Which Inca ruler besieged Cusco against the Spanish in 1536?

Manco Inca Yupanqui besieged Cusco against the Spanish in 1536.

Manco had initially been installed as an Inca ruler with Spanish support, but relations deteriorated as conquistadors confined, humiliated, and exploited him. After escaping Spanish supervision in April 1536, he gathered a large Indigenous army and launched an attempt to recover Cusco, the former Inca capital.

The siege began on 6 May 1536. Manco’s forces captured important positions, including Sacsayhuamán, and repeatedly attacked the Spanish garrison led by Hernando Pizarro. The defenders relied on cavalry, firearms, fortified buildings, and Indigenous allies. Fighting continued for roughly ten months, but the Spanish held the city.

Manco eventually withdrew first toward Ollantaytambo and then to Vilcabamba, where he established the Neo-Inca State. The event is sometimes called the Siege of Cuzco or Siege of Cusco; both spellings refer to the same campaign. It should not be confused with the later rule of Manco’s son, Túpac Amaru I.