They Secretly Increased
Their Store Of Arms, And Took Measures For Securing The Success Of Their
Plot.
Their conduct, however secretly pursued, being known among many, came at
length to the knowledge of some friends of the marquis, who endeavoured to
put him on his guard against the machinations of his enemies.
But he,
confiding in his honour and good faith, judged of others by himself, and
refused to listen to this advice; saying that it was proper to leave these
unfortunate men in peace, who were already sufficiently punished by the
shame of their defeat, the public hatred, and the poverty to which they
were reduced. So much were the Almagrians encouraged by the patient
indulgence of the marquis, that their chiefs used even to pass him in
public without saluting him or giving him any token of respect; and one
night some of them had the audacity to affix three ropes to the gibbet,
one of which was stretched towards the palace of the marquis, another
towards the house of his lieutenant, and the third to that of his
secretary. Even this insolence was forgiven by the marquis, in
consideration of their misery and the unhappy situation of their affairs.
Profiting by this indulgence, the Almagrians assembled together almost
openly, several of their party who were wandering about the country
without property or employment, coming to Lima from the distance even of
two hundred leagues. They resolved upon putting the marquis to death; yet
waited to hear from Spain what judgment might be given in the case of
Ferdinand Pizarro, who was there thrown into prison as accused, of the
murder of Don Diego Almagro; and to prosecute whom Captain Diego Alvarado
had gone home and was actively engaged in soliciting his trial and
punishment. When the conspirators learnt that his majesty had appointed
the licentiate Vaca de Castro to proceed to Peru, on purpose to examine
into all the past disorders, but without orders to prosecute the death of
Almagro with that rigorous severity which they wished and expected, they
resolved upon the execution of their long concerted enterprize. They were
anxious, however, to learn exactly the intentions of Vaca de Castro, as
the intended assassination of the marquis was by no means universally
approved among the Almagrians. Several of the gentlemen belonging to the
party, although much incensed at the death of Almagro, were anxious only
for redress by legal means, and in a manner that might be conformable with
the pleasure and service of the sovereign. The chiefs of this conspiracy
who were now assembled in Lima, were Juan de Saavedra, Alfonso de
Montemayor, Juan de Gusman controller, Manuel de Espinar treasurer, Nugnez
de Mercado agent, Christoval Ponce de Leon, Juan de Herrada, Pero Lopez de
Ayala, and some others. In this assemblage, Don Alfonso de Montemayor was
deputed to wait upon Vaca de Castro; and accordingly set out with letters
of credence and dispatches to meet Vaca de Castro at the beginning of
April 1541. After his arrival at the place where Vaca de Castro then was,
and before he proposed to return to his employers, news was brought of the
assassination of the marquis. On this occasion, Montemayor and some others
of the Almagrian party, who were not concerned in the murder, remained
with Vaca de Castro till after the defeat of the younger Almagro in the
battle of Chupas, preferring the service of their sovereign, in whose name
and authority de Castro acted, to their individual resentments.
So public had the measures of the conspirators become in the city of Lima,
that several persons gave notice of their intentions to the marquis, and
advised him to employ a guard for the protection of his person: But he
always said that the lives of others would guard him from violence, and
that he was resolved to give no cause for suspecting that he used
precautions of defence against the judge whom his majesty was sending to
Peru. On one occasion, Juan de Herrada complained to the marquis of a
report that he meant to put all the friends of Almagro to death. The
marquis assured him that the report was entirely groundless; and when
Herrada mentioned that the marquis was collecting a great number of lances
and other arms, as a confirmation of the report that these were intended
against the Almagrians, the marquis replied in the gentlest terms, that
these arms were by no means intended to be used against him or his friends.
He even presented Herrada with several oranges which he pluckt for him,
which were then esteemed a high delicacy, as they were the first that were
grown in Peru; and told him privately, that if he were in want of anything,
he had only to give him notice, and he might depend on being provided for.
Herrada kissed his hands, and thanked him for his kindness, going away
delighted with the assurance that the marquis seemed to have no suspicion
whatever of the conspiracy.
On arriving at his house, where the principal conspirators waited for him,
it was determined to kill the marquis on the following Sunday, as they had
not been able to put their design into execution on the festival of St
John[1] as they at first intended. On the Saturday immediately preceding,
one of the conspirators revealed the circumstances of the plot in
confession to the curate of the great church of Lima. The curate went that
same evening to communicate the intelligence to Antonio Picado, secretary
to the marquis, who immediately carried the curate to Francisco Martinez
de Alcantara, the marquises brother[2], where the marquis then was at
supper together with his children[3]. On being informed of the urgent
business on which they came, the marquis rose from table and retired to
another room, where the curate informed him of every thing he had learnt
respecting the conspiracy. The marquis was at first considerably agitated
by his intelligence: but after a moments reflection, he said that he could
not credit the story, as Herrada had been with him only a few days before,
and had conversed with him with much humility; for which reason he was
convinced that the man who now brought this intelligence had some secret
end to serve, and had invented this story to assume merit.
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