Death in the Snow: Pedro de Alvarado and the Illusive Conquest of Peru

Pedro de Alvarado is best known as the right-hand man of Hernando Cortés in the conquest of Mexico (1519–21) and the ruthless conqueror of Guatemala some years later. Far less known is his intent to intrude in the conquest of Peru and lay claim to Quito, a wealthy domain in the far north of the Inca Empire. To this end, Alvarado constructed a massive fleet, which sailed south from Central America to what is now Ecuador, making landfall on 25 February 1534.

Engaging both the European and Indi...