The third book will be entitled “The Civil War of Quito.” The writing of it will be very difficult, and it will treat of various important events. There will be an account of how the new laws were promulgated in Spain, and of the consequent meetings and consultations in Peru, until Gonzalo Pizarro was received in the city of Cuzco as procurator and captain general. It will relate what occurred in the City of the Kings until the viceroy was seized by the judges and sent to sea; the entry of Gonzalo Pizarro into the city, where he was received as governor; his chase of the viceroy; and how the viceroy was conquered and killed on the plain of Añaquito. I shall also give an account, in this book, of the events which took place in Cuzco, in Charcas, and in other parts; of the rising of Diego Centeno on the part of the king and of Alonzo de Toro and Francisco de Carbajal on the part of Gonzalo Pizarro, until that constant worthy, Diego Centeno, was constrained to hide in secret places, and his master of the camp, Lope de Mendoza, was killed; also of what passed between the captains Pedro de Hinojosa, Juan de Yllanes, Melchior Verdugo, and the others who were in Tierra Firme; and of how the Adelantado Belalcazar put the marshal Don Jorge Robledo to death in the village of Pozo. I shall then recount how the Emperor our Lord, in his great clemency and kindness, sent out a pardon to all who should submit and enter his royal service; how the licentiate Pedro de la Gasca was appointed president, and how he arrived in Tierra Firme; the policy by which he drew the captains, who were there, into the service of the king; the return of Gonzalo Pizarro to the City of the Kings; the cruelties which were committed there by him and his captains; how a general assembly was convoked to determine who should go as procurators general to Spain; and the delivery of the fleet to the president. Here I shall conclude this book.
The fourth book will be entitled “The War of Huarina.” It will treat of the enterprise of the captain Diego Centeno; how he entered the city of Cuzco with the few men whom he had been able to induce to join him; how Lorenzo de Aldana sailed from Panama and arrived at the City of the Kings; and how many captains left Gonzalo Pizarro, and passed over to the service of the king. I shall also treat of what passed between Diego Centeno and Alonzo de Mendoza, until they gave battle to Gonzalo Pizarro on the plain of Huarina. I shall relate how the captain Diego Centeno was defeated, how many of his captains and followers were killed or taken prisoners, and how Gonzalo Pizarro entered the city of Cuzco.
The fifth book, containing the war of Xaquixaguana, treats of the arrival of the president Pedro de la Gasca in the valley of Xauxa; of the preparations made by him when he heard that Diego Centeno was defeated; of his march to Xaquixaguana, where Gonzalo Pizarro gave him battle; it relates how the president and the troops of the king were victorious; and how Gonzalo Pizarro was defeated and put to death in the same valley; how the president arrived at Cuzco and proclaimed the tyrants to be traitors; how he retired to a village called Huaynarima, where he divided the greater part of the provinces of this kingdom among persons selected by himself; and how he went thence to Lima, and established the Royal Audience.
Having completed these books, which form the fourth part of my work, I shall add two Commentaries. The first will treat of the events in Peru, from the founding of the Audience to the departure of the president. The second, will give an account of the president’s arrival in Tierra Firme; of the murder of the Bishop of Nicaragua by the Contreras; of how the Contreras, with tyrannical intentions, entered the city of Panama and stole great quantities of gold and silver, of how the citizens gave them battle outside the town, defeated and put them to death, and recovered the treasure. I shall conclude with an account of the insurrection at Cuzco, relating how the marshal Alonzo de Alvarado was sent by the judges to punish the rebels, and how the illustrious and politic worthy, Don Antonio de Mendoza, entered this kingdom as viceroy.
And if this history is not written with the elegance and learning that science gives to letters, it will at least be truthful, and each event will be duly noted with brevity, while evil deeds will be commented upon with moderation.
I truly believe that others would have performed this work with more satisfaction to the reader, being more learned than I am. But, if my good intentions and my endeavours to do my best are considered, it is just, at all events, that I should be favourably received. The ancient Diodorus Siculus says in his prologue, that mankind owes a great deal to authors, for, through their labours, the deeds of men live for many ages; and he, therefore, calls Cicero the witness of time, the master of life, the light of truth. What I ask, in return for my labour, is that,
although these writings may be devoid of elegance, they
may be received with favour, because they are
accompanied with truth. I submit my work
to the judgment of the learned and
virtuous; and I beg that
others will content
themselves
with
merely reading it, without attempting
to judge what they
do not understand.