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The Incan Empire
Incan society began at Cuzco in the Andes Mountains of Peru in
South America. From their capital city, the Incas built an empire that
included millions of people and extended from modern-day Ecuador to
Chile. Pachacuti Inca, Topa Inca, and Huayna Capac were the rulers who
acquired most of the lands of the empire.
Within the empire, conquered tribes ruled themselves through a
council of elders. However, all those in the empire were closely controlled
by the rigid Incan social rules. Conquered people were generally treated
well if they supported and fought for the Incan rulers. They paid a tax of
their labor to the Incas, who used it to build an extensive network of roads
as well as large forts made of massive stone slabs.
The Incan language was Quechua. The Incas had no writing system;
however, they used a system of knotted strings, called quipu, for
. recordkeeping.
The map on the next page shows the expansion of the Incan empire
just before the arrival of Pizarro in 1531. Refer to the map and answer the
following questions.
1. What was the capital city of the Incan empire? In which present-day
country was it located?
2. At its greatest extent, the Incan empire included parts of which
present-day countries? Which ruler expanded the empire the most?
•
3. Which river served as the southern limit of the empire?
Spectrum Geography
Grade 6
52
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Spain in the New Wad,
4. Describe how Huayna Capac extended the Incan empire.
5. Identify three cities connected by a road built by the Incas.
6. What is the highest mountain on the map? How high is it?
EXPANSION OF THE INCAN EMPIRE, 1438-1525
Pachacuti Inca,
1438-1463
Topa Inca.
1463-1493
Huayna Capac,
1493-1525
..
Mountain
Present·day borders
Inca Roads
Capital City
Spectrum Geography
Grade 6'
lesson 9
Spain in the New World
53