Francisco Pizarro

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Francisco Pizarro

Francisco Pizarro, c.1475-1541, was the Spanish conquistador who secured Peru for Spain. The illegitimate son of a Spanish hidalgo born near Trujillo in Extremadura, Pizarro was uneducated and served as a swineherd during his youth. Shortly after the discovery of the New World, Pizarro went to Hispaniola with on of his relatives, Hernan Cortes. In 1510, Pizarro participated in an expedition to the Gulf of Uraba in north Colombia, and he was second in command when Vasco Nunez de Balboa discovered the Pacific Ocean in 1513. Nine years later Pizarro formed a partnership with fellow adventurer Diego de Almagro and cleric Hernan de Luque to explore lands to the south. Their first expedition reached the San Juan River in Colombia before turning back; the second expedition (1526-28), after experiencing famine, disease, and a rebellious crew, reached the Santa River in Peru and returned to Panama with gold, cloth, and llamas.

When the governor of Panama refused permission for further exploration, Pizarro went to Spain (1528) to appeal directly to the king. The agreement reached gave the king of Spain all of Peru, its subjects, and its wealth. Pizarro was made a knight of Santiago (1529) and governor and captain general of the conquered lands. His partners, who received much smaller favors, felt that they had been cheated.

After returning to Panama, Pizarro and several of his brothers set sail (June 1530) with 180 men including Francisco de Orellana ,and 30 of whom were cavalry led by Hernando De Soto. After landing on the coast of the Gulf of Guayaquil and sacking Tumbes, Peru, the explorers turned inland to meet Atahualpa, the Inca ruler, at Cajamarca on Nov. 15, 1532. Seizing Atahualpa by trickery, Pizarro demanded a huge ransom in gold and silver in exchange for Atahualpa's life. Once the ransom was paid, however, Atahualpa was promptly strangled (Aug. 29, 1533). Cuzco, the Inca capital, was subdued one year later. After a last-ditch effort by Manco Capac, the son of Atahualpa, to recover Cuzco was defeated by Almagro (1536-37), a dispute broke out between Pizarro and Almagro concerning limits of jurisdiction. In the ensuing battle Almagro was captured and executed. For the remainder of his life, Pizarro, now the marquis of Atavillas and a member of Spanish aristocracy, organized his conquest. Lands and Indians were distributed to his followers, new settlements were established, and agriculture was developed; Lima was founded (1535) as the new capital of Peru. On June 26, 1541, followers of Almagro assassinated Pizarro.

What was thought to be the mummified body of Pizarro was displayed in Lima from 1891 until 1977. In that year, a box identified as containing the skull of Pizarro, and another containing the bones of several skeletons, were discovered in a crypt in the Cathedral of Lima. In 1984 they were verified as the remains of Pizarro.

David G. Basile

Bibliography: Galt, Thomas F., Francisco Pizarro (1942); Hemmings, John, The Conquest of the Incas (1970); Prescott, W. H., The Civilization of the Incas and Pizarro's Discoveries and Disasters (1988).

Pizarro's Conquest of the Inca Empire