Ruins near Cuenca Tribes throughout Ecuador integrated during this period. They built better housing that allowed them to improve their living conditions and no longer be subject to the climate. In the mountains the Cosangua-Píllaro,
Capulí and Piartal-Tuza cultures arose; in the eastern region was the Yasuní Phase, while the Milagro, Manteña and Huancavilca cultures developed on the coast, from 500 BC onwards.
Los Manteños The
Manteños were the last of the pre-Columbian cultures in the coastal region and flourished between 600 and 1534. They were the first to witness the arrival of Spanish ships sailing in the surrounding Pacific Ocean. According to archaeological evidence and Spanish chronicles, the civilization extended from
Bahía de Caráquez to Cerro de Hojas in the south. They were excellent weavers, produced textiles, articles of gold, silver spondylus shells and mother of pearls. The manteños mastered the seas and forged extensive trade routes as far as present-day Chile to the south and western Mexico to the north. The center of the culture was in the area of
Manta, named in their honor.
Los Huancavilcas The Huancavilcas constitute the most important pre-Columbian culture of Guayas, after Las Vegas. These warriors were noted for their appearance. Huancavilca culture recounts the legend of Guayas and Quiles, for which the city of
Guayaquil was named.
The Incas The
Inca expansion northward from modern-day
Peru during the late 15th century met with fierce resistance by several Ecuadorian tribes, particularly the Cañari, in the region around modern-day
Cuenca, who fought along with the
Quitu, occupants of the site of the modern capital; the
Cara (originally of Manabi) in the Sierra north of
Quito. The conquest of Ecuador began in 1463 under the leadership of the ninth Inca, the great warrior
Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui. In that year, his son
Tupac took over command of the army and began his march northward through the Sierra. By 1500 Tupac's son,
Huayna Capac, overcame the resistance of these populations and that of the Cara, and thus incorporated most of modern-day Ecuador into
Tawantinsuyu, as the Inca empire was known. Different tribes also sought refugee in the then thick interior jungles. The influence of these conquerors based in
Cuzco (modern-day Peru) was limited to about a half century, or less in some parts of Ecuador. During that period, some aspects of life remained unchanged. Traditional religious beliefs, for example, persisted throughout the period of Inca rule. In other areas, however, such as agriculture, land tenure, and social organization, Inca rule had a profound effect despite its relatively short duration. Emperor Huayna Capac became very fond of Quito, making it a secondary capital of
Tawantinsuyu and living out his elder years there before his death in about 1527. Huayna Capac's sudden death from a strange disease, described by one as
smallpox, precipitated a bitter power struggle between
Huascar, whose mother was Coya (meaning Empress) Mama Rahua Occillo and legitimate heir, and
Atahualpa, a son who was born to a Quitu princess, and reputedly his father's "favorite". This struggle raged during the half-decade before the arrival of
Francisco Pizarro's conquering expedition in 1532. The key battle of this
civil war was fought on Ecuadorian soil, near
Riobamba, where Huascar's northbound troops were met and defeated by Atahualpa's southbound troops. Atahualpa's final victory over Huascar in the days just before the Spanish conquerors arrived resulted in large part from the loyalty of two of Huayna Capac's best generals, who were based in Quito along with Atahualpa. The victory remains a source of national pride to Ecuadorians as a rare case when "Ecuador" forcefully bettered a "neighboring country". ==Ecuador under Incan rule==