Tupac Amaru Significance

Tupac Amaru was an integral figure during the Bourbon Reforms in the 18th century. He fought for the independence of indigenous Peruvians, and his courage, perseverance, and dedication during this period was remarkable. These qualities, however, were not the only factors that influenced his actions during this time. Tupac Amaru’s dedication to the Catholic Church played an important role in his rebellion because it allowed him to persevere and fight for independence despite many setbacks. The Tupac Amaru and Catarista Rebellions: An Anthology of Sources, compiled by Ward Stavig and Ella Schmidt, contains several important excerpts that highlight the importance of Amaru’s religion. His Catholicism is immediately mentioned in the first excerpt, which is Amaru’s edict to the Province of Chichas. Amaru writes, “This effort does not oppose in the slightest way [their] sacred Catholic religion, but it is only to suppress disorder” (p. 73). The effort that he refers to is the rebellion against the Bourbon reforms that Amaru and his wife, Micaela Bastidas, began in 1780. Amaru did not fail to mention his loyalty to the Church prior to the rebellion because he knew that it was going to be violent, and he did not want people to think

Although he was executed before being able to achieve his goal of gaining independence for indigenous Peruvians, Amaru’s perseverance and dedication to the Church throughout his rebellion is incredibly noteworthy. Although many historians argue that Amaru’s power was more important to him than his religion, his Catholicism was still always in the back of his mind. Personal accounts from some of his followers or family members might provide more evidence to verify the importance of his religion. Until these are discovered and analyzed, it is mostly up to our imaginations to wonder what the rebellion would have been like if Amaru was not