Cajamarca is an important and prosperous city in the Northern Highlands, with a long and interesting history. Pizzaro was successful in capturing the Inca ruler Atahualpa near Cajamarca and held him for ransom. Atahualpa agreed to give Pizarro large quantities of gold and silver in return for his own release. Pizarro agreed to this but ended up
executing the Inca ruler once the ransom was acquired.
Although Cajamarca was once an Inca city, the area was also home to a number of pre-Inca civilizations. When the Spanish arrived they used the stones from the old Inca city to built their new city. It has some striking similarities to Cusco, but does not have the same huge number of tourists.
Today Cajamarca, the Capital of the Department of the same name, is prospering from gold mines that have been established in the area. It is one of the major cities in northern Peru, and one of the most pleasant. Cajamarca has a couple of small museums and a nice Plaza de Armas for relaxing.