"The Four Regions"- The INCA EMPIRE

Rising from obscurity to the heights of power, a succession of Andean rulers subdued kingdoms, sculpted mountains, and forged a mighty empire.

The Inca civilization flourished in ancient Peru between 1400 and 1534 CE. Their empire  extended across western South America from Quito in the north to Santiago in the south, making it the largest empire ever seen in the Americas and the largest in the world at that time. Undaunted by the often harsh Andean environment, the Incas conquered people and exploited landscapes in such diverse settings as plains, mountains, deserts, and tropical jungle. Famed for their unique art and architecture, they constructed finely-built and imposing buildings wherever they conquered, and their spectacular adaptation of natural landscapes with terracing, highways, and mountaintop settlements continues to impress modern visitors at such world famous sites as Machu Picchu.

As with other ancient Americas cultures,  the historical origins of the Incas are difficult to disentangle from the founding myths they themselves created. According to legend, the creator god Viracocha came out of the Pacific Ocean, and when he arrived at Lake Titicaca, he created the sun and all ethnic groups. These first people were buried by the god and later they emerged from springs and rocks back into the world. The Incas, specifically, were brought into existence at Tiwanaku from the sun god Inti, hence, they regarded themselves as the chosen few.They regarded the Inca ruler as Inti's representative and embodiment on earth. In another version of the creation myth, the first Incas came from a sacred cave known as Tampu T'oqo, which was located at Pacariqtambo, the 'Inn of Dawn', south of Cuzco.

A process of regional unification began from the late 14th century CE, and from the early 15th century CE, with the arrival of the first great Inca leader Pachakuti and the defeat of the Chanca in 1438 CE, the Incas began to expand in search of plunder and production resources, first to the south and then in all directions. They eventually built an empire which stretched across the Andes, conquering such peoples as the Lupaka, Colla, Chimor and Wanka civilizations along the way. Once established, a nationwide system of tax and administration was instigated which consolidated the power of Cuzco.

The rise of the Inca Empire was spectacularly quick. First, all speakers of the Inca language Quechua were given privileged status, and this noble class then dominated all the important roles within the empire. Thupa Inka Yupanki, Pachakuti's successor from 1471 CE, is credited with having expanded the empire by a massive 4,000 km (2,500 miles). The Incas themselves called their empire Tawantinsuyo meaning 'Land of the Four Quarters' or 'The Four Parts Together'.

 Cuzco was considered the navel of the world, and radiating out were highways and sacred sighting lines to each quarter: Chinchaysuyu (north), Antisuyu (east), Collasuyu (south), and Cuntisuyu (west). Spreading across ancient Ecuador, Peru, northern Chile, Bolivia, upland Argentina, and southern Colombia and stretching 5,500 km north to south, 40,000 Incas governed a huge territory with some 10 million subjects speaking over 30 different languages.

The Inca Empire was founded on, and maintained by, force, and the ruling Incas were very often unpopular with their subjects, a situation that the Spanish conquistadores, led by Francisco Pizarro, would take full advantage of in the middle decades of the 16th century CE. The Inca Empire, in fact, had still not reached a stage of consolidated maturity when it faced its greatest challenge. Rebellions were rife, and the Incas were engaged in a war in Ecuador where a second Inca capital had been established at Quito. Even more serious, the Incas were hit by an epidemic of European diseases, such as smallpox, which had spread from central America even faster than the European invaders themselves, and the wave killed a staggering 65-90% of the population. Such a disease killed Wayna Qhapaq in 1528 CE and two of his sons, Waskar and Atahualpa, battled in a damaging civil war for control of the empire just when the European treasure-hunters arrived. 

It was this combination of factors - a perfect storm of rebellion, disease, and invasion - which brought the downfall of the mighty Inca Empire, the largest and richest ever seen in the Americas.

The Inca language, Quechua lives on today and is still spoken by some eight million people. There are also a good number of buildings, artefacts, and written accounts which have survived the ravages of conquerors, looters, and time. These remains are proportionally few to the vast riches which have been lost, but they remain indisputable witnesses to the wealth, ingenuity, and high cultural achievements of this great, but short-lived civilization.

Turmoil in India in the 19th Century: BRITISH RULE of 200 years

It has been said that the British Empire was picked up in a "fit of absence of mind."  Nowhere was this more true than in the case of India which gradually came under British rule, not by the efforts of Britain's government, but by those of the British East Indies Company. Not only would the British have a profound effect on India's history, but the "crown jewel of the British Empire" would also affect Western Civilization. This is reflected in such English words as bungalow, verandah and customs such as smoking cigars, playing polo.

Two main lines of development worked to bring the British East Indies Company to India and make it a power there.  For one thing, by 1600, Portugal was losing control of the East Asian Spice trade.  Therefore, in 1601, the British East Indies Company started sending ships to the Spice Islands to gain a share of this trade. At this point, there was no intention of even going to India, let alone of conquering it, since the Mughal Dynasty had a firm grip on the subcontinent.  However, the Dutch also had designs on the spice trade and rebuffed any British efforts to take part in it.  As a result, the British East Indies Company gained the right to set up trading posts along the coast of India.

The other factor pushing the British East Indies Company toward conquest had to do with the Mughal Empire. The resulting turmoil forced the British East Indies Company to defend its trading posts against local princes, brigands, and a new European intruder, France.

While some governors, such as Warren Hastings were known for their tolerance of and willingness to learn about the native languages and cultures and to give Indians posts in their government.  However, other governors, such as Lord Cornwallis (1788-98), reversed many of these tolerant policies and dismissed most native Indians from higher posts in the administration.

Getting into the nineteenth century, tensions grew between two factions: one advocating tolerance and respect for Indian culture and another claiming the superiority of European civilization over that of India.  This created a growing gap between the British and Indians that also fostered growing discontent.

Things came to a head with the Great India Mutiny in 1857.  Sparking it was a misunderstanding about what kind of grease was used on the bullets for the sepoys' new Enfield rifles.  Muslim troops thought pig grease, which they abhor, was being used, while Hindu troops thought the British were using grease from cows, which they hold sacred.  The resulting mutiny developed into a serious rebellion that the British finally managed to put down.  However, this was the final straw as far as the British government was concerned, assuming direct control over India in 1858 and eventually dissolving the British East Indies Company. Ironically, its career had started with a group of merchants in search of nothing more than "quiet trade."  For the next ninety years, direct British rule would prevail in India.

Britain ruled about 60% of Indian directly and the other 40% indirectly through native princes who followed British policies.  During their time in India, the British developed tea and cotton agriculture and coal and iron industries.  In fact, by 1940, the Tata Iron Works was the world's largest Iron factory.  Likewise, the British continued developing India's infrastructure with more railroads and telegraph lines, so that by 1900 India had the longest railroad in Asia.  British administration was efficient, as was the British style education system Britain established.

However, even these developments contained the seeds of problems for British rule.  As before, the new industries, railroads, and telegraphs, however progressive they may have seemed to the British, disrupted the traditional culture and economy of India. Also, there were large gaps between the higher ranking British and lower ranking Indians that carried over to society in general.  Over the period of time, Indians got tired of their second-class status and worked increasingly for independence.

The Indian National Congress, founded in 1885, led the independence movement.  At first, its goal was to gain more rights for Indians and more say in the British administration.  However, as its power grew in the twentieth century, it agitated increasingly for complete independence.  This led to a parallel, but somewhat separate independence movement of Muslims in India who feared being a minority in a Hindu-dominated state.  Therefore, they wanted a separate independent Muslim state in the northwest.

World War I (1914-18) and World War II (1939-45) further catalyzed India’s push for independence, since Britain had to rely heavily on Indian recruits to fill its ranks.  In return, Britain promised more political concessions, thus weakening its hold on India, encouraging more demand by Indians, and so on.

In 1920, a new leader, Mohandas Gandhi emerged as the voice of the Indian National Congress.  Educated in both traditional Indian culture and British schools, Gandhi developed very effective non-violent tactics of resistance while protesting British policies. The British, not wanting to risk the bad publicity a violent reaction could generate, had to give in to Gandhi time after time.  Therefore, at the end of World War II, Britain promised independence for India. On 3 June 1947, Viscount Louis Mountbatten, the last British Governor-General of India, announced the partitioning of British India into India and Pakistan.

With the speedy passage through the British Parliament of the Indian Indpendence Act,1947, at 11:57 on 14 August 1947 Pakistan was declared a separate nation, and at 12:02, just after midnight, on 15 August1947, India also became an independent nation

Benjamin Franklin- One of the greatest leaders of the 18th century

Born in Boston in 1706, Benjamin is known as the “First American”. Perhaps it is a fitting image. With so many of America’s early heroes, successes take the spotlight, while failures are rarely mentioned. But with any great entrepreneur the failures are just paving stones to the triumphs. Franklin himself said, “Do not fear mistakes. You will know failure. Continue to reach out.”
The image of Benjamin Franklin that has come down through history, along with the image on the $100 bill, is something of a caricature—a bald man in a frock coat holding a kite string with a key attached. But the scope of things he applied himself to was so broad it seems a shame.
Despite his success at the Boston Latin School, Ben was removed at 10 to work with his father at candle making, but dipping wax and cutting wicks didn’t fire his imagination. Benjamin Franklin was a prodigious inventor .He had deep love and apathy for the society.
Franklin never patented his inventions; in his autobiography he wrote, "... as we enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others, we should be glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours; and this we should do freely and generously."
His scientific pursuits included investigations into electricity, mathematics and mapmaking. Inventions of lightning rod, glass armonica, Franklin stove, bifocal glasses owe its credits to Ben .

Franklin not only worked as an inventor but also extended his services to the public and was an integral part of the politics of the 18^th century. He served as a foreign diplomat and represented the Pennsylvania Assembly, and thereafter Massachusetts, Georgia and New Jersey, in England. He also continued his work for colonial union and in 1766 supported the repeal of the Stamp Act. Soon, Franklin was elected to the Second Continental Congress and as postmaster general for the colonies, he mapped several postal routes. In 1776, he was one of five men to draft the Declaration of Independence. Franklin was also one of the 13 men who drafted the Articles of Confederation.

Franklin was embraced in France as much, for his intellectual standing in the scientific community and for his wit, as for his status as a political appointee from a fledging country. His adept diplomacy led to the peace treaty with England in 1783 and other foreign alliances and trade treaties. After almost a decade in France, Franklin returned to America in 1785. He was elected to represent Pennsylvania at the Constitutional Convention, which drafted the new U.S Constitution, participated in electing George Washington as the country’s first president .He also served as president of the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery, wrote many tracts urging the abolition of slavery and petitioned the U.S Congress for it in 1790.

Benjamin Franklin died on April 17, 1790, in Philadelphia. He was 84 and was suffering from gout. Franklin had actually written his epitaph when he was 22: The body of B. Franklin, Printer Lies Here, Food for Worms.

Franklin’ voracious capacity for knowledge, investigation and finding practical solutions to problems was his primary focus, as was his commitment to “doing good,” which led to the concept   of paying it forward. Founding universities and libraries, the post office, shaping the foreign policy of the fledgling United States, drafting the Declaration of Independence, publishing newspapers, warming us with the Franklin stove, pioneering advances in science, letting us see with bifocals and, yes, lighting our way with electricity—all from a man who never finished school but shaped his life through abundant reading and experience, a strong moral compass and an unflagging commitment to civic duty, and an overall wit, good humour and integrity. Franklin illumined corners of American life that still have the lingering glow of his attention.