Planning of Pizarro's Expedition to Peru

Timeline

1. 1519Panama City · PanamaIn 1519, news that Hernán Cortés was leading an expedition deep into the interior of Mexico reached Panama; Spanish colonists widely believed that wealthy civilizations similar to the Aztecs still existed to the south. Pizarro and other isthmus officials, spurred by this, began seriously considering the possibility of exploring southward and conquering new kingdoms.
2. c. 1519–1520Panama City · PanamaPizarro formed an expedition alliance with his countryman Diego de Almagro and the Panamanian cleric Hernando de Luque: Luque provided funding, Almagro organized manpower, and Pizarro served as commander. The three signed an oral or written agreement dividing the spoils of conquest proportionally, laying the organizational groundwork for the subsequent southward expeditions.
3. 1519–1522Castilla de Oro (Isthmus of Panama) · PanamaThe allies gathered intelligence about the wealthy southern kingdom of "Biru" through passing merchant ships and indigenous oral accounts. Pizarro accumulated contacts and supplies under Pedrarias's rule, preparing for the first formal southward expedition in 1524. At this point the planning was still in its early stages; royal authorization would not be obtained until the 1529 Agreement of Toledo.