Question

guns, germs, and steel -- part ii - conquest - the story of pizarros conquest of the inca, although not strictly speaking canadian history, illustrates a crucial episode in history, which would go on to have devastating impact on native americans in the long run - in these early clashes, pizarros forces (numbering between approx. 150 - 300 men) faced off against vastly larger inca armies (8 - 20,000) - and won! - how was pizarro / the spanish able to conquer the inca? and how did this event look forward to the way history would unfold between europeans and aboriginals in the centuries to come? 1. spain, like all of europe, practiced agriculture - the new world had no domesticated large - animals (oxen, for example), which meant that the inca were not as productive as europeans. - a large population generally means that a society will become more complex and 2. europeans had advanced - they could be ridden. in battle, they were especially effective - the inca had never seen a horse (the notion of riding an animal was completely foreign to them), and were terrified by them. this gave the spanish a 3. the inca - early reports carried to the inca king, atahualpa, said the spanish had strange things; they wore cooking pots on their head, which they didnt even use to cook with! * obviously, thought the king, they were 4. europe had a) guns: the earliest musket, called an arquebus, was not very effective but it made a lot of noise and gave the europeans a psychological advantage b) had steel, which gave them deadly swords; also, spanish armor made incan weapons almost completely ineffective 5. inca - libraries in spain were full of stories of battle and military strategy - pizarro had a model of what to do in the stories of 6. big - the inca king brought about 8,000 soldiers to meet the spanish at the town of cajamarca but he made a big mistake - he wanted to parley with the spaniards, and defeat them without weapons 7. incan inexperience against horses - as mentioned above, the inca had never seen horses, were terrified of them, and were especially frightened of horses used in combat - some inca thought the attacking spanish, especially when they shot off their guns, were gods - one ancient god of thunder was a white man - this gave the spanish a psychological advantage

Explanation:

The text discusses Pizarro's conquest of the Inca, highlighting differences in agriculture, military - technology (horses, guns, steel), and knowledge. Europe's agricultural practices with domesticated animals like oxen led to more complex societies. Horses gave the Spanish a military and psychological edge as the Inca were terrified of them. The Spanish had guns (muskets) which made noise and steel for swords and armor, rendering Incan weapons ineffective. The Inca lacked knowledge of these foreign elements and had misconceptions. Spain had historical knowledge from libraries and Pizarro had models of action. The Inca King made a strategic error by wanting to defeat the Spanish without weapons. Incan inexperience with horses in combat and their psychological reaction to the Spanish added to the Spanish advantage.

Answer:

1. domesticated animals; productive;
2. horses; psychological advantage;
3. had misconceptions about; strange objects;
4. arquebus; noise;
5. lacked historical knowledge; past conquests;
6. army; made a strategic error;
7. in combat;
8. god of thunder;