The Spanish Colonization of Mexico: Hernan Cortes in the Age of the Conquistador This historical study will define the important role of Hernan Cortes in the colonization of Mexico in the age of the Spanish conquistador. Cortes was an important figure in Mexican history because of his discovery of Mexico at the Yucatan peninsula in 1519. During this time, Cortes became a historical figure that represented the “conquistador” system of conquest throughout the Mayan and Aztec Empires during the early part of the 15th century. The fall of these indigenous civilizations marked the beginning of Spanish colonization of Central America. Cortes was a significant figure because of the primarily military style of coercion and conquest that sought to annihilate the indigenous peoples of Mexico, and to claim Spanish territory. These conquests contributed significantly to the blend of indigenous and Spanish traditions of Mexico’s national history. Cortes represents the first phase of colonization for the Spanish empire in terms of the violent and aggressive nature of the Spanish Conquistador in the discovery of Mexico. The image of the Spanish conquistador as an often violent and ruthless colonizer is defined the invasion and destruction of the Aztec empire in Mexican history. In essence, a …show more content…
historical analysis of the discovery of Mexico will be defined through the discoveries and conquests of the Hernan Cortes. Hernan Cortes was a major historical figure in the discovery of Mexico during the age of the Spanish Conquistador during the early part of the 16th century. In 1511, Cortes had become a conquistador by assisting Diego Velazquez de Cuellar in the invasion of Cuba. During this time, Velazquez was successful in conquering Cuba, which allowed Cortes to become a clerk to the treasurer in his mid-twenties. In Cuba, Cortes became a popular figure, which allowed him to lead a resistance movement of indigenous peoples to reclaim settlement rights for the conquered peoples. Soon after, Cortes was able to earn a position of power by becoming Captain general of Cuba, which gave him greater military and political influence to go on missions of conquest for the Spanish government. During this time, Cortez was a minor landlord and had little wealth, but he managed to mortgage his home and lands to get the funding for a conquest of the Aztec Empire. After getting the necessary funding and approval from Velazquez, Cortes was going to be replaced when he illegally set off with a fleet to Mexico: “Warned that Velazquez intended to name a rival, Cortes set sail abruptly on his historic adventure…he had eleven ships, 508 soldiers, and sixteen horses” (Ruiz 41). During this time, Cortes was had taken the initiative in setting sail to Mexico, which set the foundation for his historic journey to conquer the Aztecs. More so, Cortes’ journey defines the beginning of Mexican history through the context of Spanish imperialism. The early phases of the Spanish colonization of Mexico were defined through the military methods of the Spanish Conquistador as a norm in the conquest of new territories.
When Cortes arrived on the Yucatan Peninsula in 1519, he met a Franciscan monk named Aguilar that had become shipwrecked, and survived an attack from the Mayans (Farriss 12). However, he had learned the Mayan language in an effort to Christianize these peoples. Aguilar told Cortes the story of the sacrifice and cannibalization of Conquistador Valdivia (his captain) and his other shipmates after their capture, which inspired Cortes to utilize the most violent and militaristic methods to destroy the Aztec
civilization: Aguilar’s stories about human sacrifice among the Mayans must have cast a shadow over many conquistador’s enthusiasm, as well as strengthening their sense of Christian mission (Thomas 164). Cortes’ meeting with Aguilar proved to be highly successful because he had a plan to work out temporary alliances with the Mayans to conquer various indigenous cultures on his path into the interior of the Aztec empire. Aguilar made it possible to speak with the Mayans and convince them to make these military alliances, which greatly weakened the unity of the Mayan civilization on the coastal regions of Mexico. The hostile actions of the Mayan peoples against the Spanish conquistadors had created a strong military motivation for Cortes to set sail for Tabasco, and conquer the indigenous peoples of this region through force. This would define the conquistador method of conquest, which would become more commonplace when Cortes and his soldiers landed in Veracruz to invade and colonize the Aztec peoples. In this battle, Cortes would receive an early victory in the conquest of Mexico as a part of a larger settlement plan for the Spanish government.
Anais Nin once said that “we write to taste life twice: in the moment and in retrospection.” In his book, Seven Myths of Spanish Conquest, Matthew Restall tries to change our perception of the past in other to open our eyes to what life was really like during the colonial period. As Restall puts it, the main propose of the book is to “illustrate the degree to which the Conquest was a far more complex and protracted affair” (p.154) than what was supposed in the latters and chronicles left by the conquistadores. Each one of Restall’s chapters examines one of seven myths regarding the mystery behind the conquest. By doing so, Matthew Restall forces us to look back at the Spanish conquest and question
During his reign, Hernan Cortes spent most of his time rebuilding Mexico City. He destroyed Aztec buildings and temples, and then rebuilt Christians Churches on top of the ruins. He also brought many Europeans to Mexico. Because of this Mexico City soon became the most important city in the Americas. Cortes founded new cities and appointed men to rule over these new cities and extend Spanish rule. He instituted the encomienda land tenure system in 1524. This is a trusteeship labour system in which certain per...
Both times he was beaten back to the coast by Maya armies. Shortly after his expeditions, Cortes suffered the same fate during his attempt to penetrate Cozumel and Champoton. In March of 1519, after both men’s failed attempts, Cortes put together a larger expedition with the expectation of being able to set up trade with the Maya. He hoped this would help lead to the establishment of a permanent Spanish settlement. Instead, Cortes was able to defeat small groups of Maya armies during this time. After being defeated, the Maya offered Cortes objects made of gold and told stories great empires that layed further into the mainland. Overcome with ambition and visions of conquest, all focus was moved from the establishment of a permanent settlement to tracking down and finding these
Admittedly, these men are responsible for much of the exploration of the America’s, but to focus on so few of the explorers ignores how reactive their actions were, and the larger narrative of the world at that time (4). For example, Columbus is praised and idolized for discovering the America’s, however it was only by luck that he arrived on those shores. Moreover, there were many other explorers at the time who could have reached the America’s if Columbus had not done so first (9). Another man who is seen as the key figure in the actual Conquest is Cortes. Cortes’ campaign in the America’s is commonly viewed as the standard to strive for, yet it is also the exception to a typical conquest (19). He is viewed as some above-it-all conquistador idol, when in all actuality he merely followed the standard protocol of the Conquest (19). This does not mean that Cortes’ actions were any less inspirational, merely that they were not uncharacteristic acts that he created (19). Both Columbus and Cortes were merely following standard procedure of the time, yet they are written about as if they were heroes of their time, bravely going and doing what none had done before. And in some sense, they were the first to discover and conquer, but it is foolish to assume that just because they were the first to be in the America’s
Cortes was able to conquer the Aztecs for several very different reasons. In combination these reasons allowed him to have the upper hand in the conquest of Mexico. Arguably these reasons can be sorted into six different categories. The various causes for Cortes' success will be assessed in a climax pattern. To begin with the Aztecs had a harsh tribute system that was not popular among the people of Mexico. This cruel tribute system allowed Cortes to act as a liberator. Furthermore, with the Spanish brought several diseases into Mexico in witch they were immune to but the Aztecs were not. The spread of diseases such as small pox reduced the Aztec population and furthered Cortes' success unintentionally Also Marina was a tribal girl given as a gift to Cortes, she proved invaluable in translating local dialects in combination with Geronimo de Aguilar. Also an important aspect of his success was due to Montezuma's belief that Cortes was Quetzakoatl. A predominant reason for the Spanish success was due to their weaponry especially their armour and firepower. Perhaps the most important reason of all was that of Cortes' Indian allies such as the Tlaxcalans who made up the majority of his combined army. All these reasons worked together to allow Cortes, originally with 508 men to conquer the Aztec Empire of millions of people.
A tall, stately conquistador sat high in the saddle of his blood red, high stepping stallion, its long tail was perched high over his back, the masculine man adorning the magnificent creature sat as if in a rocking chair as the high spirited animal danced about. The conquistador held his stallion firmly by his reins, forcing his steed to step to the side as the rest of the regiment moved along the trail, trudging alone in the balmy heat, he removed his helmet tucking it firmly under his left arm against his body, he located his handkerchief that he had tucked into his left sleeve of his shirt, retrieving the white hanky Carrasco begin dabbing his handkerchief around his forehead and the back of his neck, mopping up the corpus amount of perspiration that was running down the sides of his face and trickling down the back of his neck, gobs of black hair tossed about his head as he dabbed his handkerchief about trying to keep the sweat from running into his armor. Dear God, he thought to himself, this is intolerable, what did I do to deserve such punishment? It is only spring and alrea...
Hernando Cortes was a man that was born in Medellin Spain, and was born in 1485. Hernando was always rich and was born into royalty. He was a very exciting man; at the age of 19 he joined Diego Velazquez and Nicola de Ovando on their voyages to the new world. He also conquered the Aztec civilization. His father was in the military and he followed in his father’s footsteps. Hernando lived an average life, dying at the age of 62 in 1547.
To begin with, Hernan Cortés conquered the Aztec empire. “Unbeknownst to Cortés, his arrival coincided with an important Aztec prophecy.” (Szalay, Jessie 2017) The Aztecs believed that Hernan Cortés was the Aztec god, Quetzalcoatl, and that he had returned to the land of the living so when Hernan arrived, he was welcomed in an honorable way. The army caused the native population to be intimidated because they didn’t hadn’t acquired firearms or advanced weapons
Cortes: Was a Spanish Conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire.
After Hernan Cortez’s victory over the Aztecs, the Spanish expeditions focused primarily on the vast territory to their north. With legends of gold and great wealth, more and more Spanish explorers launched expeditions to what is now the American southwestern region as well as Florida. Map 1 demonstrates the exploration and colonization efforts that took place in the North America from the middle of the 16th century until 1675. It is very evident that Spanish authorities put an enormous focus on the area of present day New Mexico, which they heavily settled after Juan de Oñate’s arrival in 1598. For the settlers, the territory of New Mexico was their opportunity to gain riches, but also it put them in direct contact with the area’s native population,
Aztecs were located in mexico, the king specifically mentioned in this account was King Montezuma, the last ruler of the Aztec empire before the spanish took over. He was a well respected warrior and leader, during the 16th century. Hernan Cortez was the spanish conquistador that came to the Aztec’s empire. When Cortes arrived to mexico in 1518 it was the beginning of the end of the Aztec empire. Hernan was a liar, the first thing he said to montezuma was that he (Montezuma) had nothing to fear and they wanted to be friends. Cortes ended up taking advantage of the friendliness and hospitality of the Indians. The spanish’s method of taking over was to provoke fear within the Indians so they would listen to everything they ordered. To do so “the Spaniard fired one of their cannons” This confused the indians because they thought the spanish were supposed to be friendly so the indians panicked and “were all overcome by terror.” Whenever a Spaniard asked for something Montezuma would deliver, this made his people angry and they lost respect for their great leader. The Spanish raided the Aztec empire of all their gold and valuables, even the kings stash. From what only they thought was beautiful. Whatever they didn’t want was destroyed or burned. They were greedy and cruel people that wanted all of the gold they could get. After robbing the empire of all of its stored gold he forced slaves to find him more. Fear is what made the Indians obey Cortes and his
Eventually, Cortes found himself in Mexico, where he encounters the Aztec Empire. His first encounter with Aztecs was all based on a lie in which the Aztecs believed he was an ambassador
There once was man, no a conquistador named Hernan Cortes. He was born in 1485, in Medellín, Spain. He conquered the Aztec Empire at the age of 36 and helped colonize Cuba. There are many opinions of him and who he really was. Some say he was a hero for creating a huge civilization. Others say he was a villain for destroying a huge civilization. So let’s look at the facts and decide who he really was.
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
Cortés had previously been adamant about only causing harm to the Indians when absolutely necessary. The new lord refused to withdraw and admit defeat. Finally, Cortés called for all buildings to be decimated. He had envoys at all entrances to the city by that time, and escape was impossible. July 26, 1520, after 12,000 dead, Cortés claimed Mexico City for Spain.