Government Inca Empire

1 government

1.1 beliefs
1.2 organization of empire

1.2.1 suyu


1.3 laws
1.4 administration

government

beliefs

the sapa inca conceptualized divine , head of state religion. willaq umu (or chief priest) second emperor. local religious traditions continued , in cases such oracle @ pachacamac on peruvian coast, officially venerated. following pachacuti, sapa inca claimed descent inti, placed high value on imperial blood; end of empire, common incestuously wed brother , sister. son of sun, , people intip churin, or children of sun, , both right rule , mission conquer derived holy ancestor. sapa inca presided on ideologically important festivals, notably during inti raymi, or warriors cultivation, attended soldiers, mummified rulers, nobles, clerics , general population of cusco beginning on june solstice , culminating 9 days later ritual breaking of earth using foot plow inca. moreover, cusco considered cosmologically central, loaded huacas , radiating ceque lines , geographic center of 4 quarters; inca garcilaso de la vega called navel of universe .

organization of empire

the inca empire s southern border defined maule or maipo river (scholars differ). inca troops never crossed bío bío river.

the inca empire federalist system consisting of central government inca @ head , 4 quarters, or suyu: chinchay suyu (nw), anti suyu (ne), kunti suyu (sw) , qulla suyu (se). 4 corners of these quarters met @ center, cusco. these suyu created around 1460 during reign of pachacuti before empire reached largest territorial extent. @ time suyu established of equal size , later changed proportions empire expanded north , south along andes.

cusco not organized wamani, or province. rather, akin modern federal district, washington, d.c. or mexico city. city sat @ center of 4 suyu , served preeminent center of politics , religion. while cusco governed sapa inca, relatives , royal panaqa lineages, each suyu governed apu, term of esteem used men of high status , venerated mountains. both cusco district , 4 suyu administrative regions grouped upper hanan , lower hurin divisions. inca did not have written records, impossible exhaustively list constituent wamani. however, colonial records allow reconstruct partial list. there more 86 wamani, more 48 in highlands , more 38 on coast.

suyu

the 4 suyus or quarters of empire.

the populous suyu chinchaysuyu, encompassed former chimu empire , of northern andes. @ largest extent, extended through of modern ecuador , modern colombia.

the largest suyu area qullasuyu, named after aymara-speaking qulla people. encompassed bolivian altiplano , of southern andes, reaching argentina , far south maipo or maule river in central chile. historian josé bengoa singled out quillota perhaps foremost inca settlement.

the second smallest suyu, antisuyu, northwest of cusco in high andes. name root of word andes.

kuntisuyu smallest suyu, located along southern coast of modern peru, extending highlands towards cusco.

laws

the inca state had no separate judiciary or codified laws. customs, expectations , traditional local power holders governed behavior. state had legal force, such through tokoyrikoq (lit. sees ), or inspectors. highest such inspector, typically blood relative sapa inca, acted independently of conventional hierarchy, providing point of view sapa inca free of bureaucratic influence.

administration

inti, represented josé bernardo de tagle of peru

colonial sources not entirely clear or in agreement inca government structure, such exact duties , functions of government positions. basic structure can broadly described. top sapa inca. below may have been willaq umu, literally priest recounts , high priest of sun. however, beneath sapa inca sat inkap rantin, confidant , assistant sapa inca, perhaps similar prime minister. starting topa inca yupanqui, council of realm composed of 16 nobles: 2 hanan cusco; 2 hurin cusco; 4 chinchaysuyu; 2 cuntisuyu; 4 collasuyu; , 2 antisuyu. weighting of representation balanced hanan , hurin divisions of empire, both within cusco , within quarters (hanan suyukuna , hurin suyukuna).

while provincial bureaucracy , government varied greatly, basic organization decimal. taxpayers – male heads of household of age range – organized corvée labor units (often doubling military units) formed state s muscle part of mit service. each unit of more 100 tax-payers headed kuraka, while smaller units headed kamayuq, lower, non-hereditary status. however, while kuraka status hereditary , typically served life, position of kuraka in hierarchy subject change based on privileges of superiors in hierarchy; pachaka kuraka appointed position waranqa kuraka. furthermore, 1 kuraka in each decimal level serve head of 1 of 9 groups @ lower level, pachaka kuraka might waranqa kuraka, in effect directly responsible 1 unit of 100 tax-payers , less directly responsible 9 other such units.