Incan society was an ordered one, made of social classes and family groupings. It was organized as a pyramid, with the emperor at its apex and the common people at the bottom. In between was the aristocracy. Everyone had a place, and everyone knew what that place was. Indeed, there was little social mobility. One was born into a class and died in that class.

The Unique Inca

The emperor was officially known as the Sapa Inca, or the Unique Inca. Because he represented his people and his empire, he was sometimes simply referred to as the Inca. His authority rested first on his claim of being a direct descendant of the legendary Inca founder, Manco Capac, and second, on his claim of being related to the Sun, one of the major deities of the Incan state religion. Thus, the Sapa Inca was divine...