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In 1515, and after a year of living in Darién, where the chronicles say that he built a house and lived from agriculture, Almagro embarked on a new expedition made up of 260 men; however, from this he only got an illness, which led him to return to his house due to the deterioration of his health that it caused him.
conquests and discoveries
Diego de Almagro is credited with the conquest of Peru and the discovery of Chile, although he also participated in several expeditions in which the Gulf of Panama was conquered and the first Spanish city was founded in Ecuador.
Conquest of the Gulf of Panama
Once recovered, Diego de Almagro participated in a new expedition, this time led by Gaspar Espinoza and in which he met the newly appointed captain Fernando Pizarro, with whom he achieved the conquest of the Gulf of Panama and became associated. It was also on this expedition, during a journey by land, that Vasco Núñez de Balboa discovered the Pacific Ocean.
Over time and after the conquest of the Gulf of Panama, Almagro became a common-law partner with Ana Martínez, with whom he had a son known as Diego de Almagro el Mozo (or “the young man”, in other words).
Almagro and Pizarro stayed in Panama for a few years before receiving the amazing news about Hernán Cortés’ conquest of the Aztec Empire.
Conquest of the Inca Empire
At the beginning of 1520, Almagro heard of the Virú indigenous kingdom, which was identified as the center of the Inca Empire. Pizarro then undertook two expeditions that took place in 1524 and 1526, in which he was able to verify the fabulous wealth of this empire.
Together with the priest Hernando de Luque, Almagro and Pizarro made a proposal to the Spanish king to equip and lead a conquest expedition to the south. The Inca Empire was still unknown to the Spanish, who had no idea who or what they would find in the south. The king accepted the proposal and Pizarro set out with about 200 men while Almagro remained in Panama to send him supplies.
In 1532, Almagro learned that Pizarro and 170 men had captured the Inca emperor Atahualpa and were asking for ransom as if he were dealing with never-before-seen treasure. Almagro hastily gathered reinforcements and set out for present-day Peru, catching up with his former companion in April 1533.
Soon, the conquistadors began to hear rumors about the approach of an Inca army under the command of General Rumiñahui. Panicked, they decided to execute Atahualpa. In this way, the Spanish managed to maintain the conquest of the empire.
The problems with Pizarro
Once the Inca Empire was completely subdued and the territory pacified, Almagro and Pizarro began to have problems. The division of the crown of Peru was vague; The rich city of Cuzco fell under the jurisdiction of Almagro and impoverished by leaps and bounds, but the power of Pizarro and his brothers sustained it. Almagro went north and participated in the conquest of Quito, but the north was not as rich as the south.
The problems between Almagro and Pizarro increased as Almagro found out that Pizarro’s plans were not to make him part of the spoils of the southern conquests. In 1534 and during a meeting, it was decided that Almagro would head towards the south of present-day Chile, after rumors of the great existing wealth; however, despite Almagro’s trip, the problems between him and Pizarro remained unresolved.
discovery of chili
The rumors turned out to be false, and indeed the journey was arduous. The conquistadors had to cross the impressive Andes mountain range, in which many Spaniards lost their lives, as well as large numbers of African slaves and native allies. Once they arrived, they found Chile to be a difficult land, full of Mapuche natives who fought Almagro and his men on several occasions with great ferocity.
After two years of exploration and finding no rich empires like the Aztecs or Incas, Almagro’s men prevailed upon him to return to Cuzco and claim it as their own. After his return to Peru, Almagro was considered the first Spaniard to arrive in Chile, for which reason he was awarded the title of conqueror.
Civil war
Almagro and his men surrendered and returned to Peru via the coastal desert route. The soldiers passed through what would later be Arequipa and entered Cuzco on April 8, 1537, shortly after Pizarro’s supporters had broken the siege led by Manco Inca.
Almagro and his men occupied Cuzco, believing that it was within the jurisdiction of Nueva Toledo. Almagro, to ensure control of him, imprisoned Hernando and Gonzalo Pizarro, Francisco Pizarro’s brothers, while Fray Francisco de Bobadilla, an alleged pizarrista, began negotiations to reach a peaceful settlement in the territorial dispute. However, Gonzalo Pizarro escaped from prison and Almagro released Hernando on the condition that he return to Spain. However, Hernando sent a Pizarrista army to Salinas, near Cuzco, where a civil war broke out that ended up defeating Almagro on April 6, 1538.
death and legacy
Almagro fled to Cuzco, but men loyal to the Pizarro brothers pursued and captured him. He was sentenced to death, a fact that surprised the Spanish in Peru, since years before Almagro had received a noble title from the Spanish king. Diego de Almagro was executed on July 8, 1538 by means of a slowly hardened iron collar around his neck (a technique similar to the “vil garrote”). His corpse was put on public display.
Almagro’s unexpected execution had far-reaching consequences for the Pizarro brothers, as many Spaniards, both in the New World and on the peninsula, turned against them. The civil wars did not end. In 1542 Almagro’s son, then 22 years old, led a revolt that led to the assassination of Francisco Pizarro. Almagro the Younger was quickly captured and executed, ending Almagro’s direct line of succession.
Today Almagro is remembered mainly in Chile, where he is considered a pioneer even though he did not leave any significant legacy. Pedro de Valdivia, one of Pizarro’s lieutenants, finally conquered the area and settled in Chile.
Sources
- Heming, John. “The conquest of the Incas”. Bread Books, 2004.
- Herring, Hubert. “ A history of Latin America from the beginnings to the present .” Alfred A. Knopf, 1962.
- ” Diego de Almagro “. Euston.
- ” Diego de Almagro “. Encyclopedia.com.
- ” Diego de Almagro: Spanish Conquistador “. Britannica Encyclopedia.
