Machu Picchu
Transcript: History of Machu Picchu First we'll start at the roots. The Inca. THE INCA The Inca army can turn an ordinary villager or farmer into a soldier, ready for battle. The Inca army had many kinds of weapons. Both long distance and man-to-man weapons. The Incas in the east were experts in the use of a bow. In the rain forest there is much resilient wood. With this wood you can make a very good bow. The bows were short and the arrows were made of hard wood. In the west of the Inca empire, there wasn't resilient wood, that's why there weren't many warriors who used a bow in the west. Each part of the empire had their own traditional weapons. The tribes who lived by the coast used spears or shafts. Another tribe had two or three stones attached to ropes, which was attached to a stick. This weapon was called a Bolla. The Bollas could get entwined around legs from warriors or horses. In that way, it could make nasty wounds. The Bollas were very effective against the Spaniard cavalry (soldiers on horses). The Incas used slings which could fire stones as big as eggs. This weapon is very exact and it could wound warriors over a distance of 30 metres. When a city was besieged, the Incas throw red-hot stones down the walls. The Incas also used spears, swords, bludgeons, and axes. The swords were made of wood with bronze edges. Some swords were completely bronze. Machu Picchu Machu Picchu is the only city of the Inca that wasn't destroyed by the Spanish. I think Machu Picchu is the coolest historical city ever. A highly sophisticated civilization began in the year 1200 A.D. The Inca were people with high intellect, evident through their advancement. Their power was one that was unstoppable, and the testament to that fact is clear through the size of the Empire. The Inca borders spread though vast lands of what is now Peru, Equador and parts of Bolivia, Chile and Columbia. To acquire all that land, one can capture whatsoever one desires, and that was just what the Inca had. Under the aegis of the sun god they ruled enormous portions of land. Through complex tactics, weapons, and armor, they triumphed over their adversaries and secured their place as one of the most cunning and ingenious people in history. To triumph, ones military must not only have advanced weapons, armor and technology. One too needs effective strategies and useful advantages; and the Inca had many different methods to further increase their chances of winning. First of all, because the Inca lived in highlands, their lung capacity was greatly increased and therefore, their stamina was improved as well. When they fought their lowland enemies, it was a big advantage that aided them greatly. Secondly, although the Inca were illiterate, they were able to implement highly complicated plans and techniques. But the knowledge was limited to the commanders and nobles only. On top of that, there would be an experienced officer caste leading the army of about thirty thousand soldiers and a few thousand professional imperial bodyguards. And last but not least, like the Romans, the Inca had their own way of speedy travel. They used roads as well, but in addition, they had storage forts known as a quolla. The storage forts are placed within a days travel from each other and are filled with weapons, armor, food, and other much needed provisions. With the quolla, the Inca army can march at full speed towards their destination and rest once they reach the fort. This system of movement was so effective that it was in fact the fastest system of movement for the military prior to the steam age. We can see that the Inca tactics and methods truly were useful. It aided them greatly and it was because of it, that they attained victory in many battles. But an army too must have advanced weaponry and armor. The Incas had many different types of these, each with their own specific use. First of all, they had a total of three main ranged weapons; the slings, bow and arrow, as well as the bolas. A sling is a long piece of rope tied around a large rock. It is usually swung around in a circular motion until you are ready to release the rock and send it hurtling toward your enemy. Next, the bow and arrow is a simple weapon where you would draw your arrow back on the bowstring, and release to send the arrow soaring to your target. Last but not least, the bola is a weapon that has a rope that is tied to three (usually three) rocks. It is thrown by swinging it around in a circular motion as well and releasing your hold, when ready, to let it fly. All these ranged weapons were effective because during those days, many of the Inca adversaries used short weapons. Therefore, it was easy to strike them down from a distance. But although the Inca had some amazing ranged weaponry, their melee weapons too is another important topic. When the Inca entered melee combat, they used clubs, bronze knives, scythes, axes, and serrated two-handed wooden swords (akin to teeth). Each one of these weapons had
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