Lockhart, colleague, friend and inspiration, was our foremost expert on Indian life in Peru and Mexico. but, before he turned his mighty gaze in that direction, Lockhart had to tackle the conqueror class. Ever the trailblazer, Lockhart delivered the goods. THE MEN OF CAJAMARCA is an early entry into a new field, collective biography. Who were the men facing off against Inca Emperor Atahualpa in the city of Cajamarca in 1532? By diving into their lives back in Spain before the conquest Lockhart shows much of what we think we know about the Spanish capture of the New world is wrong. These men, including Pizarro, were not soldiers. They had not fought the Turk, Arab or anybody else. Their military experience was zero. These were businessmen, or at least that was their aim. Bested in gaining a step up in life back in Iberia, lacking any education, and crucially, having obtained no loot from the Reconquista or early Spanish voyages, the New world was their last chance and best hope for economic advance. What they were good at was learning from the conquest of the Caribbean: capture the boss man (cacique), demand payment in gold or silver for his return, subjugate the natives anyway, and utilize their precolonial labor tribute system (the mita in Peru) for your own gain; simple, effective and exploitative. Pizarro was no genius. He was simply following a script.

[Daniel Osores · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monumento histórico que relata la biografía, mediante datos obtenidos en fuentes primarias, de cada uno de los españoles que estuvieron en los sucesos de Cajamarca (1532) que terminaron con la captura del inca Atahualpa. Algunas biografías son más extensas que otras, debido a la falta de evidencias y documentación. Más que recomendado.