Essay on Agriculture in the Incan Empire

Leading to increase in crops and a strong agricultural standing for the empire. In document 3, the practice of terracing is introduced, “Flat areas for people to farm were very hard to find. Instead the Inca dug terraces on mountain sides to grow crops. 2,471,053 acres of farmland covered much of the Incan Empire” so Terrace farming allowed Incas to find more new and creative ways of agriculture because of their disadvantage of little flat lands to farm on. In document 5, they talk about the use of benefits the Inca empire received because of the Incan roads, “For the Incas, the Incan Road was a way to administer their empire.

lands and sometimes on building projects or in mining.” (World of the Inca). Thus the Inca expected

The Inca Empire, the massive nation that extended 2,500 miles along the western coast of South America and had a population of over 7 million at its peak. It included all of what is now Ecuador and Peru and most of Chile. Known as “The Children of the Sun”, they excelled at craftsmanship, weaving, and culture (“Children of the Sun”). A very religious people, they worshiped the Sun as their supreme god and held religious festivals monthly to appease these gods. Although they did not value it aside from its beautiful appearance, the Inca Empire was home to millions of pounds of solid gold and silver. The Inca had no use for it except to use it to craft decorations and statues. In fact, an Inca citizen valued cloth more than they valued gold

Perhaps more than 12 million people contributed to the creation of sprawling cities, terraced farmlands, extended roadways, and golden palaces. The Inca empire covered nearly 2,500 miles and included regions of present-day Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, and Argentina. Although, like other native peoples throughout the Americas, they did not have their own written language or the use of the wheel, the Incas were extremely intelligent engineers. They built huge stone structures without mortar and designed suspension bridges that crossed deep mountain

There were several ancient civilizations that built their cultures around their geography. The Incas were among one of those ancient civilizations. They had amazing ingenuity to make use of their environment. The Incas built agriculture terraces and they had a complex irrigation system. And some crops that we use today. The physical environment of the Incas affected and shaped their civilization.

* These civilizations developed complex political systems and large networks of paved roads that unified the civilization Incas in Peru.

The most significant physical geographical factor that contributed to the development of the ancient South American society of the Incas was the Andes Mountains. The Inca Empire had villages and cities throughout the Andes Mountains. Some of these settlements were as low as sea level and their capital, Cusco, was at an altitude of 11,200 feet. The Andes are considered some of the longest and highest mountain ranges. In fact it’s tallest peak, Mount Aconcaqua, in Argentina, tops out at 22,841 feet (Zimmermann, 2013). Despite the fact that people were traversing mountains the people flourished creating trails, aqueducts and agricultural practices that still exist today.

The Aztecs, just like any living being needed food to survive. Agriculture provided food since it was the practice of farming and became crucial. The Aztec farmers did not only grow food for themselves, but also enough for their entire cities, like Tenochtitlan (Doc B). This played a major role in trade and the economy. The farmers used Chinampas which were small mounds of land that were very fertile ( they are still being used today in Mexico City) to farm. Agriculture did not only help the Aztec people but also many people that they traded with. Agriculture helped the Aztecs develop and expand as a civilization/empire. This is why agriculture should be

1. Before Francisco Pizarro began the Spanish conquest in 1532, the Incan empire dominated the Andes Mountain region. An emperor who demanded strict obedience ruled the land. All business was run by the state, which could draft citizens for its projects. The Inca, terracing the landscape and irrigating the crops, farmed the mountainsides. The Inca were brilliant engineers, whose roadways included bridges. The city of Machu Picchu is an example of their skill with tools like the plumb bob and wooden roller, which they used for in heavy construction. Hundreds of years after their civilization was subdued by the Spanish, the descendants of the once-dominate Incas make up about 50 percent of Peru’s population.

“Guns, germs, and steel” refers to the geographical advantages and disadvantages that were present in early civilizations. Although Europeans some may see them as a genetically superior race, their large amounts of success is due to geographical advantages (Source 1)( Diamond, year). It is shown throughout Diamond’s discoveries that because these three continents lay of the same vertical latitude, they are able to keep up with each other when it comes to livestock (Source 1). Geography has played a major key in shaping the current day cultures of Eurasia, South America, and Africa. Jared Diamond stated in episode one of Guns, Germs, and Steel that Europeans were put on this pedestal over the other continents spoken about in the video.

The text states, “Andean farmers also battled poor soil, bad frosts, and frequent droughts.” The Incas developed breeds of crops.This shows that the Andean farmers had ways that offered simple solutions to help protect their harvest. The Anasazi,resided in the Four Corners of the region. The text states, “Yet in the Andes people called the Incas built a great civilization and an empire that they named Tahuantinsuyu, “the Four Quarters of

Cieza seemed to be in awe of them because of how they conquered other peoples, but treated them with curtesy and respect once the fighting was over with because Spain never did this. His neutral wording of relocation and the political tools they used for this make them seem like benevolent rulers. This allowed the Incas to control the land and people overall, but not have unrest among the conquered, fighting to restore original rulers, as Cieza stated in his Chronicles of the Incas. When the Incas took over, mostly using peaceful tactics, if possible, and their soldiers were ordered not to harm the natives, damage their property or be violent towards the natives. The Incan

The Incan society believed in ranks, topmost, including the royal family, the descendant kin of past rulers, the non-royal ethnic Incas, and the Incas by Privilege. Despite the elites prominence, peasant families who lived in towns and villages: farmers, herders, fishers and artisans, made up about 95-98 percent of the population. The Incas called their empire Tawatinsuyu, the “Land of the Four corners”, and its official language was Quechua”. By the time of the Spanish conquest, much of the Inca Empire was made up of numerous non-Inca groups.

What were the sources of strength and prosperity and of problems for the Incas as they created their enormous empire?

The Incas were successful at conquering so many territories largely because they could efficiently grow and send out extra food