Conquest and the Making of Place in the Andes

This paper studies the significance of place, especially sacred place, in the conquest of Peru. Place is understood here as a space that has a particular meaning, usually imbued totally or partially with sacredness. My reading of the term ‘conquest' involves the events immediately following the arrival of the Spaniards in the Andes, although I acknowledge that no specific limits –spatial or temporal- can be imposed upon the term, since ‘conquest' extends much beyond the period 1532-1569. By analysing a group of chronicles of the conquest written by Spanish and Andean authors, the paper asks: how was sacred place understood, created and transformed during the initial years of Spanish presence in the Andes? How did that process of understanding, creating and transforming place contribute to consolidate or to destabilize the Spanish conquest? In what ways can the concept of ‘making place' contribute to change or enhance our understanding of conquest in the Andes?