Throughout the annals of history there is found no parallel to the extraordinary character and development of the great empire of the Incas, whose glory and splendor attained such supremacy and shone with such lustre, under a benign though despotic sovereignty, as to eclipse all earlier culture in pre-Columbian America. Whatever may have been the heritage which the Children of the Sun received from their predecessors, they carefully avoided giving it any importance in their records. The Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, who wrote the history of his people more than half a century after the Conquest, says that this rich and mighty monarchy was founded in the midst of barbarism and degradation and developed in all its magnificence through the divine direction of noble princes, who derived their power from heaven alone, and who were both the spiritual and the temporal rulers of the people, by right of their celestial origin.

A romantic charm envelopes the fame of the Incas and their brilliant court, their spectacular religion with its temples prodigally ornamented with gold and silver, and, above all, their own royal personality, so impressive in the dignity and sanctity of heaven-born greatness. One must even confess to resentment when meddlesome scholars seek to take away any of the prestige of these picturesque Conquerors of the Andes in favor of an earlier race, or of successive races, whose identity is lost in a mist of fable and legend, and who can present no such fascinating pageant to our imagination as do the heroes of Cuzco, with their mythical genealogy, the fame of their refined theocracy, and the prowess of their splendid legions. After all, it has not yet been proved that the lords of Cuzco were not of the same race and origin as the authors of the most ancient civilization of Peru, and, even, of all America. Scholars who have studied the language, customs, and monuments of the ancient Peruvians, find what is evidently a parent influence making itself felt through all the changing conditions of successive periods, and in spite of seemingly foreign and unrelated cultures that have appeared in various localities during the course of the ages. The two languages which are most generally spoken by the Indians throughout the territory formerly included in the Incas’ dominion—the Aymará and the Quichua—are apparently derived from a common stock. May it not be true that the people who spoke these languages, and to whom are credited the monuments of Tiahuanaco and Cuzco, were the heirs of a common ancestry, and that their progenitors were the authors of the earliest culture in Peru?

Out of the confusion of many legends that are related by the Indians to account for the origin of the Incas’ empire, the one which is best known, and most generally approved, because of the poetic beauty of the conception, tells us that the Sun, the creator of mankind, through compassion for the deplorable degradation of the world, sent two of his children, Manco-Ccapac and Mama Ocllo, to regenerate humanity and to teach the arts of civilized life. The celestial pair, who were not only brother and sister, but husband and wife, appeared first on an island in the midst of Lake Titicaca, and from this point they set forth on their benevolent mission. Lake Titicaca is supposed to have been chosen as the place of departure because, since it was the first to receive the rays of the sun when Viracocha dispersed the darkness, it was fitting that the first messengers of the light of civilization should also appear on its sacred island. They carried a rod of gold about two feet long and of the thickness of a man’s finger, having received from their father, the Sun, instructions to establish themselves in the place where the rod should sink into the earth at the first stroke. In the cerro of Huanacaure the golden rod was buried out of sight as soon as it struck the soil, and here was founded the great empire of the Incas,—“Inca” meaning “lord,”—which was to flourish and extend its dominion from the northern border of the present republic of Ecuador to the south of Chile and from the Pacific Ocean to the eastern valleys of the Andean chain, covering a territory of more than a million square miles, and giving protection to at least ten million faithful and industrious subjects, obedient to the Inca’s laws.

According to a tradition, which Sebastian Lorente gives us, Manco-Ccapac was the son of a curaca, or chief, of Pacaritambo, in the Apurimac valley, a youth so beautiful that he was called “the son of the Sun.” He was left an orphan at an early age, and the fortune-tellers easily persuaded him that he was of celestial origin. At eighteen or twenty years of age the boy entered on his great mission. A humble orator, he erected an altar to Huanacaure, the principal idol of his forefathers, which the Incas never after failed to invoke in time of danger. With a few followers he established his dominion, attracting some by promises and forcing others by threats, while he fascinated the masses by his magnificent personality. He wore a tunic embroidered in silver, on his breast glistened a disk of gold, jewels adorned his arms, and gorgeous plumes formed his headdress. By various means he succeeded in gaining command over his compatriots, who served his ambition and obeyed his laws. There is something reasonable and matter-of-fact about this tradition which inclines one to think that it may have foundation in truth. It is seen that Manco-Ccapac worshipped the principal idol of his forefathers, which shows that his plan was to incorporate in the new religion the most venerated beliefs of the people, and not to antagonize them by an iconoclastic policy; he set up his government in Cuzco, where the inhabitants were by nature docile and easily disciplined; he appeared at the psychological moment when Peru was ready for a new cult and a new system of laws; and, also, he was dowered with extraordinary gifts, looked like a king, and was thoroughly acquainted with the character of his people. There can be no doubt that Manco-Ccapac was a native of the country, whether he came originally from the Titicaca plateau and was of Aymará descent, as some authorities claim, or had his birthplace in the valley of the Apurimac and spoke the language of the Quichuas, the people “of the green valleys” as the word Quichua signifies. It is said that the Incas themselves spoke neither Aymará nor Quichua, but a language unknown to the people and not allowed to be spoken by anyone but royalty.

The dynasty founded by Manco-Ccapac at Cuzco is generally believed to have dated from the twelfth century. All the genealogies furnished by historians are more or less incomplete, limiting to thirteen or fourteen, at most, the number of monarchs who reigned during that long period of four hundred years. The list of Incas given by Garcilaso de la Vega, and regarded as the most reliable, contains the names of thirteen Princes of the Sun. Most of the authorities of importance name Manco-Ccapac as the founder of the Empire of the Incas, with Mama Ocllo as Coya, or Empress; though opinion is greatly divided as to their origin and the date of their imperial accession. One well-known historian of the Conquest, Montesinos, places the period of the first appearance of this royal line in the sixth century after the Deluge. It is related that, during that remote age, there arrived in Cuzco a family of four couples who civilized this region. The eldest of the four brothers, having gained possession of the territory, divided it into four portions, or suyos, from which it took the name of Tahuantinsuyo, “the kingdom of the four regions.” The territory to the south was called Collasuyo, to the west Cuntisuyo, to the north Chinchasuyo, and to the east Antisuyo. The youngest brother afterward secured command of the kingdom and became the first of a line of princes who governed Peru up to the time of the Spanish Conquest. The most interesting feature of this tradition is the division of the rule of these monarchs into three great dynasties, of which the first was that of the Pirhuas (from pyru, meaning “fire,” apparently indicating that they were fire-worshippers), the second, that of the Amauttas, or wise men, and the third the Inca dynasty. The first of the Pirhuas founded the city of Cuzco in the name of Viracocha, “the Supreme Being,” and one of his successors built a great temple in Cuzco (perhaps Sacsahuaman, which is believed to antedate the Inca period), while another ruler of the same royal line is credited with having reformed the calendar, built public roads and established severe rules in religion. One of these kings, the record says, “died while repressing an invasion of depraved people from the plains.” The Amauttas made many wise laws, reformed the calendar and the religion of Viracocha, organized the military forces of the kingdom and repelled the Chimus of the plains. During the reign of the last of the Amauttas, we are told, “was fulfilled the fourth sun of the Amauttas, and there took place a great invasion of ferocious tribes who attacked the kingdom in different parts, obliging the sovereigns of Cuzco to flee to the grottos of Tamputoko for four hundred years, during which they lost their literature and a great part of the Amautta culture; the advent of the Incaic dynasty restored the power of the royal line, and made Cuzco again the centre of a great and beneficent civilization.” In the light of modern research, which is continually causing a revision of former ideas regarding the origin and antiquity of the Peruvian empire, the story of the three dynasties appears to be more than “the mere fable” which it has been designated by some modern writers on the subject. It particularly appeals to one as a solution of the problem of the Incas’ origin, since every feature of Incaic civilization proves it to be of native character, even though the predecessors of the “third dynasty” may have arrived from foreign shores.

Manco-Ccapac, or, as his name would be written in English, Manco the Great, occupies a position in among the heroes of the world’s history not inferior to the exalted pedestal on which we have placed the founders of empires in the Old World. He possessed the same rare gifts of bold judgment and fearless initiative which belonged to Alexander the Great, to Charlemagne, and to other sovereigns who have been “Great” because they have known both the strength and the weakness of their people, and by conciliating the one and dominating the other, have made themselves masters and leaders of mankind. Had Manco-Ccapac not thoroughly understood the conditions existing at the time when he entered on his mission, and had he not possessed judgment, tact, and the dominant qualities of leadership to enable him to win a host of followers, even his upright character and his humanitarian purpose would not have proved sufficient to ensure the wonderful success which he achieved in founding an empire more extensive than ancient Rome, and as rich as the fabled monarchies of the Orient. Throughout the Inca’s realm the principles of honesty, industry, and justice were inculcated in every subject from his cradle, the moral duties of a good Peruvian being embodied in the Quichua motto of the nation: Ama sua, Ama aqquella, Ama llula, which translated literally means, “Not a thief, Not idle, Not a cheat.” It is a form of salutation among the Indians of Cuzco to this day, the response being Ccampas Ginallattac! “The same to you!”

The record of historical events, as they occurred throughout the long reign of the Inca dynasty, was preserved only by a system of quipus, or knotted cords, the art of writing being unknown to the Incas, or, according to some authorities, prohibited by law. Only the Quipucamayos, the authorized guardians of the quipus, were able to decipher them. This career was considered one of great honor, and instruction therein was given in all the provinces, under the direction of the Amauttas, the Savants of the empire. The chief archives of the state were preserved in Cuzco, where an immense collection of quipus was found by the invading Spaniards, who destroyed the greater part of them, without having them interpreted. As a consequence, the information secured by the historians of the Conquest and by writers of later date, relative to the genealogy and history of the Incas is necessarily incomplete and, no doubt, inaccurate; though the descriptions of the appearance, laws, customs, and national development of the people of Tahuantinsuyo may be considered as generally faithful and reliable.

According to the genealogy given by Garcilaso de la Vega, the first Inca, Manco-Ccapac, was succeeded by Sinchi Rocca, a peaceful and prudent ruler, who is said to have taken the first census of his kingdom, and is credited by some authorities with having made the division of the empire into the four regions previously named; though, according to Cieza de Leon, one of the most reliable authors, these names were applied to four great highways which extended from Cuzco to the extreme limits of the empire, northward, eastward, southward, and westward. In any case, the Incas built broad and level roads, from six to eight feet wide, and in the mountain regions, where they skirted the steep slopes of the Andean range, they were prevented from wearing away by the construction of stone embankments; on the plains, the highway was indicated, as in many countries at the present day, by guide posts at intervals along its course. Also, tambos, or inns, were built at the distance of a day’s journey apart, and here the traveller could always find shelter for the night. The third Inca, Lloque Yupanqui, conquered the Canas, a powerful people of Ayaviri and Pucará, after a struggle which depopulated their settlements, and forced the emperor to introduce mitimaes, or colonists, to replace them. He also subjugated the Collas of the present department of Puno.

It was during the reign of the fourth Inca, Maita-Ccapac, that the power and genius of the imperial monarchs began to extend its influence as never before, and greater pomp and magnificence than had previously been known attended the coronation and other ceremonials honored by the sacred and royal presence of the Inca.

Following the course of training required of every heir to the Inca throne, Maita-Ccapac had, when a youth, passed through the Huaracu, a ceremonial of the greatest importance, and one in which all the young Inca nobles of his own age—the title of Inca being borne by every descendant of Manco-Ccapac through the male line—participated, after having been trained in the same military exercises as the royal prince. A description of the Huaracu is interesting as showing that these people had an institution not unlike that of mediæval chivalry in Europe: From his earliest years, the hereditary prince was given into the care of the Amauttas, to be taught science and religion, especially the latter, as the Inca was the highest spiritual authority on earth; great attention was also paid to the military training, as it was desirable that, not only in wisdom but in military skill, the prince should excel all contemporaries. At sixteen years of age, the young heir, Maita-Ccapac, and his companions, following the sacred custom of their race, were submitted to a public test, supervised and directed by elderly and distinguished Inca nobles, which included trials of ability in athletics such as wrestling, jumping, running, besides sham battles, which were held as a trial of valor, and were so severe that many of the youths were wounded and a few killed. The royal prince had not shown the least fear nor evidence of fatigue, though put to the very limit of endurance; “for,” he said, “if I am afraid of the shadow of a combat, how shall I be able to meet the enemy in real warfare?” These exercises lasted for thirty days, during which the prince slept on the ground, went barefooted and dressed simply, thus showing his sympathy with the poorest of his future subjects. The tests concluded, the order of knighthood was conferred by the Inca emperor, father of Maita-Ccapac, all the young nobles who had taken part in the exercises kneeling with the royal heir, one after another, while the emperor pierced their ears with the yauri, a kind of gold needle made for the purpose, which remained in the ears until the hole was large enough to permit the insertion of the earrings peculiar to the Incas; these were not hung from the ears but were placed in the pierced opening, and replaced from time to time by rings of larger circumference, until, as in the case of Maita-Ccapac, the cartilage of the lobe was so stretched that it touched the shoulder. After this ceremony the greatest of the Inca nobles placed on the feet of the royal heir the sandals of his particular order; a scarf of similar significance to the toga virilis of the Romans was wound around his waist, and his head was adorned with a wreath of flowers,—to indicate that clemency and goodness should adorn the character of the valiant warrior,—while evergreen, intertwined with the flowers, symbolized the eternal endurance of such virtues. A fillet of finest vicuña wool was bound around his head, and a yellow masca paicha, a kind of fringe, also woven of vicuña wool, was added to this headdress, falling over the brows. The yellow masca paicha was the peculiar insignia of the heir-apparent. As soon as this ceremony was concluded, all the Inca nobles knelt before the prince and rendered him homage as their sovereign. From this time, he was entitled to take his seat among the advisers of his father, so that he might be initiated into the art of governing and become familiar with politics and administration. Being recognized as of age, and the heir to the throne, he was given command of his father’s armies and was entitled to display the royal standard of the rainbow in his military campaigns.

The coronation of Maita-Ccapac was the occasion of grand pageants, continued fiestas, and a brilliant display of royal magnificence. We are told that he “was crowned with a blue masca paicha and wore a tunic of white and green, dotted with crimson butterflies.” His royal robe was made of finest vicuña wool and was ornamented with gold and precious stones. The headdress of all Inca emperors was particularly distinguished by two feathers which were placed upright in the front of the encircling llautu, or fillet; these feathers were plucked from the wing of the sacred bird Cori-quenca, a species of gull, black and white in color, one feather being taken from the right wing of the male and the other from the left wing of the female, to adorn the royal crown. These birds may still be seen in the vicinity of Lake Vilcanota, near Cuzco.

An invincible warrior, Maita-Ccapac extended the power of the empire to the remote borders of Collasuyo (now Bolivia) and beyond the Apurimac to Arequipa and Moquegua. His name is connected with one of the most notable works achieved in the history of the mediæval world, as he is said to have been the author of the method and plans used, by his command, in the construction of the first suspension bridge ever built. Over this bridge, which was swung across the Apurimac River, he passed with an army of twelve thousand men, making an easy conquest of the enemy, who were struck with awe in the presence of such a wonderful feat. A second bridge, built by one of the successors of Maita-Ccapac, is still to be seen near the site of the original construction. Many of the andenes, of which traces are to be observed to-day in various parts of the country, were also constructed during the reign of Maita-Ccapac, though the origin of these terraced farms on the mountain side is placed by some authorities back in pre-Incaic times. The andenes were so named from Anti, a province east of Cuzco, and were formed by building stone walls on the mountain sides, at short distances one above the other from the base to the summit, and filling the enclosed space with fertile soil, some of it being mixed with guano from the Chincha Islands, as the Incas knew the fertilizing value of this deposit and made general use of it in their agriculture. A tradition of the time of the fourth Inca relates that the loyal subjects in one of the provinces built a grand palace of copper in which to entertain Maita-Ccapac and his Coya when they visited that part of the kingdom; and, though this story is no doubt a fable, yet it is certain that mining made great progress during this reign. It is marvellous that, with only the primitive means at their command, without iron, powder, or machinery, these people extracted gold both from quartz and placer mines, and obtained silver, tin, and copper as well. The metal was smelted in small furnaces and then emptied into moulds; the beautiful ornaments which were made for the adornment of the temples and palaces and for the Inca’s wear, afford a proof of the remarkable ingenuity of these primitive artifices. The successor of Maita-Ccapac, Inca-Ccapac Yupanqui, “the Avaricious,” did not achieve great fame, though he spent the greater part of his reign in subduing turbulent subjects in various parts of the kingdom. He was a miser, and ordered that all who died should be interred with their gold and jewels, his object being to secure this treasure later for the royal coffers.

Inca Rocca, the sixth monarch of the royal house of Cuzco, was one of its greatest warriors and most renowned statesmen. The fame of his conquests spread to the most remote regions, and the wisdom of his administration was no less widely known and admired. Everywhere great palaces were reared to display the grandeur of his imperial house, and it was decreed that, at his death, all the vast treasures collected for their adornment should be used to ornament his tomb and for the service of his family; his successors followed his example, and the brilliancy of the Inca’s court increased with each subsequent reign. He founded schools for the education of the nobility under the direction of the Amauttas, though the children of the common people were not admitted, because, according to his view, it was enough for them to learn the trade of their fathers. He was, however, very solicitous for the welfare and protection of all his subjects, and made strict laws that punished with death homicides, incendiaries, and thieves.

When the sceptre passed from Inca Rocca to Yahuar Huaccac, whose name signifies “he who weeps blood,” the great fiestas that were held to celebrate his coronation gave little premonition of the sad ending that was to befall this unhappy monarch, who was deposed and died alone in the desert, some say, at the hand of an assassin. The coronation ceremony was as brilliant and imposing as that of his illustrious father had been, the young king wearing “a black tunic and a blue manta dotted with lizards, with a white masca paicha and plumage of gold.” It is said that the cause of his “weeping blood” was the arrogant, self-willed, and quarrelsome disposition of the heir-apparent, and the impossibility of holding him under restraint. At last, his patience exhausted, the emperor banished his unmanageable son from court and condemned him, under penalty of death if he disobeyed, to spend the remainder of his life among the shepherds on the hills of Chitapampa, a league away from Cuzco. Three years the young prince passed in herding sheep, and, as subsequent events proved, in learning other things besides. At the end of that time he braved his father’s sentence of death and returned to the royal palace, where, upon being received by the Inca, he related a remarkable story of a vision that had appeared to him while he was tending his flocks—a vision of a majestic personage, clad in a tunic that reached the ground, and wearing a long beard—and thus spoke to him: “I am the god Viracocha, who created man and all that is on the earth; yet you hold me in no more veneration than the sun, the lightning, and other works of my hands. I come to notify you that the tribes of Chinchasuyo are gathering a great army to advance against the holy city. Announce it to your father, by my order, so that he may be warned in time to repel the invaders. For yourself, never fear; in whatever adversity I will be with you and will give you the help you need.” The emperor discredited the prince’s story and made no preparations for war; but the son was soon informed through various channels that an army of thirty thousand men was marching toward Cuzco; and, as the royal legions were scattered—it being the custom among the Incas, as among the Romans, to dismiss their soldiers after a campaign and to keep no large standing army—the banished prince took matters into his own hands, and, as his father fled from the capital, he entered it, gathered a large military force by the power of his eloquence and the indomitable spirit of a born warrior, and went forth to meet the enemy. After a prolonged and sanguinary struggle the invaders were driven back, and the victor entered Cuzco in triumph, amidst the acclaims of a grateful people. He was immediately crowned Inca Emperor, with the name of Viracocha.

It is related of Viracocha that, upon his return from the battlefield, he sent three messages; the first to the Temple of the Sun and its priests, commanding that sacrifices be offered in thanks; the second to the Mamaconas, or abbesses, in the convent of the vestal virgins; and the third to his father. The Incas never forgot the obligations of their dual sovereignty, and in proportion as their earthly power was extended and increased, the evidences of their spiritual glory became more impressive, and might be seen in the greater riches of the temple, the increased splendor of the annual feasts, and the higher interpretation given to their religion. The priests in the various provinces numbered more than the imperial army, four thousand being engaged in the service of the temple in Cuzco alone. The high priest who stood at the head of the order held his divine office for life and was a near relative of the Inca, as were his colleagues in charge of the various temples throughout the provinces, the rest of the priesthood being chosen from among the curacas, who were chiefs of conquered territories, and formed one of the three orders of nobility. The highest nobility of the realm was represented in the princes and princesses of the blood royal, either children of the Coya, the queen-mother, or of the numerous wives in the royal seraglio; next in rank were the Incas “by privilege,” who were descended from the companions and followers of Manco-Ccapac, and who, in dignities and dress, were hardly to be distinguished from the royal family; and finally, the rank of the Curacas, which depended greatly upon the importance of the territory over which they had ruled before its conquest by the Inca; though in every case the Curacas held a position of authority, their number increasing in proportion to the extension of the Inca’s empire. The Incas were obliged to grant especial privileges to the Curacas, as otherwise they could not have held in obedience the conquered people, who regarded these chiefs with great reverence.

It was also in accordance with religious sentiment that the second message of Viracocha should have been directed to the Mamaconas, who were the guardians of the vestal virgins, and were appointed to this office after they had themselves grown old in watching over the sacred fire that burned forever on the altar. Not only did the Virgins of the Sun watch over the sacred fire, but they wove all the beautiful garments of vicuña wool used in the apparel of the Inca and his family, they worked the exquisite embroideries that adorned the hangings of the temple, and they were indispensable in the preparation of the magnificent feasts that celebrated the Inca’s triumphs; probably it was this last fact which led Viracocha to send his second message to the Mamaconas; for the splendors of the festivities held in honor of his triumph over the enemy and his coronation as Inca Emperor eclipsed all previous celebrations, not only in the capital but throughout the empire. The message from Viracocha to his royal father could hardly have afforded unalloyed satisfaction, since it evidently conveyed the intention of the victor to possess the spoils, in the form of the imperial llautu, and to occupy the throne which his energy and courage had successfully guarded, when the cowardly flight of Yahuar Huaccac exposed it to destruction.

In the first year of his eventful reign, Viracocha ordered the construction of the sumptuous temple of which the majestic ruins are still to be seen twenty miles south of Cuzco. The walls of the temple were erected on an elevated base, which was built with five andenes, or steps, leading up to it from the level of the plain, and the temple covered an area one hundred and twenty feet long by twenty-five feet wide, the wall being built of hewn stone from the ground up to half its height, and of adobe for the remainder. The edifice had eight lofty doors and as many windows, and on one side stood an altar with a statue of the deity Viracocha, representing him, as he appeared to the prince during his banishment, “with a flowing beard.” It is believed by many writers that this temple, which shows a different architecture from that of all other Incaic edifices, was constructed before the advent of Manco-Ccapac by the Canas (whom the third Inca subjugated at great cost), and that Viracocha did no more than to restore and embellish it.

Viracocha took advantage of all means to extend and increase the power of his monarchy, and, in addition to the famous temple “Viracocha,” he ordered the construction of many others, as well as of new palaces and gardens in various parts of the empire. He made journeys to all the conquered provinces, and while in Collasuyo, at the head of an army of thirty thousand men, he received ambassadors from Charcas, who came to render homage to so great a prince; it is said that from these emissaries the Incas first received information about a country to the south, called “Chile,” which was destined later to be added to the territories in vassalage to the emperors of Cuzco. During Viracocha’s reign, eleven provinces were added to the empire.

One of the greatest engineering feats accomplished under the civilization of the Incas, was the construction, by Viracocha’s order, of an extensive irrigating canal, twelve feet in depth and nearly four hundred miles long, which, crossing the present departments of Huancavelica and Ayacucho, watered the plains of Castrovireina and Cangallo, making them green and flourishing pasture lands. This enterprise is the more remarkable when the nature of the country is considered, as the work was carried on at an altitude of from twelve to sixteen thousand feet above sea level, and in the face of such obstacles as gigantic rocks that had to be removed without blasting machinery or iron implements, great ravines to be bridged and mountain torrents to be harnessed and utilized. The hydraulic works constructed by the Incas are the wonder and admiration of all who have seen the evidences of their extent and perfection that remain to this day in the sierra and the coast region. Natural lakes at the head of the coast valleys were in many instances enlarged, and immense dams and aqueducts were built to conduct to the irrigating canals the water which descended from the mountain summits to the barren coast land.

At the death of Viracocha the sceptre passed to his eldest son, who, however, was too dull and weak, the records say, to rule over an empire composed of so many elements that had not as yet become settled and consolidated into a united people. It required a strong hand and clear judgment to direct the affairs of state so that rebellion should not overturn the rapidly growing power of the Incas, and that successful insurrection might not lessen the prestige of a monarchy that claimed celestial origin. The second son of Viracocha, Pachacutec, was the opposite of his brother in character, and possessed all the requirements of a monarch which the other lacked. He was elevated to the throne on his brother’s death, about the middle of the fourteenth century, and began his reign by cementing the bonds that held the various tributary provinces loyal to the sovereignty of Cuzco, and by making new conquests, in which the military genius of his son, the heir-apparent, was displayed in deeds as valorous and noble as those performed by his illustrious father.