Túpac Amaru II

Indigenous leader who led the largest anti-colonial rebellion in Spanish America

José Gabriel Condorcanqui (1742-1781), known as Túpac Amaru II, ignited the 1780-1783 Andean insurrection against Spanish rule that redefined resistance in colonial Latin America. Claiming descent from the last Inca emperor, he united Indigenous peoples, mestizos, and creoles in demands for economic justice and administrative reform.

His revolutionary measures included:

• Abolishing the abusive mita labor system
• Demanding freedom for enslaved Africans
• Establishing local governance structures

The rebellion's geographic scope stretched from modern Argentina to Colombia, involving over 100,000 combatants. Though ultimately defeated, Amaru's martyrdom inspired subsequent independence movements and made him a lasting symbol of anti-colonial resistance across Latin America.