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The conquest of new spain cortes and montezuma
Spanish conquest of the Americas
Reasons for the successful conquest of mexico
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The Conquest of New Spain as Seen by Bernal Diaz del Castillo
Diaz del Castillo writes “The True History of the Conquest of the New Spain” after being a part of the expedition of what is now Mexico alongside Hernan Cortes. Diaz del Castillo came from a modest background considering his family was poor and he had little education. He was most likely recruited for Cortes’ expedition of New Spain because of he previously took part in other expeditions to the Americas and the Caribbean. The author has the intentions to give his viewpoint in order to uncover the truth about the conquest after Francisco Lopez de Gomara wrote an account that Diaz del Castillo disagreed with. Diaz del Castillo believes that much of the credit of the success of the
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While the expeditioners are entering they are in awe of the “wondrous sights” (Pane and Arrom 19) and the crowded city. While entering, the soldiers remember that they were warned by other people that they would be killed if they were to enter, but they go in anyway. On the contrary, their first encounter with Montezuma was peaceful. Montezuma appeared heavily accompanied and well dressed. Montezuma was wearing his finest attire, including sandals “adorned with precious stones” (Pane and Arrom 20). His entrance was grand; the lords accompanying him cleared a path for him to walk on. Once Montezuma approached Cortes, Cortes offered him a golden cord as a gift. Cortes was honored to have met Montezuma. Montezuma seemed to be pleased to meet him as well, because he sent two of his nephews to escort Cortes to their accommodations. It is evident that Montezuma was highly admired by the way the lords displayed their respect by abstaining from looking at Montezuma, and instead looked at the ground as they followed behind him. This encounter was so distinctive that Diaz del Castillo is able to vividly recall it even “years afterward” (Pane and Arrom
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
Portilla starts out by giving a thorough background of the culture and religious beliefs. The reader can draw many theories on how this carried over to the Aztecs way of thinking and fighting. In addition to the religion and culture, Portilla shows the technology advantages the Spanish had over the Aztecs. He also goes on to describe the poor leadership of Motecuhzoma. Motecuhzoma will be portrayed as a coward. Portilla also writes about the strategy that worked rather well for the Spanish as they made alliances with the Tlaxcalatecas and other cities. He finally talks about plague that wiped out much of the Aztecs. This may have been the greatest factor in the fall of the Aztecs Empire. All of these factors combined effectively show how the Spaniards prevailed over this great Aztec Empire of the 15th and early 16th century.
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
He attempted this primarily through his portrayal of Montezuma’s system of governance as brutal and is people as disloyal to him. He described the apparent willingness of the peoples he encountered to abandon the Aztecs and swear allegiance to the King of Spain, “Although they were subjects of Montezuma … they had been reduced to that condition by force …and when they had obtained through me some knowledge of your Highness … they declared their desire to become vassals of your Majesty, and to form an alliance with me”(Second Letter, 38–39). Cortés justified his conquest further through his proclamation to the his king that he was acting in defense of these newly acquired vassals. Cortés wrote that Montezuma subjected the local people to violent and tyrannical repression and, “took from them their sons to be slain and offered as sacrifices to his idols”(Second Letter,
One of the most interesting aspects of Diaz’s narrative is towards the end when Cortés broaches the subject of Christianity with Montezuma. Conversion and missionary work was one of the most important and lasting goals of the conquistadors and other contemporary explorers, they were charged with this duty by the rulers who sent t...
Victors and Vanquished by Stuart Schwartz attempts to explore differing perspectives of the conquest of Mexico as the historical narratives are from both the outlook of the Spanish conquistadors as well as the Nahua peoples. In these primary sources, there was a fundamental focus on the encounters between the Spaniards and the Mexica. The first source is an excerpt from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Díaz del Castillo, a Spanish conquistador, who participated as a foot solider in the conquest of Mexico with Hernán Cortés. Although Díaz del Castillo was a witness of the conquest, he wrote his account of what he had witnessed decades after the Spanish victory, in 1521. In his account, Díaz del Castillo concentrated on the ways in which the Spanish viewed the Nahua peoples. The second source is taken from the Florentine Codex and is one which was collected twenty
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
Marcus Gravey stated that, “A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.” With that being stated, are the people of the United States, Canada, and Mexico trees without roots? At a young age students learn that Christopher Columbus “sailed the ocean blue in 1492”, a simple song used to assist children remember that America was discovered in 1492. In addition, Thackeray and Findling describe how Columbus’s discovery presented an unimaginable amount of opportunity for Europeans, and therefore, Spanish, French, and later British explores and settlers began to flock to this new world.
The history of the Western hemisphere is full of war and conquest. One of the most significant and defining of those conquests is the downfall of the Mexica/Aztec Empire. While there are many other events to choose from, this one stands out since it was one over one of the largest empires in Central America. It is also important to look at because of the immense cultural impact it had. The story of this takeover reads like a movie script, a small band of Spaniards single handedly takes down the most powerful empire in Central America. It was an epic battle, which unfortunately led to the destruction of a magnificent culture. As in any major historical event there are many underlying themes and storylines that come together to make the event happen. The Spanish conquest of the Aztec is no different. Three major themes are seen in this struggle. One of them is the incredible advantage that the Spaniards technology gave them over the Aztecs. A second major theme is the greed that fueled the conquests in the New World. The last major theme was the effect of the political divisions and rivalries within Montezuma’s Central American Kingdom. As this historical event progressed each one of these themes began to intertwine until they became an almost unstoppable force.
The source discusses many of the same events that The Broken Spears does, however they are more polished and detailed. The more detailed nature of the text itself can be attributed to the fact that The Conquest of New Spain most certainly contained less errors in translation when compared to The Broken Spears. The document was originally written in Spanish, whereas The Broken Spears contains a compilation of documents translated from the Aztec’s native Nahuatl. Another factor to consider when looking at The Conquest of New Spain as a source is the fact that Bernal Diaz himself was a solider under Cortes’ command. His account is perhaps one of the most accurate due to the fact that he was actually present during all of the events he describes in his account. It is also extremely important when looking at this document through the lens of history to consider the differences in faith between the Aztecs and the Spaniards. Diaz and his fellow soldiers were Christian and many of the abnormalities that he attributes to Aztec life, such as human sacrifice, choice of clothing, and their temples, are related to their native religious traditions and were extremely foreign to him. Another interesting aspect of The Conquest of New Spain to highlight is Diaz’ status as a soldier under Cortes’ command. Diaz often depicts Cortes as less of a heroic figure, which is often how Cortes describes himself. In one particular passage Diaz describes Cortes as “…very frightened,” when he sees how numerous the Aztec forces are in their canoes. He goes on to say that Cortes, “…stationed himself in the lake, so that if he his men hard pressed he could sail out freely and hurry to any place he chose.” These types of descriptions of Cortes by Diaz aim to attribute his feats to those of his
Moctezuma welcomed Cortes and gave him a place to use inside the city. However, Cortes being extremely greedy took Moctezuma captive and demanded for even more gold. Thus, they started the battle for Mexico.
During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church was the dominant force in Western civilization. As the Dark Ages came to a close, the monarchies of Europe began to consolidate power; providing an alternative power base. With the Protestant Reformation came another blow to the influence of the Church. Spain, the forerunner in the Age of Discovery, was a fervently Catholic country. During the 16th century, the monarchy combined the forces of "cross and crown" in its imperial policy; much to the dismay and ultimate destruction of the indigenous peoples of the New World. Through an examination of Aztec polytheism and the Catholicism of the conquistadors, comes the central role of religion in the successful conquest of New Spain.
In the first part of the document, Cortés and his men spend their time at Montezuma's palaces. Seeing the extravagant wealth of the Aztec king, Cortés begins his seduction (all the while knowing that Montezuma believes that he may be the fulfillment of a prophecy). He embraced Montezuma with the greatest reverence and "…told him that now his heart rejoiced at having seen such a great Prince, and that he took it as a great honour that he had come in person to meet him and had frequently shown him such favor" (World History: Castillo, 247). Cortés and his men are brought into the house of Montezuma and all of his riches are now at their disposal to observe and share in. Montezuma tells Cortés: "Malinche you and your brethren are in your own house…" (World History: Castillo, 247). The wealth of Montezuma is magnificent. Each soldier is given tw...
It was strongly believed that the Spaniards were all about the gold and nothing else. Bartolomé De Las Casas said “The reason why the Christians have killed and destroyed such infinite numbers of souls is solely because they have made gold their ultimate aim, seeking to load themselves with riches in the shortest time…” (Las Casas, pg146) How could this be true? Montezuma was giving the gold to Cortes. Montezuma kept giving Cortes and his generals’ gold and other supplies. Castillo says “Montezuma here led Cotres by the hand to the apartment destined for him, and taking a large collar of gold, placed it round the general’s neck” (Castillo, pg134). He also says “Montezuma presented our general with a quantity of valuable ornaments of wrought gold; to each of the captains he made a present of some gold and three loads of mantles, and to each solider of two loads of richly wrought mantels; and all this he did in the most free and gracious manner…” (Castillo pg135) Montezuma was gracious in the gifts he gave and Cortes didn’t force him to give them gold; he gave it in a free
What makes a Spaniard unique within Western civilization? Why is Spain so different from other European countries? Some people look for a simple geographic answer. But the fact is that its geography has not changed that much since the days when Spain, as so many other European lands, was but a piece in the grand imperial mosaic put together by Rome.