FALL of the Aztecs: How 400 Spaniards Toppled an Empire | Animated History

By early 1519, the Aztec Empire was a dominant force in Mesoamerica, although commonly seen as a single people, the Aztec Empire actually began in 1428 as an alliance between the three city states of Toosan Texoco and Tpan among these Ostian soon would rise above the others. Gaining infamy in the eyes of its tributaries, those unfortunate enough to

fall

under its yoke were forced to supply the Triple Alliance with not only raw materials but also a constant stream of prisoners for Human Sacrifice, although it is not entirely clear how many people were sacrificed. In total, it is believed that in times of drought thousands of human lives would be ritually murdered in a matter of days.

Aztec warriors also engaged in what were known as flower wars to capture prisoners for sacrifice and some members of the Aztec aristocracy even cannibalized the bodies. Some of the victims had said that life in Tanos Titit Landan involved more than an endless stream of gruesome offerings and peculiar appetites. of topics ranging from religion and genealogies to government and geography, the fateful event that would radically alter the course of Mesoamerican

history

occurred in February 1519, when a group of several hundred conquistadors landed in the Gulf of Mexico in search of cities glorious ships rumored to be full of gold, their leader Nan Cortez was following in the footsteps or rather the sales of two previous expeditions that had ventured into the Gulf before him, but unlike his predecessors, Cortez's expedition was plagued by controversies from the beginning after having flourished under Cuban governor Diego Velásquez.

Cortés had his Expeditionary Charter revoked at the last minute, not one to take no for an answer, Cortez decided to ignore the order and in an open act of mutiny set sail for Mesoamerica, facing certain imprisonment or even death. Cortez was well aware of the absolute necessity. of the success of his expedition, fortunately for him, help in this regard would soon arrive unexpectedly once a novelty adorned the wrists of the rich and royalty thanks to modern conflicts such as World War I, wristwatches would soon They became vital instruments of war and were relied upon by soldiers to synchronize critical operations Changing the status of the wristwatch from ornamental to indispensable Today wristwatches not only help in time management but also remind us to take a time for ourselves when needed Holar, today's video sponsor continues this legacy by fusing Timeless Elegance with modern ingenuity and natural materials, their high quality watches, jewelry and accessories are the perfect gift for any occasion or style.

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The conquistadors came across a shipwrecked Spaniard named heronim De Aguilar. Agular, who had learned to speak Mayan, was quickly hired as Cortez's personal translator a few weeks later, Agular would prove his usefulness during peace talks with the Pan in a Mayan city state that the conquistadors had found a few weeks into their expedition. as a peace offering. The Mayans provided Cortés with 20 slaves, among whom a woman who spoke both Mayan and Aztec (naad agilar) and the slave girl who would become known as La Malin would form a crucial link for Cortés to communicate with the Aztec people armed with the power of language, as well as steel and gunpowder, the Spanish set sail towards their final destination.

Upon arrival, Nifty Cortez declared the establishment of the De La Verac Cruz road marking the first Spanish colony in Meso America, however, in reality Verac Cruz was not much more. a name on a map and served primarily as a means for Cortés to take advantage of Spanish law in an attempt to escape the jurisdiction of Governor Velásquez. Meanwhile, Cortés's arrival had not gone unnoticed and his group was soon received by representatives of the Aztecs. Emperor M. Zuma, despite his apparent lack of hostility, Cortez knew that these formalities were unlikely to last and was well aware of the urgent need to address his glaring numerical inferiority.

Fortunately for the Spanish, years of often brutal Aztec rule had left few friends among their members. The tributaries and many such as the Totonac Confederation were relatively easily persuaded to Rel turn against his hated lords upon hearing the news of the Spanish Totonac Alliance. Mack Zuma sensed trouble and sent another score of polite ambassadors with gifts of gold and cloth in a doomed attempt. to appease the Spanish and perhaps monitor their movements, but above all to dissuade them from visiting that land. However, Cortez was encouraged rather than deterred by the generous gifts of gold and ordered a daring march towards the city which was all or nothing for the Spanish leader and to ensure the loyalty of his own men, he made sure to sink their ships before of unleashing violence.

It broke out when Tac Kalin's warriors began harassing the column as it passed through Tac Calen territory. 2 weeks later, the bloodshed extended into September as the Spanish camp was attacked during the day, while Cortez's men attacked the Cala villages during the night, after 18 days of brutal war that had cost half of the Spanish cavalry and a fifth of Cortez's men. Peace finally returned to the territory Cortez had convinced the stalkers that they had a common enemy in the Aztecs, the Heels had reason to resent the Empire as it had conquered most of their territory during their annual flower wars that had been Prolonged for almost a century, seeing a golden opportunity for retribution, the TAC Kalin took up arms and joined the march towards the city.

That said, the violence did not stop there before the Spanish went to landan Tenos. , they marched alongside their Tac CA allies into the city of Chalula and massacred its civilian population over the course of several Chalula An days. A major religious center had previously been part of Tila Kalin's sphere of influence before switching sides and allying with the Aztecs. The exact reasons for the massacre are disputed, but it may have been a mix of TAC Kalin wanting to get rid of a political rival. and the spanish wanted to send a message to the rival cities, although it is clear that many city states had a grudge with the

aztecs

in chalula, the spanish clearly demonstrated what would happen if the cities did not ally with them before the first week of november, The survivors The conquerors finally set their sights on the land of Tinos, home to more than 300,000 inhabitants.

This enormous city dwarfed almost all of its contemporary European counterparts. The sight of its numerous canals, densely populated neighborhoods and imposing temples and palaces surprised approaching Spaniards and led some to wonder if they were in a dream as they could not be dissuaded from visiting the city City M Zuma now felt compelled to invite Cortés to his palace it was here that the conquistadors discovered a secret room where the emperor kept his treasure the sight of numerous gold objects Jewelry plates and ingots were stupefied, the Spanish after having located the rumored hidden treasure, Cortez began to press to M.

Zuma asking him to allow his men to erect a cross and an image of the Virgin Mary next to two large Aztec idols. Naturally, this provocative request caused considerable consternation among the Mexica, sparking an eruption of violence that cost the lives of seven Spaniards as they realized the precariousness of their situation. Cortez retaliated by placing M. Zuma under house arrest in the palace, assuming personal control of the city with the emperor essentially taken hostage. The Spanish hoped to dissuade the Aztecs from further resistance mck Zuma for his part continued steadfastly behind his policy of diplomacy and peace after firmly rejecting his chiefs' advice to attack the conquistadors.

He eventually allowed Cortés's men to build a Catholic altar in the temple. It was the first real sign. that the once powerful emperor of the great Aztec

empire

had been reduced to little more than a puppet of Cortés, meanwhile to the east another significant event was taking place as Cortés executed the Ceta of him. 900 conquistadors under the command of Pono de Narvas landed on the orders of Governor Velásquez, their objective was to deal with Cortez upon hearing the news. Cortez gathered his best men and set out to face Narvas in battle, leaving Pedro de Alvarado and a small garrison in charge of the city.

This would prove to be a fateful decision as the cruel and easily angered Alvarado had little patience and even less respect for the Aztec people and when on May 22, 1520, Zuma asked permission to celebrate an Aztec festival that included human sacrifices, Alvarado and his men interrupted the festivities killing almost all the mostly unarmed Warriors and nobles inside the Great Temple. Check out our library of over 100 exclusive videos on the

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of the armchair. New TV videos come out every week and every month we create originals from armchair historians. Alvarado's men claimed to have acted simply to prevent human sacrifice while the survivors responded that the Spanish had gone crazy at the sight of the gold jewelry the attendees were wearing upon hearing about the massacre.

McKe Zuma again urged calm in Prevail and ordered his people to withdraw. At Revolt to the east, Cortez had managed to sneak up on NIS at Seala and ordered his men to attack at night

fall

. His mixed group of 250 Spaniards and 200 natives soundly defeated NV's numerically superior force, which included horsemen and artillery, in a final slap in the face. Governor Velasquez then convinced the survivors to join Cortés with promises of Aztec riches. unlimited and returned to the land of tones. Cortez found Alvarado's men besieged in the palace and they acted quickly. Cortez ordered Mr Zuma to address his people in a last doomed attempt to restore peace and peace.

The Spanish withdrew peacefully from the city, however this desperate gesture simply stopped Fury's PES, Rose applauding from the crowd as M Zuma faced a hail of stones and darts. His people were fed up with their emperor and, in fact, had already chosen to elect him. His successor, the tragic McKe Zuma, would not survive the assault, although the Aztecs would later claim that he was killed by the Spanish after his usefulness to them had expired, without his bargaining chip and with supplies dwindling rapidly. Cortez realized that time was running out. He ordered his men to escape at night with their large amount of gold and other treasures, as they could lead the group westward under the cover of a welcome storm that was making its way through the sleeping city;

However, they were soon seen and the alarm sounded in no time. At that moment, a crowd of Aztecs emerged from their homes to attack the fleeing column, while hundreds of men in canoes harassed Cortés's men as they made their way across the road leading to the outskirts of the city, Some soldiers lost their balance and drowned in the lake, overwhelmed by everything. their equipment and the treasure they had so desired. Cortez himself was far ahead of the group leading a Vanguard of Riders leaving the rest of his men behind to fend for themselves upon reaching safety in Takuba Village, the Spanish leader changed his mind. and turned around to help those still struggling to get out on the road he found a seriously wounded Alvarado with a group of Spaniards and Tac CeX according to the conquistador Díaz del Castillo it was at this point that Cortez burst into tears during In the bloody escape attempt, it is estimated that between 4 and 800 Spaniards drowned or were captured, while around 1,000 TX Calex had suffered the same fate in terms of equipment, all artillery and most horses had been lost and the survivors Exhausted and mostly injured, they had to make do with what they had managed to carry.

Cortez claimed that he was sad to see this tragedy. Sol Sol ified it in Spanish and Mexican history as the Night of Sorrows, despite their apparent weakness, Cez's men were far from defeated approximately a week later. The AztecsThey attacked again at Otumba in an attempt to deal the killing blow, but their victory during the Night of Sorrows had made the Aztecs overconfident and the Spanish's skillful use of cavalry and targeting known leaders finally disorganized to his army after having fought against his pursuers. Cor withdrew. He took his remaining men to the relative safety of Tacala to rest and reorganize, although defeated on the battlefield, the Aztecs had regained control of their capital;

However, this victory would be short-lived as a much more lethal and insidious enemy would soon arrive in the form of small Poox had no prior contact with this disease, the vulnerable Aztecs were at their mercy. Thousands perished in short succession, among them the new emperor Quid Laak, and by the end of 1520 it is estimated that the disease had killed some 8 million people in the area. Now known as Mexico, having licked their wounds from the Night of Sorrows and the Battle of Otumba, Cortés's men were reinforced by more native teex ccoo allies and once again set out for Ttit Landan in early 1521, very aware of the weakened state of the Aztec

empire

.

The Spanish leaders were no doubt hoping for a turnaround victory, however, to their surprise, the city's stubborn defenders refused to give in. Frustrated, the Spanish ordered the Cala workers to build a cannon-mounted brig to take the lake control. Portable water to the city was cut off on May 10. However, at the end of June its defenders were still steadfast in several attempts to end the siege through diplomacy, failing as they ran out of patience. Cortez ordered a massive assault on the city to take the tat lco market, but his men were forced to retreat in the face of strong resistance.

Cortez himself was captured during the fighting and was lucky to escape. with his life when his men came to the rescue. Brutal urban combat and sustained fanatical resistance persisted until the remaining defenders made their last stand in the Plaza Mayor, where they finally surrendered on August 13. The reign of Quok, the last Aztec emperor, ended when he was captured in the attempt. flee the city by canoe, but the catastrophe that had struck this land would not end there. The victorious Spaniards and their native allies ruthlessly plundered the city in search of gold and, in revenge, Cortés would be rewarded for the astonishing success of the Valiente.

Expedition of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles I upon being named captain general of the viceroyalty of New Spain in October 1522 Cortés' lethal gamble had paid off, the mutinous soldier had become Spain's new hero in just two short years Eran Cortez relatively small group of conquistadors had managed to conquer an empire, the scale of the Aztec expedition along with their capture at Tesoro would not be equaled until the conquest of the Inca Empire in 1532 in present-day Peru; However, as we have seen, Cortés's conquest was far from being a simple military conquest. In addition to the technological and tactical superiority of the Spanish, it was the vital support of a large number of native allies, the excessive caution and inaction of M.

Zuma, as well as the brutal effects of the smallpox epidemic, that played a role. in the rapid overthrow of the Aztec empire. The fall marked the beginning of new Spanish conquests in the region that ultimately led to Spanish control over the entirety of Mesoamerica. The conquest, in turn, was followed by the mass conversion of indigenous peoples to Catholicism and before long intermarriages between ethnic Spaniards and natives would become common. events that marked the beginning of the modern Mexican nation. Special thanks to Hol Karen for sponsoring this video. Support our channel by visiting the link in the description below and use our special discount code armchair 15 at checkout to receive 15% off all products.