2
This text is available in other languages:
The Inca Empire (Tawantinsuyu, c. 1438–1533) grew from a highland kingdom centered on Cusco into the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. Under Pachacuti, Túpac Inca Yupanqui, and Huayna Capac, military conquest, diplomacy, and alliances incorporated diverse Andean societies into a centralized imperial system. Organized into four administrative regions (suyus), the empire relied on local authorities, labor obligations (mit'a), and state redistribution to govern its extensive territories.
The Qhapaq Ñan, a vast network of Andean roads, connected administrative centers, armies, messengers, and storehouses across mountains, deserts, and coastal valleys. This infrastructure supported imperial expansion and integration, although political control varied across regions. A succession war between Huáscar and Atahualpa weakened the empire before Francisco Pizarro's Spanish invasion in 1532. Cusco fell in 1533, but Inca resistance continued from Vilcabamba until 1572.
About the Author
Related Images
Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui
Map of Spanish Conquest in Northern South America - Andes, Amazon & Caribbean Expeditions, 1499–1561
Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro on Isla del Gallo
Diego de Almagro & Francisco Pizarro
Pizarro Seizing the Inca of Peru
Cite This Work
APA Style
Netchev, S. (2026, October 19). Map of the Inca Empire (Tawantinsuyu, c. 1438–1533): Expansion Across South America, Cities and Roads. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/14113/map-of-the-inca-empire--tawantinsuyu-c-1438-1533/
Chicago Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Inca Empire (Tawantinsuyu, c. 1438–1533): Expansion Across South America, Cities and Roads." World History Encyclopedia, October 19, 2026. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/14113/map-of-the-inca-empire--tawantinsuyu-c-1438-1533/.
MLA Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Inca Empire (Tawantinsuyu, c. 1438–1533): Expansion Across South America, Cities and Roads." World History Encyclopedia, 19 Oct 2026, https://www.worldhistory.org/image/14113/map-of-the-inca-empire--tawantinsuyu-c-1438-1533/.
