Hernan Cortes

Conquering the Aztecs
Hernan Cortes was a Spanish conquistador who traveled to the Aztec empire with his army in 1519. He wanted to become famous and gain riches for Spain. The Spanish eventually conquered the Aztecs for three reasons. First, they had guns, horses, and armor, which gave them an advantage in battle. Second, Europeans brought many diseases that the Aztecs' immune systems couldn't battle, causing many to die. Third, the Aztecs had many conquered enemies who helped the Spanish in war. Eventually, Montezuma was killed and in 1521 Cortes took over Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec empire. This was basically the end of the Aztec empire. Ten years later, Spain had control of all of Mexico and Central America.

Early Life
Cortes was born in Estremedura, Spain in 1485. He was smart, but also troublesome, and was sent to study law in Salamanca, though he didn't earn a degree.Eventually, in 1504 he sailed to Hispaniola, where he spent 7 years farming. Later, he was part of the crew led by Diego Velazquez that went to conquer Cuba, and he was named clerk to the treasurer in the colony. After sending out two expeditions to Mexico, Velazquez sent Cortes to assist Juan de Grijalva.

Conquest of the Aztecs
Once Cortes reached Mexico, he trained his army before marching into Mexico. He captured the city of Tabasco, where he met Dona Marina, who would become his interpreter, advisor, and spy. Then he built the city of Veracruz before traveling toward th Aztec capital. As he traveled, he met with Aztec messengers, who tried to convince him to turn back. However, he also met other groups who hated the Aztecs and would help him to defeat them. When he reached Cholula, he killed the warriors to capture the city. Finally, in November 1519, the army reached Tenochitlan. The Aztec emperor, Montezuma, was friendly, probably because he believed Cortes was the god Quetzacoatl. The peace ended when two Spanish were killed by the Aztecs, and Cortes put Montezuma under arrest. Next he heard that Velazquez had sent Panfilo de Narvaez to arrest him. When Cortes met Narvaez, he captured him and gained control of the army. When Cortes reached Tenochtitlan, all the Spanish were barricaded in Tenochtitlan and trapped. Then Cortes freed Montezuma, but a stone thrown at the Spanish hit him in the head and he died. Then the Spanish tried to escape, but most of the army was killed.

Capture of Tenochitlan and Control of Mexico
When Cortes returned to Tenochtitlan, he captured all the towns in the empire, then destroyed everything in the capital. The new chief, Cuauhtemoc was forced to give it up on August 21, 1521. A year later, the king gve Cortes the title of governor and captain general of New Spain. With the power, Cortes sent soldiers to Guatemala and Honduras to explore and conquer. Many of Cortes' rivals plotted against him, and slowly he lost power. He died in near Seville on December 2, 1547.

Works Cited:

Blue, Rose and Nade, Corine J. Exploring Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Chicago, Illinois.: Raintree, 2004  pgs. 46-59