Gonzalo Pizarro (1502 – April 10, 1548) was a Spanish conquistador and younger half-brother of Francisco Pizarro, the conqueror of the Inca Empire.
Early years in Peru
Born in Trujillo, Spain, Gonzalo Pizarro accompanied his eldest brother, Francisco Pizarro, in his third expedition for the conquest of Peru in 1532. Gonzalo was also the brother of Hernando Pizarro and Juan Pizarro. A lieutenant of his brother Francisco during the conquest, Gonzalo Pizarro was one of the most corrupt, brutal and ruthless conquistadors of the New World, being far less restrained towards the natives and the Inca than his older brothers.
After Inca emperor Atahualpa was captured in the Battle of Cajamarca and later executed on August 29, 1533, the Pizarro brothers and their followers marched towards the Inca capital of Cuzco to complete the conquest.
Soon discords arose between Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro concerning their leadership in the newly conquered land of the Incas. As a result, Almagro left Cuzco in 1534 and was given the honor of Spanish King Charles I to explore the southern part of Peru (modern-day Chile) and look for more treasures there. Upon his departure, Gonzalo and Juan were appointed by Francisco as garrisons of Cuzco without Almagro knowing it.
Gonzalo and Juan Pizarro both looked after the settlements in Cuzco, while their eldest brother Francisco explored the west coast of northern Peru and founded the city of Lima in 1535. Gonzalo, Juan and his younger brother Hernando ruled Cuzco with dictatorship, greed, corruption, and brutality, torturing and executing those who refused to accept Spanish rule. Their corrupt rule also brought a rebellion by the Incas under Manco Capac, who began to fight for equal rights and demanded freedom from harsh Spanish rule. The Incas fought the Spaniards in a number of sieges and battles for control of the land and temporarily captured Cuzco in May 6, 1536. The Incas were later defeated by the heavily armed Spanish soldiers led by Gonzalo and Juan. Smallpox was also spread among the natives and many perished.
When Almagro returned from Chile disappointed in not finding any gold, he captured and imprisoned Gonzalo and Hernando in 1537. They eventually managed to escape and re-join Francisco Pizarro on their return to Lima. When Gonzalo and Hernando noticed that Almagro also wanted to take control of Cuzco, they fought against him in the Battle of Las Salinas in April 1538. In the course of these events, Almagro left for Lima for a negotiation with Francisco on who would control Cuzco. Gonzalo and Hernando heard of Almagro's threatening intentions and led an army against him, defeating his forces and later condemning him for treason. Almagro was executed on July 8, 1538, under Hernando's orders.
Expeditions with Francisco de Orellana
In 1541, Gonzalo was declared the governor of Quito. Not satisfied and at the urging of Francisco Pizarro, he led an expedition east of Quito with Francisco de Orellana in search of the fabled city of El Dorado and of The country of cinnamon ("Pais de la Canela"). In Quito, Gonzalo was able to recruit 220 Spaniards and 4,000 Native Americans. The second-in-command, Orellana, was sent to Guayaquil to recruit more troops and horses. Gonzalo Pizarro and his followers left Quito on February 1541, a month before Orellana, who was able to bring 23 men and several horses. By March both met at the valley of Zumaco and started their march towards crossing the Andes. After following the courses of the Coca and Napo rivers, the expedition started running out of provisions. About 140 of the 220 Spaniards and 3,000 out of 4,000 natives had died. On February 1542, they decided Orellana would continue sailing down the Napo river in search of food along with 50 men.
After a brief time, Gonzalo thought the expedition was a whole failure and decided to take a route north back to Quito with 80 of the remaining men, unknowingly relinquishing the success to Orellana, who ended discovering and exploring the entire length of the Amazon River.
Last years
Upon his return to Quito, Gonzalo learned that the Almagristas (as the followers of Almagro were called) had assassinated his brother Francisco Pizarro on June 26, 1541 in retaliation for Almagro's execution. By this time the Crown's representative, Cristobal Vaca de Castro, had arrived in Peru amidst the confusion after Pizarro's death. Gonzalo Pizarro offered to help capture those responsible for his brother's death, but was refused. Emperor Charles V then appointed Blasco Nunez Vela as Peru's first viceroy in 1544. Nunez introduced the New Laws, which were framed by Bartolome de Las Casas to protect the Indigenous. Many of the conquistadors living in Peru were against these laws since they could no longer exploit the natives. This prompted Gonzalo Pizarro and Francisco de Carvajal to organize an army of followers with the intent of suppressing the New Laws, defeating Nunez in 1546. Soon the support for Gonzalo diminished when the King's new representative, Pedro de La Gasca, arrived with the intention of offering pardon and repealing the New Laws. Most of Gonzalo's army deserted just before the crucial battle that would determine the fate of the conquest. No longer supported with an army against the King's new representative, Gonzalo Pizarro surrendered and was beheaded.
Summary and Discussion
Trivia
- Gonzalo Pizarro was portrayed briefly in Werner Herzog's 1972 film Aguirre, the Wrath of God.
Bibliography
- Andrew Dalby, "Christopher Columbus, Gonzalo Pizarro, and the search for cinnamon" in Gastronomica (Spring 2001).
- F.A. Kirkpatrick, "The Spanish Conquistadores" Third Reprinting 1968.
- History-of-Peru
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