Hernan Cortes: Hero Or Villain

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Ashwath Puchakatla 8-4 Hernán Cortés: Heroes or Villain Hernán Cortés, a hidalgo (a lesser noble) who conquered one of the greatest Mesoamerican Empires ever: the Aztecs, is the subject of a great question: Was he a villain, or a hero. To many, he is a greedy traitor who committed genocide in the name of gold. But to a few, Cortés is a God-loving man who was loyal to the King of Spain to the end. In my opinion, Cortes was a hero, who may have committed horrendous acts, but was overall more humane than his fellow conquistadors. By being a cruel man who always wanted his way like a spoiled brat, using people, and destroying one of the greatest civilizations in the world: the Mexicas, also known as the Aztecs.An example of his cruelty is when he threatened to kill any of his men who did not want to continue the expidition, before proceeding to sink their ships. Cortés is also known for using people, specifically the Aztec Empire’s emperor, Moctezuma the Second. He used Moctezuma’s life as a hostage to steal gold, similar to Pizarro, the conqueror of the Incan Empire of modern day Peru. Lastly, he destroyed a great civilization. By committing genocide, and spreading pestilence, Cortés destroyed not only …show more content…

He stood by his men, he was trustworthy, and was technically a liberator. Cortés stood by his men in countless situations, like during the Battle Tenochtitlan, when he could easily flee with some gold when all hope was lost, but he instead stood by his men and fought. Cortés was also trustworthier than his fellow conquistadors; he actually kept his promises with the now freed vassal tribes of the Aztecs, unlike the Europeans in the future in the northern part of North America. Overall, Cortés was a liberator, a savior to the vassal tribes of the Aztecs. Subject to tributes, these tribes were unhappy under the rule of the Aztecs. Cortés, instead of just conquering and killing the tribes off, he actually viewed them as

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