(PERU.) Manuscript poem in honor of the rebel leader Túpac Amaru II. Manuscript, 2 pages, 8 x 5¾ inches, titled "Décimas, con título de Aviso al Publico fixadres en la plaza de la Imperial Ciudad del Cuzco"; folds, minimal wear. With full transcript. No place, circa late 1780 or early 1781
Túpac Amaru II (circa 1742-1781) was an indigenous leader of a rebellion against Spanish rule in Peru. The rebellion ended with his execution in May 1781. The rapper Tupac Shakur was named in his honor.
This poem was written in Túpac Amaru's honor at some point late in the rebellion, and a copy was to be posted in the plaza at Cuzco. The author is unknown, but it was widely distributed and other manuscript copies from the period are known. The opening verse praises him as an "Americano rey, nuestro libertador" (American king, our liberator) who rules "sin distincion de colores" (without distinction of color). The third verse refers to the 4 November 1780 events which began the rebellion, in which Tupac Amaru captured and executed Governor Antonio de Arriaga.
