The Aztec Civilisation was one that lived way ahead of its time. Of course, any civilisation comes with its perks and weaknesses, this is what the Spanish leaders and military commanders used to their advantage. They exploited the Aztecs’ weaknesses and damaged them immensely. In 1519, Spanish Conquistador Hernan Cortes led a small fleet of 11 ships that all together consisted of just 490 men landed on the Gulf of Mexico. There are many factors that affected the collapse of the Aztec civilisation including the Spanish weapons, animals and cavalry, tactics, brutality and logical alliances. This essay will analyse and interpret all the all the key advantages that led the Spanish troops to a commanding victory over the Aztecs.
One vital advantage
Oleg Kubay Professor Ortega History 23 22 September 2014 Warfare: Aztec & Spanish The fall of the Aztec empire was one of the major events that lead to the Spanish colonization of America. There were many factors contributing to the fall of the Aztec Empire like sacrificing their own people, which significantly lowered them in ranks making them a weaker colony. Also being the first people to sacrifice other people in the name of religion made them a threat to the Spaniards and Tlaxcala and many others. The Aztec and Spanish Warfare lead to the fall o f
Secondly, the Spanish were more advanced in the military than the Aztec. Such as, Spanish had horses and. Thirdly, the Aztecs were more knowledgeable than them since the Aztecs already knew that some enemy was coming to their land and that they knew that this would happen. Overall, the defeat
Hernan Cortes. Spain’s savior, nightmare for the Aztecs. The man who brought gold and glory to Spain, at the cost of the destruction of a rich, thriving civilisation. Hernan Cortez was a cunning, manipulative, intelligent conquistador and he and his army single handedly took down one of the greatest civilizations of all time by forging, advanced weaponry, alliances and the Conquistador’s Formula. Some may argue that Dona Marina is most responsible because she advised and told Cortes what the enemy was planning, but she was merely a pawn in Cortes’s grand scheme of conquering the Aztecs, as Cortes was the true mastermind and defeated the Aztecs for these reasons: First Cortes and his army has more advanced weapons such as Halberds, crossbows,
So, the Spanish had many benefits from conquering Mexico. Believe it or not, the Tlaxcalans helped the Spanish Conquistadors conquer Mexico. Initially, when Spanish arrived in Mexico, they had a small force of about 400 soldiers and 12 horses. As they traveled, they gained allies, enemies of the Aztecs, the Tlaxcalans. The Tlaxcalans battled against
A few weeks later, Hernando Cortés, and his crew had landed in Mexico. Unintentionally, Hernándo and his crew ended up bringing many diseases to Mexico (with them), which ended up wiping out pretty much the whole Aztec empire (which is what Hernándo’s goal was in the first
A century after Columbus made the Americas known to Europe, the Spaniards sent out additional ships to explore and bring back wealth and knowledge. However, Hérnan Cortés, the leader of this expedition, did not follow his mission. He first conquered a city on the coast and moved inward to continue overtaking the Aztec empire (Lecture?). The moment Cortés and his men touched the land, European diseases such as smallpox and yellow fever began decimating the Aztecs, who had never built up immunities. In addition to this, there had already been drought, causing a shortage of food and water throughout the empire.
In The Americas, a myriad of Native American empires fell victim to conquistadors. During the Spanish Conquest, there were three important terminated empires. First; the Aztec. Aztecs faced a vast number of difficulties in the upbringing of their new domain. Before all else, they trekked through the deserts of South America by command of their war god, Huitzilopochtli.
When Hernando Cortes arrived in the New world he was greeted by a totally alien and unfamiliar culture. The Aztec people of Mesoamerica had similar infrastructure to Cortes’s native Spain, but the culture of the Aztecs was shocking to some of the Spanish who first encountered it. The Aztecs also had resources valuable to the Spanish. This difference in culture is what allowed the Spaniards to rationalize their decision to annihilate the Aztecs in order to gain access to their resources. The Spanish had just retaken the Iberian peninsula as part of the reconquista, and they had gained a strong sense of nationalism as part of that conquest (Gibbs).
The Aztecs were fascinated by the accuracy of the muskets and the destructive power of the cannons. The Spanish also introduced them to horses, an animal the Aztecs had never encountered before, and witnessed the Spaniards' skills, which seemed almost supernatural to them. Additionally, the Aztecs were amazed at the advanced shipbuilding techniques used by the Spanish, allowing them to navigate the oceans and reach distant lands. The arrival of the Spanish and their advanced technology left a lasting impression on the Aztecs, ultimately playing a significant role in the conquest of their
The Aztecs conflict and defeat The Aztecs were respectful, religious people, and they also conquered neighboring states/cities. The conflict and defeat of the Aztecs was not unavoidable. The Spanish used god, glory, and gold to make the Aztec empire weak. God: caused the conflict and defeat of the Aztecs, Glory: wanted fame and trust from the King and rise up to the nobility, Gold: wanted to make Spain rich, so they could buy and make expensive material and expand their empire.
The Spanish Conquistadors had the advantage over the Aztecs in many ways. One way they used was using allies against thee Aztecs. The Aztecs was a tribute empire, where they required
“The Spanish had the advantage of superior weaponry. Aztec arrows were no match for the Spaniards’ muskets and cannons” (McDougal 556). In their area, the Aztec civilization had a reputation of successful rulers, and handmade yet powerful weapons. Even so, Spanish conquistadors were able to beat them without much effort because of their advanced weaponry. Any survivors were forced to live in fear of others coming from Europe and killing them with manufactured weaponry.
The author gives insight on how many ways the Spaniards used their power to assist in the downfall of the Aztecs. The reason why the Spaniards became victorious, was because the Spaniards were looked upon as if they were gods because of their outer appearance. The Aztecs broke bread and welcomed the Spaniards with gifts and parties. The Aztecs triggered their relationship with the Spaniards by holding a ritual for the arrival of the god which included a human sacrifice. The Spaniards didn’t agree with the rituals and began to despise the Aztecs.
The fall of the Aztec Empire was due to the determination of the Spaniards. The Spaniards were destructive. They did not respect the Natives’ religions at all. They almost destroyed all of the Natives’ culture, and now we know very little about Natives. The Spaniards’ greed and obsession with power, this was their main motivation to conquer the Aztec Empire.
There was not a simple clear and distinct dichotomy between the “good” and the “bad”. As established previously, the Aztecs did not all live in perfect harmony, leading to tensions, and side-taking when Europeans arrived. A number of Indigenous peoples had a part to play in the downfall of the Aztec empire. Furthermore, the importance of gold in these relations was of great significance, and “Cortes bullied… tortured the Aztec lords… to obtain gold” (p.116). León-Portilla chooses to end on the topic of the tributes of “gold that had been lost in the Canal of the Toltecs” which the Captain expects to be returned to him.