Francisco Pizarro

Explorers like Francisco Pizarro make great topics for world history research papers. Pizarro is well-known for conquering the Incas and your research paper will have plenty of interesting side topics on this explorers methods, goals and expeditions.

Francisco Pizarro (c.1471 or 1476 - 1541) was a Spanish conquistador best remembered for conquering the Incan Empire in Peru.

• Pizarro was born in Trujillo, Spain.
• Pizarro was the illegitimate son of an infantry colonel, and the exact year of his birth is unknown.
• In 1509, he sailed to the New World for the first time, taking part in expeditions under Alonzo de Ojeda.
• In 1513, he accompanied Balboa on the expedition that first sighted the Pacific Ocean.
• In 1533, Pizarro conquered the Incan Empire.

Pizarro as Mayor

From 1519 to 1523, he was the mayor and magistrate of Panama City, and based on stories of Cortez's conquering of the Aztecs, undertook two expeditions against the Inca, in 1524 and 1526. Both of these expeditions failed for various reasons, but by 1528, Pizarro and his men had reached the northern limits of the Incan Empire, where he discovered precious metals. Pizarro returned to Spain to petition King Charles I to back a third expedition, which left Panama in 1530.

During the Battle of Cajamarca in 1532, Pizarro captured the Incan leader Atahualpa, who filled an entire room full of gold for his ransom. Pizarro executed the Emperor anyway. In 1533, Pizarro entered the Incan capital of Cuzco, completing his conquest.

Pizarro founded the city of Lima, Peru. The son of an executed rival assassinated Pizarro in 1541. Many modern Peruvians do not look with favor on Pizarro and his legacy.