In Our Time: History — The Inca

BBC Radio 4 | June 13, 2019
Host: Melvyn Bragg
Guests: Helen Cowie (University of York), Frank Meddens (University of Reading), Bill Sillar (UCL)

Episode Overview

This episode delves into the rise, sophistication, and sudden collapse of the Inca Empire — the largest in pre-Columbian America. The panel discusses how a small Andean group expanded into a vast empire, their innovative agricultural and engineering achievements, religious beliefs, mechanisms of control, and the impact of Spanish conquest in the 16th century.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Geographical and Historical Origins

• Extent of the Empire (02:26):

  • Covered 1,500 miles: Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and borders of Colombia.
  • At its height, ruled ~10 million people.

• Long Development, Rapid Expansion (02:55):

  • Andean culture: roots as early as 10,000 BC.
  • Inca expansion as an empire: ~150 years before Spanish arrival.
  • Inherited legacy of Wari empire (600–1000 AD).

Quote:

"The peopling of the High Andes starts around 10,000 BC... But the occupation of building terraces and canal systems, that's been going for about 3,000 years or so."
— Helen Cowie (03:21)

2. Agriculture and Engineering in the Andes

• Adapting to Harsh Terrain (06:08):

  • Exploited vertical ecological niches for diverse crops.
  • Terracing and canal systems allowed farming at multiple altitudes.

• Food Preservation (07:45):

  • Freeze-dried potatoes (chuño): could last 10 years.
  • Dried llama/alpaca meat (charki or jerky): army rations.

• Ingenious Infrastructure (08:47):

  • Road system with rope suspension bridges, advanced stonework (Machu Picchu).
  • Urban planning mirrored and integrated landscape features for spiritual reasons.

Quote:

"They devise this way... of freeze-dried potatoes... it will then last for about 10 years and you can then rehydrate it."
— Helen Curry (07:45)

3. Spirituality and Societal Organization

• Sacred Landscape (09:20, 13:15):

  • Mountains as gods and protectors; rocks, rivers, and land considered animate.
  • Temples aligned with sacred geography.

• Ancestor Veneration (15:06):

  • Elite mummies paraded in festivals, 'fed', and treated as active family members.
  • Ancestors had ownership rights and could influence succession.

Quote:

"All the various aspects within the landscape... are individually seen as living beings, as human beings are living. So a rock has an animated element to it."
— Frank Meddens (13:15)

4. Political Structure and Control

• Conquest & Alliance (04:07, 16:21):

  • Used military force, strategic alliances, and marriage to unify groups.
  • Expanded by both negotiation and force (intimidation, elite executions).

• Administration (24:08):

  • Ruler mediated through provincial leaders and ritual obligations.
  • Reciprocity was fundamental: labor for textiles, goods, chicha (maize beer) ceremonies.

5. Communication, Roads, and Khipu

• Infrastructure (20:00):
  • Roads radiated from Cusco, linking empire via runner-relays (chasquis).
  • Messages and records conveyed through khipu—knotted string devices.

Quote:

“You have a structure where you have cesky runners... Story goes that fresh fish would come to the Inca from the coast within a day.”
— Frank Meddens (20:17)

6. Economics, Trade, and Gold

• Non-monetary Economy (44:13 Bonus):

  • No currency; economy built on reciprocity, barter, and elite gift-giving.
  • Large state stores of goods used to maintain control.

• Metals as Status, not Money (25:30):

  • Gold: 'sweat of the sun', valuable mainly for ritual and prestige.
  • Master goldsmiths relocated to Cusco for artisanal production.

7. Conflict, Coercion, and Social Control

• Relocation and Taxation (27:24):

  • Moved rebellious groups, used conscript labor (mit’a) for state projects/army.
  • Ensured loyalty and reduced resistance.

• Violence & Warfare (51:41 Bonus):

  • Warfare could be brutal; use of clubs, slings, and, according to chroniclers, enemy skins as drums.
  • Noted massacre at Yagua Cocha — 'Lake of Blood'.

8. Collapse and Spanish Conquest

• Vulnerabilities at Spanish Arrival (29:29):

  • Civil war (succession crisis between Atahualpa and Huascar).
  • Spanish weaponry (horses, steel), timing, and manipulation of local rivalries.

• Spanish Tactics (33:31):

  • Kidnapping and executing Atahualpa, installing puppet rulers.
  • Use of indigenous intermediaries for governance and conflict.

• Demographic Catastrophe (40:26):

  • Population fell by 80–90% due to smallpox, typhus, measles, exploitation, and religious conversion.

Quote:

“Disease was a primary reason. The Incas didn't have any immunity to European diseases, smallpox in particular but also typhus and even measles... as you said, there's catastrophic decline.”
— Helen Curry (40:33)

9. Survival, Syncretism, and Legacy

• Cultural Persistence (45:09 Bonus):

  • Despite forced conversion, indigenous practices and syncretism persisted.
  • Example: Cusco Cathedral's “Last Supper” painting—Jesus eats guinea pig, and Judas is painted as conquistador Pizarro.

• Modern Research (41:43):

  • Archaeology and khipu studies are revealing more, especially about ordinary people and pre-Inca civilizations.
  • Many Inca celebrations and religious traditions remain in Andean regions.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Andean worldview:
  "The landscape is seen as an animated structure... All the various aspects within the landscape, rocks, mountains, are individually seen as living beings."
  — Frank Meddens (13:15)

• On Inca reciprocity:
  "There was an agreement... providing both to individual workers for the state, but also to the elites..."
  — Helen Cowie (24:08)

• On Atahualpa’s capture:
  "Part of what goes on as well is he's handed a Bible which he does not understand and at which he drops. And this is interpreted as him rejecting the Christian God and is a sign for the Spaniards to attack him."
  — Helen Curry (33:01)

• On cultural survival:
  "If you look closer, Jesus is about to tuck into a roasted guinea pig... and the disciple who is Judas Iscariot is supposed to have been painted with the facial features of Francisco Pizarro."
  — Helen Curry (45:09 Bonus)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Intro & Inca geography and origins: 01:18 – 04:59
• Agricultural innovations: 06:08 – 09:19
• Religion and spiritual worldview: 09:20 – 16:09
• Expansion and politics: 16:09 – 18:35
• Cuzco, administration, roads: 20:00 – 24:59
• Economy & gold: 25:19 – 26:21
• Methods of control (population movement, labor): 27:24 – 29:03
• Collapse and Spanish invasion: 29:29 – 39:05
• After conquest, population loss, forced conversion: 40:26 – 41:28
• Legacy, research, enduring traditions (Bonus): 41:43 – end

Further Discussion & Context

• Khipu (Recording system):
  Used for census and warehouse inventory; surviving examples still being deciphered (49:10 – 50:56 Bonus).

• Trade and exchange:
  Economy not based on currency—relied on kinship, reciprocity, barter, and redistribution.

• Cultural continuity:
  Despite brutal conquest, Andean traditions, hybrid religious practices, and memory of the Inca endure.

This episode offers a compelling account of one of history’s most remarkable and tragic civilizations, blending analysis of the Inca’s achievements with an honest appraisal of their collapse under Spanish conquest. The guests’ lively exchanges and vivid detail bring the complexity and humanity of the Inca world to life.