Everything about Inca Garcilaso De La Vega totally explained
Garcilaso de la Vega, (b.
Gómez Suárez de Figueroa, c.
1539 in
Cuzco,
Peru, d.
1616) was an illustrious
Peruvian historian and acclaimed writer who is recognized primarily for his contributions to
Inca history, culture, and society. Although not all scholars agree, many consider Garcilaso's accounts the most complete and accurate available. Because of the fact that there was also a Spanish author named
Garcilaso de la Vega, he's more commonly known as
"El Inca" Garcilaso de la Vega, or simply
"El Inca Garcilaso".
Life
Early Life
Garcilaso de la Vega was born in
Cusco,
Peru on April 12, 1539. Garcilaso was the illegitimate son of Spanish Captain Sebastián Garcilaso de la Vega Vargas. Garcilaso received an inheritance of 4,000 pesos when his father died and in 1560 decided to travel to Spain.
Born of
Spanish aristocratic and
royal Inca roots, he was the son of Spanish
conquistador Sebastián Garcilaso de la Vega y Vargas (died
1559) and Inca princess Isabel Suárez Chimpu Ocllo (or Palla Chimpu Ocllo), who was a daughter of
Tupac Huallpa and a granddaughter (not a niece) of the powerful Inca
Tupac Yupanqui.
After his father abandoned his mother for a younger Spanish woman, his mother was married again to
Juan de Pedroche and had two daughters, Ana Ruíz, who was married to her cousin Martín de Bustinza, and Luisa de Herrera, married to Pedro Márquez de Galeoto (the parents of
Alonso Márquez de Figueroa). A native
Quechua speaker born in
Cuzco, Garcilaso wrote accounts of Inca life, history, and the
conquest by the Spanish. His writings were published as the
Comentarios Reales de los Incas (translated complete into English in 1961 as
The Incas). It is recorded that he died in Cordoba, Spain, on April 23, 1616, but the date could also be the 22 or the 21, given the inaccuracy of the existing documents.
Travel to Spain
Garcilaso arrived in Spain in 1561 and traveled to Montilla where he met his father's brother, Alonso de Vargas, who became Garcilaso's protector.
Garcilaso soon traveled to Madrid to seek recognition for the rights of his father.
Garcilaso was educated in
Spain after his father's death in
1560. At the time, marriages between the Spanish and native people of the
Americas were not recognized in Spain. Garcilaso had to present his case in the Spanish courts in order to receive payment for his service to the crown. Embittered by his illegitimacy in Spain and proud of his Inca heritage, Garcilaso took on the name "El Inca" (in this context, "Inca" refers to the old ruling lineage group, not the general people).
He remained in
Spain and didn't return to his native country (now
Peru) due to the danger his royal Inca lineage presented in uncertain times.
Military Service
He entered Spanish military service in 1570 and fought in the
Alpujarra mountains against the
Moors after the
Morisco Revolt. He received the rank of captain for his services to the crown.
Personal Life
He lived in the town of Montilla until 1591, when he moved to Cordoba until his death. Apparently, he'd a first son in 1570, who might have died at a very young age. He then had a second son, Diego de Vargas, in 1590, who helped him copy the
Royal Commentaries and survived him until at least 1651. The mothers of both children were two of Garcilaso's servants.
Writings
His writings reflect the following facts:
1. He received a first-rate, by informal European education in Spain after he relocated there at age 21. His works have enormous literary value, and shouldn't be considered mere historical chronicles.
2. His maternal family were the ruling Inca, and as such, he portrays the Inca as benevolent rulers who governed a country where everybody was well-fed and happy. (Subsequent research has contradicted this idealized view.) Nonetheless, he received first-hand accounts of daily Inca life from his maternal relatives, much of which he conveyed in his writings, and he gives accurate information about the system of tribute and labor enforced by the Incas. Unfortunately, his depiction of Incan religion and gradual expansion is nurtured by his Christianized view of the indigenous past.
3. As an example, no mention is made of human sacrifices in Inca times. Whether this was a deliberate attempt to portray his Inca ancestors in a good light, or mere ignorance given that he lived most of his life in Spain, isn't known.
Comentarios Reales de los Incas
It was in Spain that Garcilaso wrote his famous
Comentarios Reales de los Incas, published in Lisbon in 1609, and based on stories he'd been told by his Inca relatives when he was a child in Cusco. The
Comentarios contained two parts: the first about Inca life, and the second about the
Spanish conquest of Peru, published in 1617. Many years later (1780), when the uprising against colonial oppression led by
Tupac Amaru II gained traction, a royal edict by
Carlos III of Spain banned the
Comentarios from being published or distributed in
Lima due to its "dangerous" content. The book wasn't printed again in the Americas until
1918, but copies continued to be circulated.
Historia de la Florida
Even before the
Comentarios Reales, Garcilaso had also written his popular
La Florida del Inca, an account of
Hernando de Soto's expedition and journey of
Florida. The work was published in
Lisbon in
1605. It contains the chronicles of de Sotos's expedition according to information Garcilaso gathered during various years, and defends the legitimacy of imposing the Spanish sovereignty in conquered territories and submit them to Christian jurisdiction. He also defends the dignity, courage and rationality of the native Americans.
Honors
Cusco's main stadium,
Estadio Garcilaso de la Vega, was named after him in
1950.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Inca Garcilaso De La Vega'.
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