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Recommended: Aztec rise and fall
The European conquest of the Americas is the best hidden and most easily overlooked genocide in human history. Resulting in the massacre of ninety five percent of the indigenous population; the loss of tens of millions of people, this annihilation of human life often falls under our radar. The Aztec empire was one of the first of the great American empires to fall. Though it was one of the most populated and advanced civilizations in the new world, the Europeans declared victory in 1521 after only two years of fighting. Superior weapons and war tactics, alliances with rebelling indigenous people and the introduction of new and deadly diseases were all aspects of the European conquest of the Americas that led to the fall of the Aztec empire. …show more content…
When the Spanish arrived in 1519, Cortes took complete advantage of this. After defeating the Tlaxcalan people, he then forged an alliance with them to increase his small numbers. Cortes’ forces continued to grow in this fashion as many indigenous people joined to rebel against the authority who controlled them. After suffering a terrible defeat at the hands of the Aztecs, Cortes retreated to rally more forces. He was soon joined by more Spanish soldiers from Cuba and he continued to enlist the native people. His army grew much larger and it consisted of ten times more natives than Spaniards. “He enlarged his army, numbering around 1,000 Spaniards and 10,000 Tlaxcalans and other Indian allies”. These larger numbers combined with the smallpox epidemic that weaken the Aztecs, allowed the Spaniards and the rebelling Native Americans to lay siege to Tenochtitlan and eventually emerge victorious. “Tlaxcalans took revenge on an old enemy [the Aztecs] by massacring thousands of city residents”. With the help of the native people, the larger Aztec empire fell to the smaller Spanish …show more content…
Primary, their fighting technology was much more advanced. “[The spaniard were] armed with deadly muskets, cannon, steel swords and crossbows”. One account of a Native American portrays their fear and confusion of a weapon that they learn to call a cannon. “A thing like a ball of stones comes out of its entrails: incomes out shooting parks and raining fire….If the it is aimed against a mountain, the mountain splits and cracks open”. The Aztecs inferior technology and lack of understanding of the Spaniards’ weapons was a major disadvantage in combat. The spaniards were also better protected than the natives. As recounted by a Native American, “[t]heir trappings and arms are all made of iron. They dress in iron and wear iron casques on their heads.” The Spanish also have an invaluable advantage in movement speed. Horses, which are new to the new world, allow the Spaniards to move fast and attack from an elevated point. The Spaniards were much more strategic. The used military maneuvers and had battle plans which confused and frightened the Aztecs. Furthermore, the Aztec forces were disorganized at this time. They relied on a hierarchal system for order and without their leader Moctezuma, they were sitting ducks in battle. Additionally, it was Aztec custom to aim to capture it battle rather than kill. This made them very vulnerable to the Spanish soldiers who were fine with slaughtering the Aztec people.
Cortés went to Tenochtitlan in mid-August 1519, along with 600 soldiers, 15 horsemen, 15 cannons, and hundreds of indigenous carriers and warriors. On the way to Tenochtitlan, Cortés made alliances with indigenous peoples such as the Totonacs of Cempoala and the Nahuas of Tlaxcala. The Otomis initially, and then the Tlaxcalans fought the Spanish a series of three battles from 2 Sept. to 5 Sept. 1519, After Cortés continued to release prisoners with messages of peace, Xicotencatl the Elder, and Maxixcatzin, persuaded the Tlaxcalan warleader, Xicotencatl the Younger, that it would be better to ally with the newcomers than to kill them. On November 8, 1519, they were peacefully received by Moctezuma
"The Broken Spears" by Miguel Leon-Portilla gives a different perspective on the defeat of the Aztecs. Through reasons such as religion and culture beliefs, the Spanish technological advancement, and their strategy of gaining alliances in the new land contributed to the defeat of the Aztecs. The two factors that played the biggest roles were the poor leadership of Motechuhzoma and the timing of the plague. Those two factors were indeed what brought down this great Empire.
Aztecs were tribe. In Chronicler’s Account talked about Spaniards with Aztecs from 1519 to 1521.When the Spaniards arrived in Tenochtitlan, and they bought horses, guns and also smallpox that killed a lot of people there. A Text from the Chronicler’s Account saids “ at about the time that the Spaniards had fled from Mexico….there came a great sickness, a pestilence, the smallpox. It …. spread over the people with great destruction of men.” The Aztec chronicler was trying to be objective in what happened at that time. Aztec Chronicler wrote about struggled in
Beginning in the fifteenth century with the arrival of Columbus, natives of the Americas were infected with European diseases that proved to be deadly to the Indians. The population in northern Mexico suffered an immense decimation of 2,500,000 peoples to less than 320,000 by the end of the sixteenth century (Vargas, 30). The Spaniards’ cruel treatment of the natives aided this vast reduction in the Aztec and Mexican population, enabling the Spaniards to conquer the lands of the Aztecs and other native tribes. By the end of the sixteenth century, the Spaniards had expanded their conquests into the southwest region of what is now known as the United States of America.
At first, it seemed like the Spanish had total control of the city, but trouble soon broke out. In May 1520, Cortes briefly left the city. Ignorantly, his men, for some odd reason, attacked the Aztec. "Those Idiots!" I bet Cortes would have exclaimed as he came back to find his men being besieged in Moctezuma's palace. Cortes, being quite the intelligent thinker, thought that calming them would be the best way out of the situation.
The discovery of the new world is what led to the fall of the Aztecs, Mayans, and Incas. The Europeans were greatly outnumbered when they arrived in the New World, and could have easily been squashed by the warriors of these mighty Pre-Columbian civilizations. Lack of knowledge and trickery were what lead to their down-fall. The "Indians" were left dumbfounded as they tried to figure out what horses were and how it was possible that a man and horse were not the same creature. La Malinche led the Aztecs to believe that the horses could talk and think for themselves and that Herenan Cortez was really a god.
The Aztec Empire was the most powerful Mesoamerican kingdom of all time. They dominated the valley of Mexico in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The Aztecs were an advanced and successful civilization that built beautiful, sophisticated cities, temples, and pyramids. They also created a culture full of creativity with mythological and religious traditions. Aztecs lead a structured and evocative life that let their society to become a very superior civilization. The Aztec’s communication skills were very well developed for their time; through religious beliefs, government involvement, and family life they lived a full and productive life. Until in 1519 when the Spanish conquistadors arrived in Mexico, and defeated the Aztecs.
When the Spaniards arrived on the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico in 1519, they encountered the advanced society of the Aztecs. With Tenochititlan at its capital, the Aztec empire was vast. The Aztecs had substantial wealth from trading and extensive payments of tribute from conquered peoples. Bernal Diaz in his The Conquest of New Spain comments, "We were dazzled at the richness of the country that we passed through" (282). The Spaniards encountered a powerful, advanced people in the New World, making Cortes and his crew of approximately 600 seemingly ensured of defeat. The Aztec religion lends much to Spanish success in conquest.
The Spaniards didn’t destroy the Aztec civilization all by their self another factor which helped the Spanish were the disease that they brought over to the Americas from Europe and Africa. The introduction of diseases like syphilis, measles, smallpox, malaria, mumps and yellow fever are just some sickness that plagued the Budhu 2 Aztecs. Also the introduction of different species of animals and plants caused a ecological imbalance (Plagues and Peoples 176-199). All these are some reasons to why the Aztec civilization was destroyed. With the arrival of the Spanish in Mexico rumors started to reach
The Spanish brought firearms, explosive and steel weapons, of which the Native Americans had not used or seen before. As they saw the Spanish come in with these, they feared them and hid from them. The Spanish also brought horses, pigs and cattle all in which provided superiority against the Indians. The Natives did not have domesticate animals, so the impact of seeing men on horses had a vast psychological effect on them. Although the Natives outnumbered the Spanish, they were not immune to diseases such as smallpox and measles to which the Spanish brought along with them. As a result, the number of Native Americans decimated due to the natives becoming ill and dying off before they could even attack. Due to the native Americans being semi-nomadic and lacking significant fortification, helped the Spanish by easing conquering. One major important aspect was having experience, the Native Americans were always civilized with one other in contrast to the Spanish. The Spanish have a long history of warfare with other rivals over religion or territory, and this gained them enough experience to be prepared and armed for the unexpected.
Hernan Cortes along with the Spanish army of five hundred, and thousands of Indian warriors declared war with the Aztecs. Moctezuma believed that the person coming towards his land was Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl who was forced into exile, but promised to return. Topiltzin was born in the year ce acatl, departed during ce acatl. Coincedently Cortes came in the year of ce acatl, unfortunately for Moctezuma having his guards down and his arms open during the start of the war.
... (Schweikart 5-6). The Aztecs’ greed for sacrificial hostages turned these Indian neighbors against them (Kingfisher 196-197). The Aztecs were defeated, partially because they had been weakened by smallpox, but also because the Spanish fought together as a single force, while Aztecs fought as individuals (Schweikart 6-7).
Using only a fairly small number of soldiers (10,000), Cortes brought down 5 Million Aztecs to their knees and so it made easier for Hernan to take over a country that was in desperate times. The Aztecs drove the Spanish troops from the city, giving Cortes a better chance to try and win over the Aztec empire again. Cortes returned again in 1521, this time putting an end to the Aztec empire by killing the Aztec leader. The same year King Charles I appointed him the governor of New Spain. It was after the war when Cortes changed the name of the country from Tenochtitlan to Mexico City or
The downfall of the Aztec Empire was a major building block of the Spanish colonial empire in the Americas. Spain’s empire would stretch all the way into North America from the Southwest United States all the way up the Pacific Coast. The unfortunate side effect of this was the elimination of many nations of indigenous people. The three major themes shown in this conquest really give deeper look into the anatomy of this important historical event. Without context on the extent of native assistance given to Cortez in his fight with the Aztecs, a reader would be grossly uniformed. The Spanish conquest was closer to a civil war than an actual conquest. Until reading detailed personal accounts of the fighting it is difficult to judge the deadly effectiveness of the Spaniards technological superiority. Without it is difficult to imagine 500 conquistadors holding thousands of native warriors at bay. Once the greed of Cortez and greed in general of the Europeans one understands that if it wasn’t Cortez if would have just been a different man at a different time. Unfortunately fame and prosperity seem to always win over cares about fellow human beings
Why was Cortes with 508 soldiers able to conquer the Aztec Empire with millions of people?