The Adventure Chronicles of Conquistador Pedro De Mérida: Volume 1: Almagro

By Bob Villarreal

It is 1492 when the discovery of the Americas by Columbus closes out the Middle Ages and sets the stage for the modern history of the New World. While new lands beckon adventure seekers focused on discovery, conquest, and settlement, a few hundred men sent forth by the King of Spain leave on expeditions to explore the new territories and search for gold and power. One of these adventurers, Pedro de Mérida, becomes a conquistador and chronicler of the New World – and one who will ultimately leave a vibrant record of his travels in Chile and Peru.

In a fascinating retelling through six letters to the king, a sixty-year-old de Mérida documents his travels to the farthest regions of the Inca Empire. As he captures the spirit of adventure and invites others into his story of the conquest of Chile in his first three letters, the conquistador details the Diego de Almagro Expedition to Chile in 1535 to 1537 and the return to Peru, a distance of more than three thousand miles.

The Adventure Chronicles of Conquistador Pedro de Mérida shares an unforgettable travel adventure back to a remote land and age when the search for gold and power dominated men’s actions as historical events shook the foundation of the mighty Inca Empire.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Abbott Press
• Release date: Apr 25, 2019
• ISBN: 9781458222145

Bob Villarreal

Bob Villarreal acquired a passion for climbing in the Andes later in life and tells of his solo climbs in “Clawing for the Stars: A Solo Climber in the Highest Andes”. In this book, the “Prelude” to “Clawing”, he tells of the guided climbs that preceded his solo adventures. His interest in South America is wider than the mountains, however. He and his wife of fifty years adopted daughters from Pasto, Colombia, and Cuzco, Peru and see them and their grandchildren often. This fascination with Andean countries also led him to write about the conquest of the Incas, as told in his books, “The Adventure Chronicles of Conquistador Pedro de Mérida, Volume I: Almagro, Volume II: Valdivia, and Volume III: Pizarro”. Visit his book site at bobvillarreal.com.

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The Adventure

Chronicles of

Conquistador

Pedro de Mérida`

TRAVELS TO ANCIENT CHILE IN THE YEARS OF OUR LORD, 1535-1537, WITH DIEGO DE ALMAGRO (VOLUME I), AND 1540-1554, WITH PEDRO DE VALDIVIA (VOLUME II); BEING ACCOUNTS OF THOSE JOURNEYS TO THE FARTHEST MOST REGIONS OF THE INCA EMPIRE, AS RELATED TO HIS MOST CATHOLIC MAJESTY, KING DON PHILIP II, OUR MOST SOVEREIGN RULER

As related by himself, Pedro de Mérida, a Chile Conquistador

By

BOB VILLARREAL

PRESENTED IN TWO VOLUMES,

OF WHICH THIS IS

VOLUME 1: ALMAGRO

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Copyright © 2019 Bob Villarreal.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

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ISBN: 978-1-4582-2216-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4582-2215-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4582-2214-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018914246

Abbott Press rev. date:     04/24/2019

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An antique engraving of Chile dated 1671 by Arnoldus Montanus. R. Villarreal Collection.

PROLOGUE

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A date known to most in the Western World is 1492, when the discovery of the Americas by Columbus closed out the Middle Ages and set the stage for the modern history of the New World. As a result, the people of Spain felt themselves a chosen nation and one destined for momentous events. The new lands offered an outlet for the ambitions of men frustrated by the exhaustion of their country and the endemic poverty that had plagued it for generations. The enthusiasm of these adventure seekers soon became focused upon the discovery, conquest, and settlement of the new, unknown lands. Many military expeditions of but a few hundred men sent forth by the King left Spain for the new territories and swept to the farthest-most borders of two continents in only several decades. Like most adventurers, many of these men sought large returns on the investment of their time and money in such risky undertakings. Gold most of them desired, of course, but equally important were landed estates worked by peasant natives who would extract the soil’s bounty for them. These new lords wished to enjoy their possessions, like the manor lords at home in their olden land, and pass them on to their heirs in future generations. During these momentous times, one of these adventurers became a conquistador and chronicler of the New World, one who would leave a vibrant record of his travels in Chile for us and the only participant to do so. For our historical enjoyment, he gave us his work: THE ADVENTURE CHRONICLES OF CONQUISTADOR PEDRO DE MÉRIDA: TRAVELS TO ANCIENT CHILE IN THE YEARS OF OUR LORD, 1535-1537, WITH DIEGO DE ALMAGRO (VOLUME I), AND 1540-1553, WITH PEDRO DE VALDIVIA (VOLUME II); BEING ACCOUNTS OF THOSE JOURNEYS TO THE FARTHEST MOST REGIONS OF THE INCA EMPIRE; AS RELATED TO HIS MOST CATHOLIC MAJESTY, KING DON PHILIP II, ¹ OUR MOST SOVEREIGN RULER.

He tells his story in six letters to the King, historical narratives here broken into two volumes. In the first three of Volume I, de Mérida tells of the Diego de Almagro Expedition to Chile in 1535 to 1537² and the return to Peru, a distance of more than 3,500 miles.³ In the fourth, fifth, and sixth letters of Volume II, he recounts his adventures with the Pedro de Valdivia Expedition to conquer Chile during the years 1540 to 1554. He wrote all six letters between 1565 and 1568, when he was in his early sixties. De Mérida’s correspondences comprise the only formal record of the Almagro and Valdivia journeys composed by a member of the expeditions, and they help fill the historical void. In addition, historians through the later centuries have identified some of the principal Spanish and Indian participants, the dates of several events, and numerous undated incidents that serve to corroborate the stories de Mérida tells.

Also, the old soldier offers the reader thirty-three memorable portraits of the major participants on these two important expeditions, with the explanation, . … so that Your Grace knows more of those men and women on these adventures and their motivations, their strengths, and their weaknesses. But he gives surprisingly few details concerning his own life. For example, he says nothing of his parents. But we may assume that they were surely of at least the middle class, for he had the somewhat uncommon ability to read and write. Moreover, he often reveals a moral sense of character, a good amount of learning, and an education in horse riding and the use of the sword. All of these indicate some level of education. As for the man himself, he tells us that he was born in Mérida, Spain, in 1505. We know little of his early years, except that he tried the life of a Franciscan monk for an unknown period of time before succumbing to the beckoning of a life of epic adventures of grand proportions in the land of Nuevo Extremo. We do know why he wrote the letters, however, for he tells the King early on: Now, at the age of sixty years, I have taken up my stylus to relate the matters I witnessed, the only member of either expedition to do so. I must assure Your Highness that I am making these statements to avoid eternal damnation by declaring myself guilty of participating in the destruction of a people so well governed as these natives and so free from transgressions and excesses, men as well as women. They need Your protection, Sire, and I make mention of this that it might be seen fit that they be taken under Your care.⁴

As for the times he lived in, life was exciting in the sixteenth century Spanish domain, since it appeared to hold more possibilities for European man than ever before in its history. It was now apparent that the inhabitable earth was a larger place than previously understood. This abrupt extension of horizons to unheard of physical dimensions was now paired with a sense of destiny that Spain was the designated representative of God to Christianize the globe. Were not the discoveries of Columbus obvious proofs of the special approval of Divine Providence? Every Spaniard must have thought himself exceptional in the eyes of the Lord, and thus felt his people to be the chosen race of the Almighty. This thinking unleashed a vibrant national energy and vigorously inspired the fervent imagination of young men. And to be young during this period in Spain was to believe in the heretofore impossible. An enlarged world brimmed with probabilities of adventure and riches in which the most improbable dreams and hopes of fame and fortune might come true.

Alluding to his arrival in the New World, de Mérida says: I joined the expedition of Francisco Pizarro at twenty-seven years of age. In 1532, we landed on the shores of the fabled land of Peru, where we established the first settlement, San Miguel de Piura, named for Our Sovereign, Carlos V. This confirms his date of birth, but he tells us nothing of the Spanish battles with the Inca and the eventual conquest of their sacred city, Cusco. That is a pity, as his telling of things would have provided valuable insights into those great struggles that shook a continent and the Inca Nation. Rather, he maintains a strict concentration upon the new land of Chile and rarely wavers from relating his travels there. And this focus fuses the life of de Mérida with the stunning epic of the Conquest of Chile. Fortunately for the reader, on both expeditions he is often present when dramatic events take place, is close to the leaders when they make decisions, and shares their successes and failures. With a realism and intensity born of one who actually lived what he tells of, he transmits to his pages descriptions of the swathes of land never before seen by European man and the many happenings, including numerous detailed battle scenes that occurred during both expeditions.

On the journey south with Almagro, he describes the bloody ambush by hostile natives at Laguna Poopo; the first European crossing of the great Andes mountains on their way west to the town of Copayapu;⁵ the journey south in search of gold which ends in Papudo with no golden ore found; the great battle of Papudo; his incredible interview of Apani, one of the Indians who climbed and built the huts on the top of the great mountain, Llullaillaco; the meeting in Calama with the ruler of several northern towns, Huamanpallpa, known as the Desert Cacique; the stroll through the Tacna market called the Great Qhatu; the journey north to the town of Arequipa and the stirring action at the Battle of Fortress Arequipa. During all of this, the figures of Almagro, Prince Paullu, Ancohualla, the Desert Cacique, Montesinos, Centeño, Castilla, de Valdéz, and many other protagonists of this engrossing epic are painted unforgettably in the simple, colorful language of a veteran recalling events that transpired several decades before.

Further action follows with the Pedro de Valdivia Expedition, for in de Mérida’s three letters of Volume II we are treated to more depictions of lands never seen by a European as he tells of the transit of northern Chile over the Avenue of the Volcáns; Valdivia’s meeting with Huaman, the Desert Cacique, and their instant bonding; the despicable Sancho de Hoz makes his first of several attempts to kill Valdivia; a great sickness affects many Christians and Indians while Doña Inés de Suárez and Pilca Huaca lead the medication and recovery efforts; the march inland from Papudo to the site for the new capital city reveals a new Indian threat, the Mapuche Indians commanded by their leader, Michimalongo, known as the Inca Toqui; the bloody Battle of the Huelén ends when the Mapuche claim to see the glorious Apostle Santo Iago descending upon them and surrender forthwith; Captain Valdivia is distracted by Indian maneuvers to the south of nascent Santiago and leaves the town to rescue de Benito; Michimalongo attacks the few men left behind, burns down the town, but suffers a humiliating defeat by the Christians led by Inés de Suárez; Michimalongo becomes a friend; Captain Pastene conducts a voyage of discovery along the southern shores in the San Pedro; the Arauco War in the south against the Mapuche, often fought in the dark of its jungle-like landscape, begins with the battle of the killing fields of Quilacura; de Hoz finally meets his deserved fate. The adventures continue with clashes at Andalién and Penco; the founding of Concepción de Marίa Purίsima del Nuevo Extremo; a young Mapuche, Lautaro, becomes Valdivia’s page; Lautaro escapes and is replaced by Agustinillo. De Mérida’s narrative ends after the fated Battle of Tucapel and the slaughter of Valdivia and his men by Mapuche warriors led by Lautaro. His leg injury in the skirmish at Fortress Purén, several days before Valdivia’s death that resulted in a crippling wound, required de Mérida to retire from the field at the age of 49, take up Santiago city council duties, and settle down into family life with his Indian wife, Pilca Huaca, and their two children, Vicente and Inés.

Through these goings on, we are introduced to more vibrant characters the likes of whom stir great interest: Captain Valdivia; his mujer, Inés de Suárez, an altogether unforgettable woman; the Cacica for Medical matters for the Indian contingent, Pilca Huaca, an Inca princess; Ancohualla; the Dominican Fathers Juan de Cabrera, Juan Lobo, Diego Perez, Bartolomé del Pozo, and Rodrigo Gonzáles Marmolejo; the faithful soldiers Montesinos, de Alderete, de Quiroga, de Monroy, de Vergara, Bohón, de Miranda, de Gamboa, de Benito, de Almagro, Villagran, Rodrigo Hidalgo, de Aguirre, the expedition guides, the Inca Toquis Michimalongo and Lautaro, the list could go on, but these must suffice.

We can only assume that de Mérida took thorough notes of his exploits and recorded the names of all those he associated with, the places he visited, and the things he saw. For how else to explain his letters written to King Philip several years after the events of which he tells? We must applaud his memory, for it surely was intact and functioning well at his age. His writing style is direct and without pretension. While he occasionally registers his personal reactions to an event or person, he ordinarily tells his stories without inserting his own value judgments. While the work has the feel of a novel with its spontaneous recitation of adventures, meticulous battlefield descriptions, energetic anecdotes, and the engrossing dialogues of the historical characters, it is still history as recounted by a horse soldier who suffered the pain of several wounds and was eventually crippled, endured hunger, the fear and tribulations of personal combat, the tension of campaigning in strange lands against antagonists of enormous numbers, and the continual confrontation of the unknown. But, one may surmise that our chronicler, a product of the Spanish desire for adventure, rather welcomed most of the discomfort, for he never complains or gives notice of his dissatisfaction. As he says on numerous occasions, he was wanting adventure. As it transpired, he found it, and in abundance.

The stories of de Mérida make for an unforgettable travel adventure back to a remote land and age, when the search for gold and the desire for power dominated men’s actions, and they offer the modern reader a rare look into the historical events of long ago that shook the foundations of the mighty Inca Empire.

As a final note, the author has traveled some seventy percent of the routes followed by both expeditions and is able therefore to convey his understanding of the terrain and people encountered in de Mérida’s telling of things.⁶

Bob Villarreal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

VOLUME 1: ALMAGRO

PROLOGUE

THE FIRST LETTER

PART A.   THE BEGINNING OF MY RELATION

PART B.   THE STORY TO BE TOLD

PART C.   OUR DEPARTURE FOR CHILE

PART D.   MY NARRATIVE CONTINUES

PART E.   OUR TRAVELS SOUTH AND THE INCA ROADS; A MINOR SKIRMISH WITH HOSTILE NATIVES AT ANDAHUAYLILLAS; LAGUNA TITICACA AND THE RUINS OF TIWANAKU

PART F.   OTHER WONDERS TO RELATE; WE MEET A CHASQUI RUNNER

PART G.   OBSERVING THE INDIANS AND THE BLOODY AMBUSH BY HOSTILES AT LAGUNA POOPO

PART H.   OF DIVERS HAPPENINGS AND INCA BRIDGES; DEFECTIONS OF OUR INDIANS

PART I.   WE PRESS ONWARD; THE GOLD CARAVAN FROM CHILE

PART J.   THE TILPAYA DIALOGUE; CAPTAIN ALMAGRO’S DECISION AS TO THE FATE OF THE ELDERS

PART K.   WE RESUME THE JOURNEY; WAREHOUSES FOR GOLD STORAGE IN TUCMA; MORE INDIAN DESERTIONS

PART L.   ON OUR WAY TO THE HIGH PASS AND BOUND FOR FIAMBALÁ; WE CROSS THE MOUNTAINS AT PASO DE SAN FRANCISCO; OUR ARRIVAL AT LAGUNA VERDE

PART M.   OUR JOURNEY ACROSS THE GREAT PLATEAU; OUR CAPTAIN ALLOWS ME TO RIDE TO THE PEAK, OJOS DEL SALADO; A VIOLENT STORM KILLS THREE SPANIARDS AND MANY INDIANS; WE ARRIVE AT FLAMINGO LAGUNA

THE SECOND LETTER

PART N.   OUR TIME IN COPAYAPU; THE BLOOMING OF THE DESERT

PART O.   THE INCA CONQUEST OF CHILE IN THE 1470’s

PART P.   OUR WAY TO CUQUIMPU; THE SKIRMISH WITH HOSTILES NEAR HUASCO

PART Q.   CUQUIMPU AND THE JOURNEY SOUTH; OUR EFFORTS TO FIND GOLD CONTINUE TO FAIL

PART R.   THE BATTLE OF PAPUDO, IN WHICH WE SUFFER CASUALTIES BUT SLAY MANY HOSTILES

PART S.   OUR RETURN TO CUQUIMPU AND WHAT HAPPENED THERE; A TRAGEDY ALONG THE WAY

PART T.   OUR WAY TO COPAYAPU; THE PROMISE OF A GREAT ADVENTURE TO COME

THE THIRD LETTER

PART U.   COPAYAPU AND THE MARCH NORTH TO ATACAMA; A DESERTER IN OUR RANKS; A GUANACO HUNT AT THE FOOT OF THE MIGHTY LLULLAILLACO

PART V.   A NOTABLE INTERVIEW WITH THE INDIAN CALLED APANI, ONE OF THE BUILDERS OF THE HUTS ON THE TOP OF LLULLAILLACO

PART W.   WE MEET THE DESERT CACIQUE, HUAMANPALLPA; THE TRANSIT OF THE AVENUE OF THE VOLCÁNS AND THE ADVENTURES THAT OCCURRED; THE UNFORTUNATE DEATH OF A VETERAN HORSE SOLDIER; OUR ARRIVAL AT TACNA

PARTS X-Z.    OUR MARCH TO AREQUIPA AND THE GREAT BATTLE FOUGHT THERE AT FORTRESS AREQUIPA; WE LEAVE FOR THE RETURN TO CUSCO

APPENDICES

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX C

BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR VOLUME I

THE FIRST LETTER

Written to the King by Pedro de Mérida from Santiago del Nueva Extremadura on July 1, 1565.

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PART A

THE BEGINNING OF MY RELATION

I , Pedro de Mérida, before relating my travels to the farthest regions of the Inca Empire and all that happened on my journeys, the first led by Captain Diego de Almagro ⁷ and the second by Captain Pedro de Valdivia, ⁸ must first, in this year of Our Lord 1565, declare that for years I have desired the opportunity to beg forgiveness of Your Majesty, that I may soothe my conscience concerning my involvement in the discovery, conquest, and settlement of the kingdoms of Peru and Nuevo Extremo, ⁹ or Chile. Now, at the age of sixty years, I have taken up my stylus to relate the matters I witnessed, the only member of either expedition to do so. I must assure Your Highness that I am making these statements to avoid eternal damnation by declaring myself guilty of participating in the destruction of a people so well governed as these natives and so free from transgressions and excesses, men as well as women. They need Your protection, Sire, and I make mention of this that it might be seen fit that they be taken under Your care.

I myself swear before our Savior that I never, at any time, committed a sinful act against one of God’s creatures in that land. Rather, I sinned when I turned away from things I witnessed when I should have stepped forward to denounce them and their perpetrators. I have in my possession letters, and copies accompany this letter to Your Majesty, from Father Cristoval de Molina,¹⁰ Father Jacopo Suarez,¹¹ and Father Juan Lobo,¹² the Dominican priests who traveled with the expeditions,¹³ which testify to the accuracy of my statements. I ask God, therefore, and Your Excellency, to pardon me. With the hope and belief that mercy will be shown at my advanced age, I shall recount the adventures we met with and the heroic deeds we accomplished on the journeys to that part of Your realm known as the kingdom of Chile. That which I have seen myself and the fighting I have gone through, with the help of God, I will describe quite simply, as a fair eye witness without twisting events one way or another. I offer this as thanksgiving for the mercy I pray Your Beneficence will extend to me. Upon reading my true stories, Your Majesty will know the wonderful things they relate.

Most of us admired and respected the Inca. With the intention of leading them to the service of Our Lord, however, it became necessary to subjugate them, take their empire, and place it under the authority of the Royal Crown and Holy Mother Church. This we did by force of arms. Thus, the Lord our God made it possible for us to conquer this kingdom, composed of a multitude of subjects and riches, having permitted it by His great wisdom and because it glorified His name when the Indians recognized Our Lord as the true Savior.

Recruited by Captain Diego de Almagro, I joined the expedition of Francisco Pizarro¹⁴ at twenty-seven years of age. In 1532, we landed on the shores of the fabled land of Peru, where we established the first settlement, San Miguel de Piura, named for Your father and Our Sovereign, Carlos V. From there, we marched to the city of Cajamarca. Others tell the story well of how we went on to capture Cusco, the capital city of the Incas, and put it and the entire country at the disposal of our King. Soon after the taking of Cusco, the desire for gold and silver led our men from Castile to look far and wide for these precious metals, and one such search led us to the kingdom of Chile.

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PART B

THE STORY TO BE TOLD

I shall tell most of the story in my own words. Occasionally, however, I shall refer to the observations of others, those chroniclers of the wonders and happenings in the kingdom of the Incas: Hernando Pizarro, ¹⁵ Pedro Pizarro, ¹⁶ Inca Garcilasso de la Vega, ¹⁷ Cristoval de Molina, and Pedro de Cieza de Leon, ¹⁸ among others. I have received letters from all of them through the years since the Conquest, asking about details as to this or that; and I, in turn, have addressed letters to them on like matters. I shall note their comments when I refer to their observations.

In brief, we journeyed south from Cusco, the sacred city of the Incas, during divers months and over 461 leagues,¹⁹ visiting strange and wonderful towns and villages along the way. We relied on directions from our Indian guides and eventually journeyed west, traveling through a land of high mountains that surrounded us on all sides. We passed the grand heights during the summer and descended to the Pacific Ocean and the town of Copayapu,²⁰ of the kingdom of Chile. Most fortunately, our Captain anticipated that we should be in the new land by March or April of 1536, and made arrangements for ships to supply us with troops and provisions. These vessels would carry any gold we found back to the City of Kings,²¹ there to await our return. We did not supply them with the golden cargo, however, a story I will tell at the proper time.

I shall relate first the Almagro story, in three parts. This first letter tells of our journey from the sacred city south and our travels across the high mountains to the town of Copayapu, Chile. The second letter is the story of our march south from there to search for gold. We found little of what we sought, and returned to Copayapu to prepare for the journey back to Peru. The third letter chronicles our return there in 1537 and the events along the way. It includes an interview of an old Indian who helped build the sacred huts on the summit of the mountain, Llullaillaco, a story that several say beggars belief.

In my fourth, fifth, and sixth letters, I shall tell of my adventures on the Pedro de Valdivia Expedition to conquer Chile that departed from Cusco in January 1540. I will conclude it several years after Captain Valdivia’s death at the hands of the fierce Mapuche warriors in December 1553. I shall send the second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth letters to Your Majesty when I have finished writing them, assuming our Merciful Savior grants me continued existence.

IMAGES: Please see 1A-D.1 for a map the reader may use to follow the routes of both expeditions.

And now to my story, Your Excellency. Our Captain, Diego de Almagro, had sixty years at the time of our journey, but his complexion made him seem fifteen years younger. He had lost his left eye in a fight in Panama many years before, and the black patch he wore gave him an intimidating appearance. Most thought him a man of contradictions, a man of strong passions, which he was often ill-disposed to control. Occasionally, he disrespected the rights of the Indians, a vice shared by some of those around him. Still, the natives gave testimony to his general humanity, since his generous nature made him popular with them and those of us who admired him. I found him an excellent soldier, careful and deliberate in his planning, and bold in the execution of those plans.

The Honorable Pedro Pizarro wrote differently of him to me in his recounting of those days. He found him a profane man of exceptionally bad language, and when he became angered he treated badly those with him, even though they were gentlemen. The Inca Garcilasso de la Vega is silent concerning his character, as is Cieza de Leon. Still, there is an overall impression of Captain Almagro today as a man of cruelty and malice, an impression I do not believe warrants complete acceptance.

I remained a follower of Captain Almagro from the earliest days of our entry into Peru until his execution following our return from Chile. He took an early interest in me, for what reasons I am unsure, perhaps seeing in me the memory of a nephew or son. Or it may be my feelings for the poor and my training as a monk of Saint Francis before I joined Your Majesty’s service that prompted his respect. (The work of my beloved Francis is carried on today by brothers and monks who live in the Franciscan monastery in Cusco that I paid to have built for them.) Perhaps the incident in a battle before Cusco, when I deflected an Indian spear directed at his chest, had the greatest influence on his behavior towards me.

He placed a good deal of trust in me, since he appointed me the sergeant-major in charge of our Indian guides. He put four of them at my disposal, with another Indian as interpreter. Two came from Tucma,²² a town 1,134 miles south of Cusco and 249 miles east of Copayapu. The other two had lived in the Atacama area of northern Chile, almost 480 miles north from Copayapu. The two Tucma guides were to lead us to Copayapu; the Atacama guides through Chile and back to Peru. Prince Paullu,²³ the Inca Atahualpa’s²⁴ brother and the half-brother of Manco Inca, who had recommended the guides to our Captain, also provided me with one of his army’s lieutenants. Named Ancohualla, a friend of the Prince since boyhood, he served us as Paullu’s official representative should difficulties arise when our small group drew near a new town or village. If problems did occur, this