You stated that "... they do not fully explain why the rebellion emerged only in southern Cusco and nowhere else in the Viceroyalty ...". There was a separate rebellion in Upper Peru (Bolivia) at the same time led by Túpac Katari.
The monopolization of government posts by Spanish appointees (Peninsulares) at the expense of locally-born Spaniards (Criollos) was an issue everywhere in the Spanish America and would lead to rebellion in the early 19th century. In Peru, the situation was complicated by the existence of native elites with a role in governance.
Yes thats true, while it Isnt mentioned specifically in the article, I have included that the Tupac Katari rebellion is tied (1780-1783), or loosely tied (depending on how you view it), as the two rebellions planned to eventually join together, perhaps one of the reasons why Tupac Amaru traveled south. They did eventually, after Tupac Amaru was executed and succeeded by Diego Cristobal. However, the difference with Tupac Katari is that he was not of an indigenous elite, instead a normal indigenous peasant. While he suffered directly from the injustices of the Spanish, such as working in the mines in Oruro, he did not compete with the Spanish elite the same way Tupac Amaru did, especially in the way Tupac Amaru traveled to Lima to be recognized for his Inca lineage, which most likely made the Royal Court worry to have a greater nobleman for the indigenous to look towards instead of the King or Viceroy, a thing the Spanish attempted to rid of in missionaries, as seen with Juan Santos Atahualpa. This can also be said about Tomas Katari, who was kuraka of Macha, traveling to Buenos Aires to speak out to the Royal Courts against indigenous mistreatment. There was also a much greater amount and concentration of kurakas in Peru than Bolivia.
Additionally, in the 1760s-70s, the Viceroyalty of Peru did not include Upper Peru or modern-day Argentina anymore, as it was split to Río de la Plata and New Grenada. Though, I apologize if I understand wrong, I have not done as much research on colonial Bolivia as Peru. Thank you for your response!
Impressive work; shows keen insight and interest. While reading, I thought of analogies such as tax farming during the Roman Empire, which increased the number of people collecting (and keeping) taxes. In addition, there has been recent work on the current US elites who control local politics and influence tax codes by Zidar & Zwick (The Everywhere Millionaire, 2026). Brad Delong wrote an informative review of the book: https://braddelong.substack.com/p/who-is-really-rich-america-gentry-everywhere-millionaire. You might also enjoy reading a game theoretical explanation of ways organizations tilt the game board in [Substack](https://gregelliott2000.substack.com/p/a-mathematical-theory-of-symbolic).
But all that is optional. What is most important to me is that you remain healthy and happy.
Thanks for your time and effort to research and organize information about this period in history. I (probably like many Angelos) know almost nothing about Spanish American history so it has been a good introduction, and a good application of SDT. Seems like those human tendencies - envy, greed, oppression of the poor - are at work time and again throughout history, with bad results.
You stated that "... they do not fully explain why the rebellion emerged only in southern Cusco and nowhere else in the Viceroyalty ...". There was a separate rebellion in Upper Peru (Bolivia) at the same time led by Túpac Katari.
The monopolization of government posts by Spanish appointees (Peninsulares) at the expense of locally-born Spaniards (Criollos) was an issue everywhere in the Spanish America and would lead to rebellion in the early 19th century. In Peru, the situation was complicated by the existence of native elites with a role in governance.
Yes thats true, while it Isnt mentioned specifically in the article, I have included that the Tupac Katari rebellion is tied (1780-1783), or loosely tied (depending on how you view it), as the two rebellions planned to eventually join together, perhaps one of the reasons why Tupac Amaru traveled south. They did eventually, after Tupac Amaru was executed and succeeded by Diego Cristobal. However, the difference with Tupac Katari is that he was not of an indigenous elite, instead a normal indigenous peasant. While he suffered directly from the injustices of the Spanish, such as working in the mines in Oruro, he did not compete with the Spanish elite the same way Tupac Amaru did, especially in the way Tupac Amaru traveled to Lima to be recognized for his Inca lineage, which most likely made the Royal Court worry to have a greater nobleman for the indigenous to look towards instead of the King or Viceroy, a thing the Spanish attempted to rid of in missionaries, as seen with Juan Santos Atahualpa. This can also be said about Tomas Katari, who was kuraka of Macha, traveling to Buenos Aires to speak out to the Royal Courts against indigenous mistreatment. There was also a much greater amount and concentration of kurakas in Peru than Bolivia.
Additionally, in the 1760s-70s, the Viceroyalty of Peru did not include Upper Peru or modern-day Argentina anymore, as it was split to Río de la Plata and New Grenada. Though, I apologize if I understand wrong, I have not done as much research on colonial Bolivia as Peru. Thank you for your response!
Impressive work; shows keen insight and interest. While reading, I thought of analogies such as tax farming during the Roman Empire, which increased the number of people collecting (and keeping) taxes. In addition, there has been recent work on the current US elites who control local politics and influence tax codes by Zidar & Zwick (The Everywhere Millionaire, 2026). Brad Delong wrote an informative review of the book: https://braddelong.substack.com/p/who-is-really-rich-america-gentry-everywhere-millionaire. You might also enjoy reading a game theoretical explanation of ways organizations tilt the game board in [Substack](https://gregelliott2000.substack.com/p/a-mathematical-theory-of-symbolic).
But all that is optional. What is most important to me is that you remain healthy and happy.
Great work!
Thanks for your time and effort to research and organize information about this period in history. I (probably like many Angelos) know almost nothing about Spanish American history so it has been a good introduction, and a good application of SDT. Seems like those human tendencies - envy, greed, oppression of the poor - are at work time and again throughout history, with bad results.