The Incas

The Incan civilization was a mighty empire. Flourishing in the Andes mountains of South America, the Incan empire was the largest empire in the Americas before the Europeans’ arrival. Stretching from Colombia to Santiago, Chile, the Incan empire measured 800,000 square kilometers and consisted of more than 10 million people. The capital city was Cuzco, and there were four other provinces. The language was known as Quechua. The Incans had a government which was organized very similarly to the Roman empire. The tax system was called mita. The empire was connected and held together by roads and bridges. They built remarkable buildings using just stone and no other substance, unlike other civilizations. Some even stand today. They built vast storehouses for grain, and had everyone work on building structures at some point in their lives on the Incan soil. The Incans had a powerful army, and didn’t try to conquer people and lands. Instead, they tried to persuade the opposing people to join with them, by offering food, gifts, promises of protection, and more of the sort. However, this amazing civilization came to a quick end in the 16th century. By 1572, the Incan society was completely destroyed. This was a very powerful civilization which had a great impact on our society today.