The Aymara maintained strong, autonomous political organizations until they were conquered by the Inca in the 1400s (Parsinnen and Siirainen 1997). The Pacaje and the Caranga were the two Aymara speaking kingdoms that dominated the region during this time (Morrison 1988: 190). The Incas militarily penetrated the Aymaran territory under Pachacuti, and completely conquered this area during the reign of Tupac Yupanqui Inca (Gisbert, et al. 1996: 8). During the conquest of the Incas, the Collas (another Aymara-speaking group on the western shore of Lake Titicaca) and the Pacajes people took refuge in pukaras (fortified hill top settlements). However, the Inca were prepared for this action and surprised the Collas from behind (Gisbert, et al. 1996: 8). The Incas then made a pact with the caciques Guarachi y Soto of the Carangas, who allowed the Incas passage through their territory, which helped in the conquest of the Pacajes (Gisbert, et al. 1996: 8).

Inca influence on the peoples of the Bolivian altiplano was varied. The Carangas region was part of the vast Inca quarter of Collasuyu, which included present day Bolivia, Chile, and Northwest Argentina. A network of roads (qhapaq ñan) and waystations (tambos) were established in the eastern altiplano in order to connect the southern provinces with the Inca capital of Cuzco (Ruffino 1981). We also know that large colonies of Carangas peoples were moved by the Inca to the valley of Cochabamba to cultivate maize for the Inca armies (Wachtel 1986).

The Inca may have also established links to the local shrines of Collasuyu. The Inca developed a large system of shrines at Cuzco which centered on the Corincancha (Golden Enclosure or Temple of the Sun), from which lines or ceques radiated, aligning to huacas (shrines) or astronomical phenomena (Zuidema 1964; Bauer 1998). The ceque system was a conceptual device for organizing the ritual calendar, distribution of water for irrigation, social groups, and ritual responsibilities for local shrines. The ceque system also involved pilgrimage along these lines. One such line extends from Cuzco to Tiwanaku and Lake Titicaca (a distance of over 300 kilometers).

The Inca were involved in a civil war between two rulers vying for the seat of the Inca Empire when the Spanish arrived in 1532 (D'Altroy 2002). The Spanish took advantage of the disruption caused by this in-fighting, and formed alliances with enemies of the Inca. Using the relative advantage caused by this in-fighting, as well as superior weaponry, new-formed alliances with enemies of the Inca, and the passive introduction of Old World diseases, the Spanish were able to conquer the vast Inca Empire. Having done so, the Spanish attempted to restructure the Andean world, and to destroy the "pagan" religious and ceremonial centers. Indigenous people of the Carangas region were put to work extracting resources (such as silver, copper, and gold) in the Spanish mines of Potosi. In some areas of the Andes, as much as 90 percent of the local population perished from Old World diseases and the results of forced labor within the first 100 years of Spanish rule. Many agricultural techniques were lost forever. Terraces and roads fell into disuse, as older trade networks and societal ties were altered. Yet, many religious practices persist today, with the ritual pathways and shrines still used and maintained in many communities and practices such as llama sacrifice and worship of sacred mountains continue (Riviere 1986; Morrison 1988; Reinhard 1986, Abercrombie 1998). Indigenous traditions have persisted, and often are incorporated into Catholic and, more recently, Protestant practices.

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