Volta
Person1738 – 1781

Túpac Amaru II

Also called: José Gabriel Condorcanqui, Tupac Amaru II

Indigenous leader in Peru who claimed descent from the Inca rulers and in 1780 led a great revolt against Spanish colonial rule

Born into a family of native chiefs (kurakas) in the Tinta district south of Cusco, he was educated at the Jesuit school in Cusco. Running a mule-train business across the Andes, he saw the hardships of the native people. He went to court to be recognised as a descendant of Túpac Amaru, the last Inca ruler, executed in 1572. After his revolt failed he was sentenced to be torn apart by four horses and was then beheaded. His name became a symbol for later independence and resistance movements in Latin America.

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1 related event

  1. 1
    1780 – 1781Rebellion of Túpac Amaru IIleader

    Túpac Amaru II, who claimed descent from the Inca rulers, led a great indigenous uprising in Peru against Spanish exploitation. It was crushed, but it was the largest revolt of the colonial era.

Themes this person appears in

  • Islamic Empires and the Atlantic World1500 – 1800

    Three centuries in which the Ottomans of Suleiman I, the Mughals of Akbar and the Safavids of Abbas I flourished and then faltered, while across the Atlantic the slave trade and colonies transformed the Americas, leading to American independence