Why francisco pizarro is famous

But he brought back to Panama something even more important — his four half-brothers. Together, the five of them would conquer an empire.

He particularly trusted Hernando, who he sent twice to Spain in charge of the "royal fifth," a fortune in treasure destined for the King of Spain. Pizarro's most trusted lieutenants were his four brothers, but he also had the support of several veteran fighting men who would go on to other things.

Hernando de Soto was a loyal lieutenant who would later lead an expedition into the southeast of the present-day USA. Francisco de Orellana accompanied Gonzalo Pizarro on an expedition and wound up discovering the Amazon River. Pedro de Valdivia went on to be the first governor of Chile.

The Inca Empire was rich in gold and silver , and Pizarro and his conquistadors all became very rich. Francisco Pizarro made out best of all. His share from Atahualpa's ransom alone was pounds of gold, 1, pounds of silver, and odds-and-ends such as Atahualpa's throne — a chair made of 15 karat gold which weighed pounds. Most of the conquistadors were cruel, violent men who did not flinch from torture, mayhem, murder, and rape and Francisco Pizarro was no exception.

Although he did not fall into the sadist category — as some other conquistadors did — Pizarro had his moments of great cruelty. After his puppet Emperor Manco Inca went into open rebellion , Pizarro ordered that Manco's wife Cura Ocllo be tied to a stake and shot with arrows: her body was floated down a river where Manco would find it.

Later, Pizarro ordered the murder of 16 captured Inca chieftains. One of them was burned alive. In the s, Francisco and fellow conquistador Diego de Almagro had a partnership and twice explored the Pacific coast of South America. In , Pizarro went to Spain to get royal permission for a third trip. The crown granted Pizarro a title, a position of governor of the lands he discovered, and other lucrative positions: Almagro was given the governorship of the small town of Tumbes.

Back in Panama, Almagro was furious and was only convinced to participate after given the promise of the governorship of as-yet undiscovered lands. Almagro never forgave Pizarro for this double-cross. As an investor, Almagro became very wealthy after the sacking of the Inca Empire, but he never quite shook the feeling most likely correct that the Pizarro brothers were ripping him off. A vague royal decree on the subject gave the northern half of the Inca Empire to Pizarro and the southern half to Almagro, but it was unclear in which half the city of Cuzco belonged.

In , Almagro seized the city, leading to a civil war among the conquistadors. Francisco sent his brother Hernando at the head of an army which defeated Almagro at the Battle of Salinas. Gonzalo was to go on to have a distinguished military career, attaining particular recognition for his feats in Navarre and Italy in the army of Gonsalvo de Cordova. The young Francisco, meanwhile, seems to have had a difficult upbringing, with little attention being paid to him by his parents and an incomplete education.

Leaving his unsatisfactory family behind him, he made his way to America, where he is known to have participated in the Uraba expedition, led by Alonzo de Ojeda, in He briefly commanded the new settlement of San Sebastian, which was to be obliterated by hostile native tribes only a few years later.

For his service, Pizarro was given permission to draw on forced labor from the local people. He settled in Panama and farmed cattle until Then, he teamed up with a soldier, Diego Almagro, and a priest, Hernando de Luque, to lead a new journey into the south for the purposes of conquest and exploration.

His father, Captain Gonzalo Pizarro, was a poor farmer. Tempted by tales of adventure in the New World, in , Pizarro joined settlers led by Alonso de Ojeda to establish a colony on the South American coast.

Only of the original settlers survived the tropical heat and diseases in their new home, and the remaining survivors returned to Cartagena. It became the first stable Spanish settlement on the South American continent. Desirous of making his own discoveries, Pizarro formed a partnership with fellow soldier Diego de Almagro. From , then again from , he sailed with Almagro and a priest, Hernando de Luque, on voyages of discovery and conquest down the west coast of South America.

The first expedition failed, but in , Pizarro arrived in Peru and heard stories of a great ruler and his riches in the mountains. He returned to get permission to claim the land for Spain.

In , Pizarro and his crew, including three of his half-brothers—Gonzalo, Hernando and Juan Pizarro—sailed from Panama. Pizarro took Atahuapla hostage. Despite having paid a large ransom to spare his life, Atahuapla was killed in Pizarro then conquered Cuzco, another important Inca city, and founded the city of Lima, now the capital of Peru.

Pizarro did not want Almagro to have the city, but was too old to fight himself so he sent his brothers to Cuzco to fight.