Conquest of Mexico Essay - 6049 Words

Conquest of Mexico In 1519 Hernà ¡n Cortà ©s led a couple hundred other Spaniards inland to the impressive Empire of the Mexica ruled by the Great Montezuma. Many historians today tell how quickly and almost effortlessly these Spaniards conquered the Empire. They paint an image of ignorant, helpless Indians practically giving up their land out of fear of this group because certainly the Spaniards must be gods since they have powerful weapons and strange animals. We know neither Cortà ©s nor any of his men were gods, of course, but what was it that allowed Cortà ©s to prevail over the inhabitants of the land? The First Expeditions To begin, in 1517 Francisco Hernà ¡ndez de Cà ³rdova, Bernal Dà ­az del Castillo, and some other gentlemen†¦show more content†¦(Dà ­az) Through the interpreters, Grijalva expressed to the Indians that they had journeyed from distant lands and were subjects of the Emperor Don Carlos and they, too, should become servants of the same. Incredulous, the Indians replied that they already had their own chief and, since the Spaniards had only just arrived they knew nothing of them so would not bow down to this new chief. They also informed Grijalva and his men, that they had 24 thousand warriors from neighboring provinces standing at the ready should Grijalva decided to attack. The next day, peace was negotiated and gifts were exchanged. Grijalvas party gifted beads of Jadeite that were precious to the Indians. In return, they received gifts of gold and jewels. These gifts were not of great value because the gold was of poor quality, but the Indians did inform Grijalva that further on, in the direction of the sunset, there was plenty of gold, and they said ‘Colua, Colua, Mà ©jico, Mà ©jico. (Dà ­az pg. 22 3) After trading more of the green beads for gold, Grijalvas party returned at once to the anchored ships; preparing to set sail immediately due to a northerly gale. (Dà ­az) Keeping on course, the ships encountered a strange episode when they arrived at the mouth of a great river. A great number of Indians lined the shores and each carried a lance with a colorful banner attached. They waved and beckoned to the passing ships as ifShow MoreRelated Conquest of Mexico Essay5987 Words   |  24 Pages Conquest of Mexico nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In 1519 Hernà ¡n Cortà ©s led a couple hundred other Spaniards inland to the impressive Empire of the Mexica ruled by the Great Montezuma. Many historians today tell how quickly and almost effortlessly these Spaniards conquered the Empire. They paint an image of ignorant, helpless Indians practically giving up their land out of fear of this group because certainly the Spaniards must be gods since they have powerful weapons and strange animals. We knowRead MoreSpain s Conquest Of Mexico1698 Words   |  7 PagesMy name is Marco Valencia; formerly one of Hernan Cortes` conquistadors. I am writing this memoir about Spain s conquest of Mexico. The Spanish conquistador that overthrew the Aztec Empire was Cortes. Cortes was a genius man; he knew that he needed to create allies with those who didn’t like the Aztecs in order to defeat them, and so he did. Not only that but Cortes used Christianity to his advantage, the Aztecs believed that Cortes was some s ort of a god and that he was there to rule over the AztecRead MoreThe Broken Spears: the Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico1413 Words   |  6 PagesInformation Conveyance While most of what has happened historically is clouded by speculation and wonder, some events have been well-documented. The Conquest of the Americas by the Spanish was an event in which many aspects were recorded, which has helped historians tremendously. The Broken Spears is a historical outlook on the Spanish Conquest of the Americas that includes several different texts written by many different indigenous people. Numerous texts are written in such a way that show theRead MoreAnalysis Of Bernal Diazs Seven Myths Of The Spanish Conquest829 Words   |  4 Pagesand confrontations between the Mexicas, the Spanish, and other native peoples. The theme of miscommunication presented by Hernan Cortes is supported by Bernal Diaz’s account in Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. It is worth mentioning the fact that Bernal Diaz describes Spaniards going into Mexico under Hernan Cortes. The narrator describes these events as an eyewitness, who saw what happened and attempted to reve al the truth to others who were not present. At the same time, the narrator is biasRead MoreEffects Of Spanish Conquest1298 Words   |  6 Pagestwenty million prior to Spanish conquest (Marr and Kiracoffe 2000). These civilizations were also onlookers to one of the worst demographic tragedies in history seeing population losses of almost ninety percent, down to one million occupants a century after conquest (Marr and Kiracoffe 2000). These demographic tragedies were in the form of epidemics of both New and Old World origin and as a result of and major contributing factors to the success of the Spanish Conquest of the region. As the SpaniardsRead MoreAztecs And Incas : Similarities And Differences1422 Words   |  6 PagesThe Aztecs and Incas: Similarities and Differences The Aztecs were warrior people who lived in the Valley of Mexico, with the capital at Tenochtitlan, during the 1400s. Under their authoritarian state, the Aztecs worshipped their patron god, Huitzilopochtli, among other deities. Despite their warrior tactics and developed belief system, the Spaniards conquered them in 1519. The Incas (or Inkas) were the people who lived throughout the Andes Mountains from southern Peru to central Chile. With a societyRead MoreThe Spanish Conquest1711 Words   |  7 PagesAlthough some may consider the fall of the Nahua and Inca empires an encounter of the Spanish, the meeting of the two cultures was a conquest because the Spanish brutally defeated and took over the indigenous cultures with the help of many advantages. There are three major factors which contributed to the successful conquest between the Spanish and the Nahuas, also known as the Aztecs, and Incas.   First, the Spanish leaders had experience in forming alliances with indigenous peo ple.   Second, theRead MoreThe Colonization Of New Mexico830 Words   |  4 PagesConquest is defined as the control of a place or people by use of force. Colonization occurs when more species populate an area. After the Mexican American war the Mexican border went up in San Ysidro California creating disagreement between territories. Conquest produced local, regional, and national patterns of change and development. The conquest of New Mexico and the Unites Sates Southwest now had distinguishable contradictions and tensions. In 1519 Spanish arrived in Mexico and further foughtRead MoreEssay about History At Its Best1616 Words   |  7 Pagesa view of the modern era in their own individual ways. Olaudah Equianos account of his life as a slave is directed at the problem of slavery. Stuart B. Schwartz Victors and Vanquished, provides a collection of personal accounts about the conquest of Mexico under the command of Hernando Cortes. Lastly, Rousseaus, A Social Contract, expounds upon the problems that occur in modern government, and preaches that a more natural form of government would better suit societys needs. All of theseRead MoreMalintzins Choices Essay704 Words   |  3 Pagesemperor Montezuma. Camilla Townsend uses the story of Malintzin to display the conquest of Mexico in a different aspect and first person point of view. It is crucial to focus on translators when it comes to understanding the conquest of Mexico. It shows how much of a cultural difference and language barrier there was between these two sides. Without translators the Spanish would never have been able to conquer Mexico and survive against the natives. They would have had a much harder time trying