Team History Is Written By The Victors, selects in the Military Leader category, Francisco Pizarro González, 1st Marqués de los Atabillos (c. 1471 or 1476 – 26 June 1541):
I am currently working my way through
The Conquest Of The Incas, by John Hemming. I spent some time in Peru in 1994. It is remarkable what a small group of Spanish explorers did in conquering the full might of the Inca Empire. The High Andes are extremely difficult terrain. The Spanish had horses and guns, but it is still incredible what they accomplised (I make no comment now on the morality of some of the things they did - this will come later in another pick).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pizarro
Historians have often compared Pizarro and Cortés' conquests in North and South America as very similar in style and career. Pizarro, however, faced the Incas with a smaller army and fewer resources than Cortés at a much greater distance from the Spanish Caribbean outposts that could easily support him, which has led some to rank Pizarro slightly ahead of Cortés in their battles for conquest. Based on sheer numbers alone, Pizarro's military victory was one of the most improbable in recorded history. For example, Pizzarro had fewer soldiers than George Armstrong Custer did at the Battle of the Little Big Horn, while the Incas commanded forty times as many soldiers as Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull did.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cajamarca
Pizarro had 106 infantry, 62 cavalry and 4 cannons, and 12 harquebus. Only one Spaniard was wounded, while 6000 to 7000 Incas were slaughtered.
The Battle of (or Massacre at) Cajamarca was a surprise attack on the Inca royal entourage orchestrated by Francisco Pizarro. Sprung on the evening of November 16, 1532 in the great plaza of Cajamarca, the ambush claimed the lives of thousands of Incas and achieved the goal of capturing Emperor Atahualpa.
The book History Of The Conquest Of Peru, written by 19th century author William H. Prescott, recounts the dilemma the Spanish force found itself in. Any assault on the Inca armies overlooking the valley would have been suicidal. Retreat was equally out of the question, because any show of weakness might have undermined their air of invincibility, and would invite pursuit and closure of the mountain passes. Once the great stone fortresses dotting their route of escape were garrisoned, argued Pizarro, they would prove impregnable. But to do nothing, he added, was no better since prolonged contact with the natives would erode the fears of Spanish supernaturality that kept them at bay. Unlike his kinsman Hernán Cortés, whom Pizarro emulated and who could call on Spanish reinforcements 200 miles away in Veracruz, Pizarro's nearest Spanish reinforcements were 2,000 miles away in Panama.
Discovery Channel documentary in Spanish (was it ever translated to English?):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbwGO...om=PL&index=19
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/hsw/...ncas-video.htm