Chapter 3 - Collision at Cajamarca

Collision at Cajamarca Summary- Chapter 3

            Chapter three begins with background on the biggest population shift of modern times that happens to be the colonization of the New World by the Europeans and the disappearance of Native Americans. The collisions between the new advancement between the Old world and the new world happened in 1492 when Christopher Columbus found the Caribbean Islands where all the Native Americans had been living.  The most memorable and dramatic moment was on November 16, 1532 in a town called Cajamarca when the first encounter with the Inca emperor Atahualpa and the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro unfolded. Pizarro led a Spanish army of 168 soldiers and those soldiers were going against an army of 80,000 soldiers led by Atahualpa. Pizarro was 1000 miles to the north in Panama and new nothing about the time reinforcements or the local inhabitants. Although the odds were against Pizarro and his soldiers, he was able to win this battle that opened a broad window onto world history.

            The next part of the chapter discusses a couple of factors that influenced the Spaniards to triumph over the Incas. The Spaniards were amazed over the Atahualpa where the Indians lived however they refused to show any fear or turn back from fighting against them. Along with this Pizarro did not want his men to fear anymore so instead of telling them that they were going to fight against 80,000 he lied and said there was only 40,000 to boost their confidence. However, when the Spaniards were asked to come out and fight, the Indians were immediately in shock when they heard the “booming of the guns, the blowing of the trumpets, and the rattles on the horses that threw the Indians crowding the square” (72). This was a major surprise for the Indians and something they had never seen or imagined before. The Indians weak weapons stood very little chance against the Spaniards steel armor, guns and weapons. Pizarro was immediately able to capture Atahualpa. The Indians responded in panic and tried to flee from the site and runaway to the plain outside.

            Pizarro told the leaders of the Indians to not be offended or ashamed for being defeated because he mentions how he had defeated many more powerful lords than him. The biggest pay off they asked for was a room full of gold and right after he received that he executed Atahualpa. The big question throughout the chapter is “Why did Pizarro capture Atahuallpa? The main component of Pizarro’s success in winning this battle was the military advantages such as steel swords and other weapons, steel armor, guns and horses. Around the 1700s swords were replaced with guns that ultimately favored the Europeans rather than the Native Americans. Another tremendous advantage was having horses to help kill the Indians. The Spaniards were able to easily outride the Indians and could ride down and kill the Indians on foot.

            Another question the chapter proposes is “How did Atahuallpa come to be at Cajamarca? Diamond responds saying that they have arrived because they won many decisive battles in a civil war that ended up leaving the Native Americans divided. This was another advantage that led to the victory of Pizarro and his soldiers during the battle between them. Pizarro immediately was aware of those divisions and exploited them. The reason for the civil war was that there was an epidemic of small pox spreading and if this epidemic did not take place, the “Spaniards would have faced a united empire” (77). The disease that was introduced by the Europeans spread throughout different tribes that killed many Native Americans. All in all, Pizarro’s capture of Atahuallpa displays the many different factors that led to Europeans colonizing the New World rather than the Native Americans winning over Europe. The main factors of victory were military technology such as guns, germs and steel, horses, infectious diseases, technology and the political organization in Europe.

Reflection

            Overall, I felt that they chapter was very straightforward and was easily interpreted. Throughout the chapter he proposes many questions such as “Why did Pizarro capture Atahuallpa?” “How did Atahuallpa come to be at Cajamarca?” “How did Pizarro come to be at Cajamarca?” “Why did Atahuallpa walk into the trap?” After each question Diamond proposes, he immediately follows with a very descriptive response that answers the question that has been asked. This is a very effective way in organizing each section of the chapter because it allows the readers to easily follow the context and dig deeper to find the meaning behind it. At the very end of the chapter, Diamond gives a brief overview of what he discussed previously in the chapter. This is another effective technique that Diamond uses in organizing the chapter because throughout the chapter I was sometimes lost through the description and it was a good way to remind me the main points.  The chapter begins with giving examples of the Old world compared to the New world and addresses what happens in between. It gives enough background information for the reader to understand what lead up to the battle between the Spaniards and the Native Americans. Also at the very beginning, Diamond announces the outcome of the battle and a little information on what led to the Spaniards victory. The remainder of the chapter talks about how the Spaniards ended up winning. I thought this chapter was very well organized and very easy to follow what was going on.