The Conquest

ANTH 221: Peoples and Cultures of MexicoKimberly Martin, Ph.D.

The Arrival• Hernan Cortez sailed from Cuba on

and against orders from Diego Velasquez, Governor of Cuba

• Landed on Cozumel and rescued Geronimo de Aguilar who spoke the Maya language

• Landed on Good Friday, April 21, 1519 at what is now Vera Cruz

• 11 ships, 550 men, 16 horses• Traveled along the coast gathering

allies against the Aztec

La Malinche• Cortez was given 20 maidens by a

Maya Ruler at Pontonchon including Malintzin

• She was baptized Marina (Dona Marina)• Malintzin spoke Maya and Nahuatl and

worked with Aguilar to translate• Malintzin became Cortez’s mistress and

bore him a son• Was considered a traitor for betraying

her people to help Cortez

Cortez and Dona Marina

Strategies• Moctezuma sent gifts and messages with

warnings about the dangers of the trip inland, hoping Cortez would go home.

• Cortez sent the gifts with letters to Spain (circumventing Cuba) and disabled his ships

• Used alliance with Totonacs & Tlaxcalans who opposed the Aztecs

• Attacked and took Cholula• Marched into Tenochtitlan in November

1519• Moctezuma received him as an honored

guest and/or a god

More Strategies• Cortez took Moctezuma prisoner in the

royal quarters• Left to fight and defeat Spanish troops sent

to arrest him by Velasquez in Cuba• Brought defeated troops back as his own• In his absence, his lieutenant, Alvarado,

attacked the Aztecs, triggering revolt• Cortez sent Moctezuma to roof to calm the

crowd• The crowd stoned Moctezuma to death• Spaniards were driven out of the city with

many casualties

A Second Try

• Cortez retreated and built a fleet of small boats to use in the next attempt

• The Aztecs were weakened by European disease

• January 1521 Cortez launched a new attack by water, cutting off the city to food and fresh water.

• Tenochtitlan held during an 80 day seige• Aztec Emperor Cuauhtemoc surrendered

the city on August 13, 1521