National Geographic Treasure Seekers Lost Cities of the Inca

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00:00:21 Peru.
00:00:22 For centuries home of the high
00:00:28 Here the Sun Kings of the Inca
00:00:33 which stretched for 2,000 miles along
00:00:42 In 1532, that empire was destroyed
00:00:50 As their world crumbled around them,
00:00:52 Inca nobles retreated into the remote
00:00:57 There they struggled to keep alive
00:01:02 The last city of the Incas
00:01:24 This is the story of two men
00:01:26 lured by the silent call of that
00:01:31 One to rediscover it
00:01:36 the other to destroy it forever.
00:02:28 Machu Picchu.
00:02:38 For centuries, this spectacular
00:02:43 hidden by the plunging ravines
00:02:45 and coiling mists of the mountain
00:02:59 The year is 1948.
00:03:01 Machu Picchu is visited by
00:03:06 a man, who in his youth,
00:03:11 He has done many things in
00:03:14 but Hiram Bingham knows
00:03:19 this astonishing archeological
00:03:25 Hiram Bingham is a sort of
00:03:29 He's been scorned by better trained
00:03:32 but he really doesn't care
00:03:40 Back in Washington he'd been elected
00:03:43 in the Roaring Twenties.
00:03:46 His flamboyant style was perfectly
00:03:52 A bribery scandal, an affair with
00:03:56 divorce, accusations that he'd
00:04:00 had all left him unscathed.
00:04:05 In 1929, he landed a Zeppelin
00:04:12 Hiram loved headlines.
00:04:15 He was a very, very colorful
00:04:17 a man of enormous energy,
00:04:23 He was capable of doing almost
00:04:27 that led him to believe he could
00:04:32 Perhaps Hiram's adventurous life was
00:04:41 Born to pioneering Christian
00:04:45 Hiram was raised for a life of
00:04:52 In the world of his childhood,
00:04:55 lack of discipline, even dancing
00:05:03 Not surprisingly,
00:05:08 Resourceful and intelligent,
00:05:09 he saved and studied to get into
00:05:14 Before long, he was headed for Yale.
00:05:19 Hiram threw himself into
00:05:23 Gone were the puritanical days
00:05:27 Suddenly, a new world of temptations
00:05:31 Intellectual excitement, adventure,
00:05:38 Dear Mother, what can I do?
00:05:40 I know it will hurt you
00:05:42 but people here in the East do not
00:05:45 anyone should not dance,
00:05:47 unless one is sick or lame.
00:05:49 I can see nothing wrong with it
00:05:54 Although reserved, Hiram was
00:05:59 Thanks to his charm,
00:06:01 he was soon moving freely in this
00:06:07 Before long, he met Alfreda Mitchell,
00:06:18 Alfreda was irresistible, wealthy,
00:06:22 Hiram was now determined to be
00:06:27 In 1900,
00:06:31 Hiram and Freda were married at the
00:06:39 Hiram took to wealth like a duck to
00:06:44 There was obviously an economic
00:06:48 The wife brought with her a set
00:06:50 about the style in which
00:06:53 and her side of the family was
00:06:56 in making sure that those
00:07:00 He liked the money and status,
00:07:03 but hadn't banked on the pressures
00:07:07 Used to his independence,
00:07:08 Hiram soon began to feel like a bird
00:07:15 He had every prospect of a
00:07:18 but before long university life, too,
00:07:26 Feeling hemmed in by academia,
00:07:29 and the pressures of domesticity,
00:07:31 Hiram soon started looking for
00:07:36 He decided field research for
00:07:39 would be his ticket to
00:07:46 In 1906, he said good bye to Alfreda
00:07:53 I feel the Bingham blood stirring
00:07:56 as I start for little known regions,
00:07:58 as nearly all my Bingham ancestors for
00:08:07 Freda wasn't happy about the long
00:08:13 Hiram wrote soothing letters as if
00:08:19 Dearly beloved, I love you with a
00:08:23 from day to day.
00:08:25 Let us not complain about
00:08:27 but rejoice in the opportunity to
00:08:35 But thousands of miles away,
00:08:40 He may have missed Alfreda,
00:08:41 but at last he met his true calling
00:08:47 It was through the actual process of
00:08:52 exploration rather than documentary
00:08:58 Bingham abandoned his
00:09:01 to write a book about his travels.
00:09:10 When he reached Peru,
00:09:12 Bingham came face to face with
00:09:18 He was entranced.
00:09:24 Here was the remains of a civilization
00:09:27 as vast and sophisticated as
00:09:32 and yet little was known about it.
00:09:38 Its descendants still populated
00:09:45 The ancient sites
00:09:46 which littered Peru spoke to him
00:09:52 but he had no idea how to interpret
00:09:57 He had to find a method on the spot.
00:10:01 Fortunately, I had with me that
00:10:05 "Hints to the Travelers," published
00:10:10 In one of the chapters I found out
00:10:13 when one is confronted by
00:10:17 take careful measurements,
00:10:18 plenty of photographs, and describe
00:10:29 He was soon eagerly examining Inca
00:10:39 One episode of Inca history fascinated
00:10:47 last stronghold of the Inca kings.
00:10:54 Sixteenth century chronicles recounted
00:10:56 how a core group of Inca nobles
00:10:59 had escaped the carnage of conquest
00:11:03 and fled into the impenetrable
00:11:05 to the north of the Inca capital,
00:11:11 And there, at a place called
00:11:13 they'd constructed an Inca court
00:11:18 A palace, a temple, a final
00:11:24 They had taken their sacred relics
00:11:36 Many had been lured by the accounts
00:11:41 None had ever succeeded in
00:11:45 Perhaps the relics and the gold
00:11:48 hidden in the jungle,
00:11:52 Hiram was spellbound.
00:11:55 It was a treasure seeker's dream.
00:12:02 Suddenly, Hiram saw a fantastic
00:12:07 he would discover Vilcabamba,
00:12:11 and unearth its hidden treasures.
00:12:26 Hiram returned to the U.S.
00:12:28 and threw himself into fundraising
00:12:33 He pored over maps and chronicles
00:12:38 Based on these, Hiram made
00:12:41 where Vilcabamba must be.
00:12:44 After months of research,
00:12:47 the last refuge of the Incas
00:12:51 called Espiritu Pampa.
00:12:57 Now all he had to do was
00:13:02 He was too proud to be totally
00:13:07 He went down to the Yale Club in
00:13:11 A number of the people came forward.
00:13:14 When they saw the pictures of
00:13:17 they became very excited.
00:13:20 Last night a classmate,
00:13:22 of whom I have seen very little,
00:13:26 When I told him about my plans and how
00:13:30 to pay for a topographer
00:13:31 he smiled and said,
00:13:32 "Eighteen hundred dollars?
00:13:36 I could have shouted with joy.
00:13:46 The New York harbor
00:13:49 Hiram Bingham stood on the deck
00:13:52 once again waving goodbye
00:13:56 This time it was harder.
00:13:58 They had just had another son,
00:14:04 I shall never forget how you looked
00:14:08 so brave and courageous,
00:14:14 It did seem too cruel for words
00:14:17 leaving you all alone.
00:14:25 But soon he was back in Peru doing
00:14:31 In July 1911, he set off
00:14:35 on the long journey to
00:14:38 Back in his element,
00:14:47 He was also extraordinarily lucky.
00:14:52 After less than three weeks easy
00:14:57 a local farmer told him about some old
00:15:00 on a mountain nearby.
00:15:03 Hiram asked the man
00:15:07 He scribbled down the answer
00:15:13 He decided to have a quick look at it
00:15:19 A young Indian boy led the party up
00:15:25 Hardly had we rounded
00:15:28 than we were confronted by
00:15:32 a great flight of beautifully
00:15:36 perhaps a hundred of them.
00:15:44 I could scarcely believe my senses.
00:15:53 Would anyone believe
00:16:01 Fortunately, I had a good camera.
00:16:44 He knew he'd found an Inca ruin of
00:16:48 but I think because of his
00:16:52 he didn't fully appreciate
00:16:58 It was an entire city
00:17:01 since the Incas had abandoned it
00:17:07 Not understanding what he had found,
00:17:10 to start clearing
00:17:12 while he pressed on to his
00:17:25 He forged on northwards
00:17:31 pushing his team through tangled...
00:17:38 sure he was heading toward
00:17:43 a fabulous lost city of
00:17:46 that would put any other Inca ruin
00:18:06 Finally, after weeks of
00:18:08 he approached the area where he knew
00:18:21 For days his team hacked through
00:18:27 To their great astonishment,
00:18:34 Espiritu Pampa was a desolate
00:18:38 with a few unimpressive stone
00:18:47 It was a far cry from the magnificent
00:18:54 He was disappointed and confused.
00:18:57 Could this be Vilcabamba?
00:19:06 A perplexed Hiram turned back
00:19:10 The men were exhausted and supplies
00:19:16 As his team trudged back to
00:19:24 I often wonder why under the sun
00:19:28 that would force me to spend so much
00:19:31 from my dear ones.
00:19:34 The future is not clear to me.
00:19:38 As Hiram headed back to
00:19:42 gloom and uncertainty hung over
00:19:57 Once back in the U.S.,
00:20:00 and with them his dreams of
00:20:04 He rechecked his calculations of
00:20:08 If it was not Espiritu Pampa,
00:20:13 But Machu Picchu's position still
00:20:18 He decided to return to Peru
00:20:21 and investigate his find
00:20:26 When he arrived in Machu Picchu again
00:20:30 what the workmen had revealed was,
00:20:46 It clearly was some sort of city
00:20:51 its magnificent terracing,
00:21:00 No one but a king could have insisted
00:21:05 made of solid blocks of granite,
00:21:10 What a prodigious amount of
00:21:18 Overcome with excitement,
00:21:23 that this must be the last refuge
00:21:27 Even if the location was wrong,
00:21:34 Here in this breathtaking hideout,
00:21:37 the Inca rulers had surely sheltered
00:21:53 Hiram devoted himself to his
00:21:59 It was his passport to
00:22:05 National Geographic devoted an
00:22:08 issue to Bingham
00:22:17 Suddenly, everybody knew about Machu
00:22:27 At a special National Geographic
00:22:31 along with the world renowned
00:22:33 of the North and South Poles.
00:22:39 Hiram had finally achieved the fame
00:22:43 But his career as an excavator was
00:22:52 He returned to Peru in 1915 to a
00:22:58 For many Peruvians,
00:23:00 the apparent absence of
00:23:02 among Bingham's finds
00:23:07 Rumors flew that Bingham
00:23:10 and was smuggling it out of
00:23:20 Fed up, fearing arrest,
00:23:31 On his return to the U.S.,
00:23:40 The first World War was raging.
00:23:43 He signed up as an aviator.
00:23:45 World War I offered him a very
00:23:51 from what had become an intractable
00:23:55 He could honorably say that
00:23:58 to become involved in the
00:24:01 that, as a patriot,
00:24:10 After a tour of duty in Europe,
00:24:12 Bingham had the perfect qualifications
00:24:17 Yale man, world famous explorer,
00:24:22 He was elected in 1924 to the
00:24:29 His political star rose steadily
00:24:34 but a bribery scandal and the Great
00:24:40 The political tide turned against
00:24:45 He lost his Senate seat in 1932.
00:24:49 Before long, he lost Alfreda too,
00:24:52 and left taking a large part of
00:24:59 Remarried, eager to make up
00:25:02 he turned back to tend the one
00:25:07 discoverer of Machu Picchu.
00:25:11 He believed to his dying day that
00:25:17 As it turned out,
00:25:24 Later discoveries made it clear
00:25:26 the real Vilcabamba was exactly where
00:25:33 at Espiritu Pampa.
00:25:36 Beneath the tangled overgrowth of
00:25:41 the remains of Vilcabamba had been
00:25:45 from where Hiram had searched.
00:25:55 Determined to dispel
00:25:58 that Machu Picchu was not
00:26:02 Hiram devoted many of the years
00:26:06 to his researches into Vilcabamba
00:26:13 His studies took him back to
00:26:19 The bloodstained and tumultuous era
00:26:26 and to a brilliant, chilling,
00:26:30 who changed the course of
00:26:33 Francisco de Toledo,
00:26:38 passionate believer in the law,
00:26:44 killer of the last Inca king.
00:26:52 Francisco de Toledo was born in 1515
00:26:56 into the high Spanish nobility
00:27:01 In the 16th century, you couldn't get
00:27:06 Spain was the wealthiest and most
00:27:13 Its massive armies had subdued
00:27:16 and Protestants in Europe's north.
00:27:20 It was the powerhouse of the West.
00:27:26 The recent astonishing discoveries
00:27:30 promised an inexhaustible supply of
00:27:37 This was the confident, aggressive and
00:27:40 Francisco was born into.
00:27:47 But despite his family's position,
00:27:53 His mother died in childbirth, and
00:28:00 He grew up isolated in a world of
00:28:01 austere Catholicism
00:28:08 Young Francisco took on the qualities
00:28:13 He became tough minded,
00:28:15 and an ardent believer
00:28:27 His family had always been loyal
00:28:31 so at 15 Francisco became a page
00:28:39 In 1532, Francisco would have been
00:28:43 when he heard the astounding tales
00:28:48 and the astonishing ransom in gold
00:28:56 These were reports from beyond
00:29:04 How could his imagination not be
00:29:06 by the faraway kingdom of Peru
00:29:20 Francisco joined a religious
00:29:22 at the forefront of
00:29:29 He took the necessary vows
00:29:32 and dedicated his life to Christ,
00:29:46 Toledo was brought up to be
00:29:50 He had training in the law,
00:29:53 So, he was a man trained to be like,
00:29:56 today we would say a Harvard or
00:30:03 Francisco rose fast
00:30:06 By 1558, he'd become a permanent,
00:30:13 He was one of the chosen few present
00:30:15 at the bedside of King Charles V
00:30:21 Francisco went on to serve the
00:30:24 Philip II,
00:30:27 who on taking the throne was confronted
00:30:29 with the devastating
00:30:34 the empire was broke.
00:30:37 Overextended in Europe,
00:30:38 Spain had also financed
00:30:42 and exploration in the Americas.
00:30:46 Very little was coming back.
00:30:50 All that Inca and Aztec gold
00:30:54 turned out to be a drop in the ocean.
00:30:59 The real wealth of the colonies was
00:31:04 the new Spanish overlords who had
00:31:07 and the Indians amongst themselves.
00:31:11 In a feeding frenzy
00:31:13 over the astonishing wealth
00:31:16 the encomenderos had spawned Spain's
00:31:22 where lawlessness and
00:31:37 They were busy making themselves rich,
00:31:45 Philip realized he desperately
00:31:48 who could straighten out the colony
00:31:50 and get some revenues flowing
00:31:55 That man, he decided,
00:32:10 In 1569, Francisco set sail for Peru
00:32:14 to take up the most challenging
00:32:17 in the Spanish Empire,
00:32:25 The grueling journey took almost
00:32:28 across the barely charted waters
00:32:34 and then down the Pacific Coast of
00:32:47 On November 30th, 1569,
00:32:49 Francisco arrived in the
00:32:58 Anxious for his favor,
00:32:59 the local encomenderos gave him
00:33:07 But in a letter to King Philip,
00:33:11 for the anarchic little frontier town
00:33:17 The Spaniards in this kingdom
00:33:21 in the looting of ancient tombs
00:33:25 And it is the most common thing
00:33:32 But this is what he'd been sent to
00:33:36 The new viceroy threw himself into the
00:33:43 It quickly became clear to him that
00:33:45 the colony was being pulled apart by
00:33:50 On the one hand there were
00:33:52 who fought amongst themselves
00:33:58 On the other, there was the Church,
00:34:02 not only to Indian souls,
00:34:08 The whole colony was feeding itself
00:34:20 Not surprisingly,
00:34:21 the native population simmered with
00:34:26 Francisco could immediately see
00:34:34 I am informed that the Indians
00:34:37 as a result of their weakness,
00:34:39 and the great awe they have
00:34:43 It is, therefore, my duty
00:34:46 to see they are not cheated
00:34:51 Francisco also learned
00:34:54 now established in Vilcabamba,
00:34:56 had already been at the center
00:34:59 which had raged for years.
00:35:13 When Toledo arrived to Peru,
00:35:22 On the other hand, there had been
00:35:27 The Incas had retired to Vilcabamba
00:35:30 and they were threatening the
00:35:37 Francisco had to somehow
00:35:39 into this volatile
00:35:46 He realized he could never
00:35:49 unless he came to understand it
00:35:53 So he proposed something that,
00:35:56 was absolutely remarkable
00:36:01 to find out at first hand
00:36:09 I saw clearly that I would not be
00:36:12 or the Indians with the zeal that
00:36:17 unless I saw the land, traveled
00:36:25 It was what we would do today
00:36:28 It was completely innovative.
00:36:30 The government up to that point was
00:36:35 What Toledo proposes is government
00:36:38 which makes him a man
00:36:44 So in 1570, Toledo set out on his
00:36:49 through the remnants of
00:36:54 They would last for five years.
00:37:02 With translators and scribes,
00:37:04 he traveled from one end of
00:37:07 interviewing Indians and Spanish
00:37:14 land holdings, resources
00:37:20 In the years of his travels,
00:37:21 he accumulated an astonishing
00:37:29 As Francisco listened to
00:37:32 he understood the magnitude of
00:37:37 Not only had they been subjected to
00:37:40 but they were dying by the
00:37:47 A series of devastating epidemics of
00:37:51 to which they had no resistance
00:37:53 had already wiped out over half
00:38:01 In just 30 years since the arrival
00:38:05 almost a million people had died of
00:38:09 measles and small pox.
00:38:14 In despair, many people were focusing
00:38:19 on the Inca court in exile.
00:38:22 Francisco started to believe that
00:38:24 Vilcabamba's hold on the Indian
00:38:34 Francisco traveled on.
00:38:38 In the course of his research
00:38:41 from what is now Quito in Ecuador
00:38:47 And as he traveled,
00:38:50 The Inca Empire had been composed of
00:38:56 The Incas were just one of them
00:38:58 who had come to dominate the others
00:39:02 about 100 years before the arrival
00:39:08 Just like the Spanish, they had waged
00:39:22 There was no shortage of evidence
00:39:30 The Incas are tyrants,
00:39:32 and as such, intruders in the
00:39:37 I think he was looking for arguments
00:39:39 in order to justify the Spanish
00:39:45 And he saw that the excuse
00:39:50 the Inca people as being tyrants,
00:39:53 as being dictators, as being people
00:39:57 with force on the populations
00:40:02 in order to present
00:40:06 as a sort of liberated process.
00:40:10 He wasn't wrong.
00:40:13 What happens is when you use the word
00:40:16 it has a whole moral connotation.
00:40:20 The Incas were an
00:40:23 with an imperial military force
00:40:27 and would use the sorts of torture
00:40:31 if they were used in European wars.
00:40:49 As Francisco pondered the realities
00:40:53 any doubts he might have had
00:40:54 about the legitimacy of the
00:41:01 With typical thoroughness,
00:41:03 he came up with a plan which was
00:41:05 utterly coherent
00:41:11 His vision was of a great kingdom
00:41:17 He would impose Spain's authority
00:41:19 on the quarreling encomenderos
00:41:23 He knew he would make enemies
00:41:26 He did it anyway.
00:41:32 And he would totally reorganize the
00:41:36 both the justice and authority
00:41:42 The Indians were to be resettled
00:41:45 into more accessible towns
00:41:47 where they would pay taxes to Spain
00:41:53 And he would insist that, as subjects
00:42:04 But there was one terrible price
00:42:07 for Francisco's vision of
00:42:16 there would be no place
00:42:19 There could not be two kings
00:42:23 Vilcabamba and the remaining power
00:42:40 Unknown to Francisco, the Inca king
00:42:45 was little more than a boy,
00:42:52 Brought up by the Inca priestesses
00:42:56 he was deeply religious and knew
00:43:01 He was gentle, famously beautiful,
00:43:08 Tupac Amaru was very young
00:43:14 Tupac Amaru is referred as an 'Uti'.
00:43:17 Uti is meant to be sort of
00:43:22 but not the quickest,
00:43:28 Tupac Amaru was a very young person.
00:43:31 I don't imagine him as being
00:43:37 He was very young.
00:43:38 He was just a symbolic figure.
00:43:43 Tupac Amaru was an innocent,
00:43:52 On June 16th, 1572, Spanish troops
00:44:01 As they charge into the citadel,
00:44:03 Tupac Amaru manages to escape
00:44:06 who is expecting their first child.
00:44:11 They don't get far.
00:44:31 The bewildered young Tupac is
00:44:35 and on September 21st, 1572,
00:44:51 As Tupac Amaru is led through
00:44:55 the town is seething.
00:45:00 Everybody has fallen in love with
00:45:04 not just Indians,
00:45:11 They all want Francisco to relent.
00:45:25 Francisco locks himself in his office
00:45:39 In the main square of Cuzco, Tupac
00:45:47 An eyewitness records the scene:
00:45:52 as the multitude of Indians saw
00:45:56 they deafened the skies making them
00:45:59 with their cries and wailing.
00:46:07 There are two versions of
00:46:13 In one, Tupac quiets the crowd
00:46:18 "Mother Earth, witness how my enemies
00:46:30 In another, he makes
00:46:33 and renounces the Inca gods.
00:46:40 Everyone prays that Toledo will
00:46:48 But from Toledo's closed office,
00:47:31 Toledo writes to King Philip:
00:47:35 what Your Majesty has ordered
00:47:48 But His Majesty had not ordered
00:47:52 only a solution to the Indian problem.
00:47:56 From this moment the tide starts
00:48:04 Toledo accomplished the mission
00:48:10 That's why he wanted it to be so
00:48:14 to send a message,
00:48:21 But it wasn't over.
00:48:24 As Tupac's head was mounted on
00:48:28 the Inca king's faithful subjects
00:48:33 And immediately the stories
00:48:36 Tupac Amaru's head became more
00:48:46 As the centuries passed,
00:48:52 Tupac Amaru was converted into
00:48:54 a Christ like figure
00:48:57 the symbol of native resistance
00:49:01 For 500 years, almost every popular
00:49:06 from the Great Indian uprisings of
00:49:10 led by Tupac Amaru II,
00:49:11 to the urban guerrillas of the late
00:49:20 It's a tragic myth,
00:49:21 because everybody who invoked
00:49:27 Tupac Amaru II failed,
00:49:31 which relied on the image of the
00:49:40 As history turned Tupac Amaru
00:49:44 it turned Francisco into a caricature
00:49:49 Forgotten were his stands for justice
00:49:52 against the brutal exploitation
00:49:56 he became famous for one thing:
00:49:59 executing the innocent boy king,
00:50:08 You've got to remember
00:50:11 The history of Spain was written
00:50:14 the missionaries who hated Toledo.
00:50:17 I think he held everybody
00:50:20 In administrative terms,
00:50:24 In terms of his conscience,
00:50:34 After a remarkably successful reform
00:50:38 Francisco returned to Spain
00:50:40 expecting honors for his years
00:50:46 Instead, insults and disgrace
00:50:49 The church had worked its influence
00:50:54 The king who he had served with
00:50:57 dismissed Francisco
00:51:02 Go away to your house.
00:51:04 I sent you to serve a king,
00:51:13 It was a devastating blow.
00:51:18 Mortally wounded,
00:51:24 Six months later,
00:51:28 Fifth Viceroy of Peru,
00:51:37 His stern vision of a realm of
00:51:43 The greed and corruption of the
00:51:48 The Indians were exploited
00:51:53 As the screws of colonial oppression
00:51:56 the memory of Francisco faded,
00:51:59 and Vilcabamba became the tragic myth
00:52:03 which would return to haunt Peru