Iquitos (i/ɪˈkɪtɒs, iː-, -toʊs/) also known as Iquitos City, is the capital city of the Maynas Province and Loreto Region. The largest metropolis in the Peruvian Amazon, it is the sixth most populous city of Peru. It is known as the "capital of the Peruvian Amazon." The city is located in the Great Plains of the Amazon Basin, surrounded by the Amazon, Nanay and Itaya rivers. Overall, it constitutes Metropolitan Iquitos, a conurbation of 471.993 inhabitants consisting of four districts: Iquitos, Punchana, Belén, and San Juan Bautista.
The area was long inhabited by indigenous peoples. The founding date of the European city is uncertain. Spanish historical documents state that it was set up around 1757 as a Spanish Jesuit reduction by the banks of the Nanay River. It was named "San Pablo de Napeanos", and the Jesuits gathered local Napeano (Yameo) and Iquito natives to live here.
In the late 19th century, the city became the center of export of rubber production from the Amazon Basin and was the headquarters of the Peruvian Amazon Company. The rubber boom attracted thousands of European traders and workers who amassed wealth with the production and processing of rubber. The city was highly dependent on PAC, controlled in the nation by Peruvian businessman Juan Luis Arana. The operations of his forces in the Basin, who kept indigenous workers in near slavery conditions through use of force and harsh treatment, was investigated by Roger Casement, the British consul-general in Peru. He had investigated conditions in the Belgian Congo when under King Leopold's control. His 1913 exposure of abuses of Peruvian workers caused a reaction against the company among the several British members of its board and many stockholders. In addition, rubber was introduced to plantations in Southeast Asia, creating competition that undercut the Peruvian product. With the decline of the rubber industry, many workers and merchants left Iquitos.
In the night I see? Shadows coming close to me
Dreams of ecstasy? Leading my thoughts
Mystic ways of life? I share
The calling of four winds? Caress my flesh
Those who see look through my eyes
I am made to live and made to rule
I am a sorcerer of a golden age
Of knowledge and black arts
I freeze the Moon of a cursed dark night
Like shining aeons from frigid deeps
I am immortal
I never die
Gods!
We are masters...
We take your force and live forever...
We are masters...
We bring the dark millenium back and rule...
The light...
The light has eclipsed my soul...
We will return...
We will return as the glorious race...
Disaster...
Disaster no man has ever seen...
We are immortals...
The ancient cult for few to live...