The area around Lima has been inhabited for thousands of years. Urban communities of significant size date from the pre-Inca Early Intermediate Period (c. 200 bce–600 ce), the most important being Pachacamac, which was an important religious site in both pre-Inca and Inca times. Much of the ransom demanded by the conquistador Francisco Pizarro for the Inca chief Atahuallpa (Atahualpa) was obtained from Pachacamac. The Spanish city of Lima was founded by Pizarro on Jan. 18, 1535, as the Ciudad de los Reyes (“City of the Kings”). Although the name never stuck, Lima soon became the capital of the new ...(100 of 4177 words)
