Song of the Inca

Suppose--just suppose--that when the Spaniards encountered the Incas, early in the 16th century, instead of arriving at a politically turbid point in Inca history, finding an empire in disarray, they had found an empire at its peak, a people so masterfully tuned in harmony that the Spanish aggression was never a real threat. A politically and militarily strong Inca empire, united in spirit and in purpose behind the powerful, messianic leadership of a young general, could have turned the tables of history.