Gonzalo Pizarro

Overview

Gonzalo Pizarro was a Spanish conquistador whose abuse of Manco Inca’s household helped destroy collaboration before he fought in the defense of Cusco and was imprisoned by Diego de Almagro.

Current Profile

In 648. The Fall of the Incas: Battle for the Sacred City (Part 5), Gonzalo’s pursuit of Manco’s wife and sister Cura Ocllo joins his brother Juan’s kidnapping of Inquilcoya and the broader abuse of Manco’s household. Manco’s attempts to protect Cura Ocllo with silver and a disguised substitute fail, making Gonzalo a direct actor in the humiliation that precedes revolt.

Gonzalo later helps Hernando Pizarro retake Sacsayhuaman during the siege of Cusco. The episode ends this phase with Diego de Almagro taking the city and imprisoning both brothers.

Key Characteristics

• Pizarro brother whose coercion of Manco’s household contributed to political rupture.
• Participant in sexualized conquest and the pursuit of high-status Inca women.
• Defender of Cusco during Manco’s uprising.
• Assault commander in the capture of Sacsayhuaman.
• Prisoner of Almagro after the return from Chile.

Evidence

• Household abuse: 648. The Fall of the Incas: Battle for the Sacred City (Part 5) describes Gonzalo’s pursuit of Cura Ocllo and threats against the high priest.
• Siege combat: 648. The Fall of the Incas: Battle for the Sacred City (Part 5) places Gonzalo beside Hernando in the final assault on Sacsayhuaman.
• Imprisonment: 648. The Fall of the Incas: Battle for the Sacred City (Part 5) records Almagro’s seizure of Cusco and detention of both Pizarro brothers.

Qualifications

The page is limited to the 1535–37 sequence and does not cover Gonzalo’s later rebellion against the New Laws. The hosts’ account of desire, contempt, and the political value of elite Inca women is interpretive; it does not reduce the coercion described.

What Changed

• Established abuse of Cura Ocllo as part of the causal path to Manco’s revolt.
• Added Gonzalo’s role in retaking Sacsayhuaman and his capture by Almagro.

Relationships

• Manco Inca - ruler whose household he abused before fighting his uprising.
• Hernando Pizarro - brother and fellow commander at Sacsayhuaman.
• Diego de Almagro - factional rival who imprisoned him in Cusco.
• Siege of Cusco (1536–1537) - campaign in which he fought the Inca assault.
• Encomienda Colonial Labor System - extractive colonial order later defended by his faction.