Around the mid-15th century, the Inca emperor Pachacuti
conquered and razed Ollantaytambo; the town and the nearby region were
incorporated into his personal estate. The emperor rebuilt the town with
sumptuous constructions and undertook extensive works of terracing and
irrigation in the Urubamba Valley; the town provided lodging for the Inca
nobility while the terraces were farmed by yanaconas, retainers of the emperor. After Pachacuti's death,
the estate came under the administration of his panaqa,