Spanish Conquest of the Inca Empire (1532-1572)
Francisco Pizarro captured Emperor Atahualpa at Cajamarca in 1532, demanding his conversion before execution. Dominican friars systematically destroyed Inca shrines and religious sites. They built Catholic churches on sacred locations like Coricancha in Cusco. The fall of Vilcabamba in 1572 ended the last Inca resistance. Spanish conquerors used religious conversion to justify their seizure of vast Inca gold reserves.
