Inca Elegy (Novel) "The Fall of the Inca Empire" (Volume 2) by Zhang Baotong
In fact, before Alvarado and the others arrived, a life-and-death decisive battle had just occurred here. On one side of the decisive battle were Ruminawi's 50,000 Quito elite troops, and on the other side were a Spanish force composed of 140 cavalry and infantry led by Sebastian Benalcasal and a two-man army. Indian auxiliary force of three thousand men.
This officer named Sebastian Bernalcasal was an effective officer under Pizarro. He was not only good at riding, brave and good at fighting, but also ferocious. Therefore, he was deeply loved by Pizarro. of trust. Originally, Pizarro considered that San Miguel, located near Tumbes, was the only port to enter the Inca Empire from overseas. Its strategic location and geographical location were very important, so he decided to send an elite force to guard it and strictly guard against other colonial forces. Get into your own territory. Therefore, Sebastian Benalcasal was appointed to lead a cavalry squad, an infantry squad, and an auxiliary force organized by two to three thousand Indians to guard San Miguel and nearby areas.
However, this lieutenant-level officer had long heard that Quito, the northern capital of the Incas, was rich in products and treasures, and he wanted to show off there and make a fortune. So, he led his soldiers to take matters into their own hands on the way to San Miguel, changed his mind, and headed straight for Quito. Because they were walking on the spacious and flat royal road, the journey was smooth and unobstructed, and they soon arrived at Riobamba, the gateway to the Kingdom of Quito.
It was also on the vast plains under the towering Chimborazo Mountains that they met Luminawi, the commander of the Quito garrison. Luminavi was Atahualpa's maternal lineage and Atahualpa's most trusted prince and commander. Therefore, during the period when Atahualpa led his army south to fight Huascar, he was in charge of the military and internal affairs of the city of Quito and the Kingdom of Quito. After Atahualpa was captured and executed, all military and political power in the Kingdom of Quito fell into his hands.
A few days ago, he learned that a small group of Spanish troops entered the territory of the Kingdom of Quito and headed straight for Quito. He led 50,000 Quito troops to the mountain pass plain not far from Riobamba City to greet them.
It was noon on May 3, 1534. When the sun rose to the top of the towering main peak of Chimborazo, the two armies took up positions on the spacious and flat plains of the mountain pass. The mountain wind blew in waves from afar, blowing across the plains. There are still patches of white snow and fine shards of ice remaining in the shade of the plain. Numerous bones can be seen everywhere on the grassland of the plain. This was the tragic situation left by Huascar's generals, Muchal and Kiskis, after that battle.
This Quito army, which had defeated the Inca army in the last battle, was dressed in red Quito military uniforms and was lined up in a mighty line on the north side of the plain. Several splendid banners with the Quito royal family logo were facing the wind. Zhao Zhan. In order to block the impact of the Spanish cavalry, they even dug pits where the cavalry passed and buried sharp wooden stakes in the pits. They wanted to eliminate the Spanish army of only more than a hundred people in one fell swoop through this decisive battle. As for the Indian auxiliary troops of two to three thousand people, they did not take them seriously at all. Because Quito almost never lost a battle against the Incas.
On the high slope behind the army, there is a large sedan with eye-catching decoration. There were nearly a thousand guards guarding the sedan chair. Ruminawi, the forty-year-old leader of Quito, was sitting in the sedan. The front of the sedan is open to the front, from which the entire background of the plain can be observed. At this time, he was watching every move of the Spaniards with an air of contempt and sneer, and was watching how these overconfident Spaniards would be swallowed up and overwhelmed by his 50,000 troops.
On the vast Chimborazo Pass plain, compared with the mighty 50,000 Quito army, Benalcasal's troops seemed weak and few in number. Especially without the two thousand Indians to join in the scene, the Spaniards were even more pitiful.
Facing the overwhelming numerical superiority of Quito's army, Benalcasal led his troops to the south of the plain, lined up more than 2,000 Indian troops, and divided more than 140 Spanish soldiers into cavalry and infantry. Two parts, as different layers of the offense.
Seeing that Quito had been waiting on the grass to the north for a long time, Benalcazar rode his horse and led the cavalry, infantry and Indian soldiers towards Quito. He stopped only one or two hundred meters away from the Quito soldiers.
At this time, the Quito soldiers relied on their large numbers and shouted loudly towards the Spaniards. Fifty thousand people shouted in unison, and the shouts were like a mountain roaring and a tsunami, and thunderous, which immediately scared the Spaniards into a cold sweat. Intimidated by this force, many Spaniards and Indians were so frightened that they wet their pants. However, Benalcasal, who had extensive experience in fighting Indians, immediately waved his hand to the soldiers, indicating that the soldiers were ready to attack. The cavalry held swords, the infantry held spears, and the Indian soldiers also raised their spears, waiting to charge into the battle.
As soon as the Quietos' shouts stopped, the Spanish bugle sounded. The cavalry galloped straight into the enemy formation. Although the Quito people had dug some pits in front of the formation and buried many sharp stakes in the pits, these things did not seem to work at all. When the Spanish cavalry rushed over, they hurriedly threw javelins and fired stones with slings. However, the Spanish cavalry was very fast, crossing the middle area in an instant and slashing at the dense Quito soldiers with their swords. Then, the infantry and the soldiers of the Indian auxiliary army also rushed over, fighting with the Quito soldiers with their spears, bayonets and spears.
However, these Quito soldiers seemed to be very tenacious. They did not retreat in panic under the impact of the Spanish cavalry, but fought desperately. Therefore, the two armies fought for a while, with no outcome in sight. Seeing this situation, Benalcazar couldn't help but worry, because if they continued to fight like this, they would definitely suffer heavy losses due to being outnumbered. So, he immediately asked the trumpeter to blow the retreat trumpet.
After the trumpet sounded, the Spanish soldiers quickly retreated from the enemy position.
After the battle, four Spanish cavalry were killed, while Quido suffered more than 2,000 casualties. Although the Quito soldiers showed extraordinary bravery, they forgot that the battlefield was in the plains. As long as it is in the plains, no matter how brave and tenacious the Quito people are, it will be difficult to withstand the impact of the cavalry.
Benalcazar called the two lieutenants over and discussed it for a while, but no one had any other options. Therefore, Benalcazar had to let the soldiers rest for a while before launching another attack. It still didn't work. After three consecutive attacks, the enemy troops were not overwhelmed. By this time, it was late and the soldiers were exhausted. Benalcazar had no choice but to ask the soldiers to stop attacking and retreat to a high slope far away from the plains to set up camp and rest.
It was slowly getting dark, and the cold wind suddenly rose on the plains below the Chimborazo Pass, and the temperature dropped. Seeing that the Spaniards had withdrawn, the people of Quito built piles of bonfires on the plain, and then sat around the bonfires to cook, sing and laugh, and celebrate their victory.
At this time, after a day of fierce fighting, the Spaniards had already had dinner and fell asleep in their tents. Only a few sentries stood on the high slopes watching what was happening on the plain. And their commander, Benalcasal, was not sleeping at this time. He sat on the edge of the high slope and watched the bonfires burning brightly, lighting up the entire mountain pass plain like stars. He wondered what would be the result if an air attack on the enemy camp was carried out at this time?
This immediately reminded him of the Indians' habit of not fighting at night, so he decided to rush into the enemy camp when the Quitos were asleep and catch the Quitos by surprise. Thinking of this, he asked the sentry to wake him up at three o'clock, and then returned to his tent to take a nap.
He returned to his tent and got into the blanket, but he didn't feel sleepy at all. He just felt that his whole body was much warmer. He figured out how to launch a surprise attack, where to start from, and even thought of many details such as how to pursue and capture Ruminawi after the surprise attack. Among them, he got up two or three times and stood on the high slope to watch what was happening on the other side of the plain. Because it was late at night, although there were bonfires on the plain, it was already dead silence.
At three o'clock, he immediately woke up the guards and asked the guards to quietly notify the troops to gather at the foot of the hillside and prepare for battle. Soon, the troops gathered on a flat ground under the hillside. He walked to the front of the team and said to the soldiers in a very encouraging tone, "Soldiers, we are about to take advantage of the night when the people in Quito are sleeping to attack the enemy camp. I ordered the cavalry squad to serve as the vanguard and break out of a bloody road. , and then rush straight to the hillside to the north to capture their leader Ruminawi alive. The infantry and auxiliary soldiers must follow the cavalry closely, forming an iron flow that goes deep into the Quido area. They must not be scattered, as long as they see Anyone wearing a red military uniform will kill anyone. If the people of Quito are running away, there is no need to hunt them down. Look for the hillside where Ruminawi is stationed and pursue them. As long as Luminawi can be captured alive, it will be the greatest victory. Whoever catches Ruminawi Minawi is top notch."
Then, he said in an emphatic tone, "Before the attack, everyone must remain quiet, must not make any noise, must not light fires or smoke, and must not act without authorization. Violators will be severely punished." After that, he directed the troops towards the plain. He walked quietly.
Following the royal road to the edge of the mountain pass plain, they saw a group of Quito patrols holding torches passing by the edge of the plain. Benalcazar immediately told the soldiers to stop and lie down where they were. Fortunately, the patrols turned around two to three hundred meters away from them and headed north, allowing them to let out a long sigh of relief.
