American Demons

Deplorable Thirst for Action

"The Atzecs sacrificed as (strenuously) as we work." Georges Bataille

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"In the Renaissance ... talent (meant) the same as versatility." Egon Friedell

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Dynastic merchant families are already speculating on American profits. They equip militarily streamlined expeditions. They entrust command to field commanders accountable to them alone. State-building measures play no role in their direction. The interests of the entrepreneurs clashed with those of the conquistadors, who were officially fighting for God and country.

Protestantism is another irritant.

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The  "conquerors" realize that any runaway swineherd can become viceroy in America, provided he can muster enough force.

The "conquerors" had to finance their excursions themselves. Pizarro and his brothers made commitments, while their swashbucklers and errand boys came ashore without possessions or burdens. All they brought was a sword and their swimming trunks.

Now they have much more. Pizarro cannot do without Almagro. He sends him off as an emissary. Almagro roams through old settlements. The villages are ruled by caciques. Politics is agora. People meet in the middle between the carnival and the weekly market. The omnipotence of Atahualpa is only an abstract aura on this periphery.These are different people to those in Cajamarca, Almagro thinks. He suspects an Inca counter-empire, a second great power in the Quito area.

Atahualpa's restricted position has an effect. The Inca general Rumiñahui independently presses the local rulers, reacting to a power vacuum. Almagro recruits auxiliary troops. He seeks talks with Sebastián de Belalcázar, who leads a vanguard that is constantly involved in skirmishes. Both leaders make claims that go beyond their mandates. They realize that any runaway swineherd can become viceroy in America, provided he can muster enough force.

The assassination of Atahualpa dissolves the Inca Empire. Francisco Pizarro González places a child on the throne, who soon comes to harm and is no longer available for the farce. The "conqueror" and his henchmen leave a trail of blood through Peru. They torture every cacique to make absolutely sure that he is not holding back any gold. They reach Euzco "without encountering any resistance worth mentioning" (Johannes Blattschneider in his notes "American Adventures").

Pizarro has Inca tombs opened, i.e. desecrated. He gives Euzco the character of a Spanish city. Vicente de Valverde embodies the bishop. He transforms the magical houses of the sun virgins into monasteries. Spanish soldiers of fortune appropriate the villas of the Inca aristocracy and live there with their horses. Later, the gang moves to Lima. The early Spanish foundation expands as a consequence of transportation decisions and strategic considerations. The Spanish are always on the brink of civil war. It's hard to convince people who are constantly fighting to accept civil solutions, the bishop babbles. A delegate from the Cortés faction arrives with 227 horsemen and two hundred and twelve footmen and wants to collect the current battle winnings from Sebastián de Belalcázar.