The Spanish Conquest of Mexico: Some Geographical Aspects

Abstract

On 16 august 1519, Hernando Cortes struck west for the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan. He had sunk the boats that brought him to Mexico x and his force contained only four hundred and fifty Spaniards. By battle, treachery and negotiation, the city was reached and Montezuma seized. But soon the Spaniards were beleaguered and on the disastrous noche triste had to flee from an outraged people. Finally came the savage and protracted assault in which the city was reduced to rubble and its inhabitants subdued. No sooner was this accomplished than Cortes and other conquistadores turned to conquer new peoples: the murderous Nufio de Guzman pillaged the north-west, and Francisco de Montejo and his family began the conquest of Yucatan. Many others, soldiers, administrators and missionaries, helped to build the Catholic colony which by the end of the century covered so vast an area. The story can however be viewed in a different light that but enhances its significance. Consider the conquistador, mounted on horseback and sword in hand. He was indeed a new figure in Mexico, where the horse on which he rode was as unknown as the cattle and donkeys that were soon to follow. Again, his steel sword which did so much to spread his power was a cutting instrument superior to any the Indian possessed. Its humble partners, iron axes and chisels, were soon replacing the Indian's stone, copper and bronze implements, and were cutting into the rocks and trees of his land. In brief, the Spaniard's conquest of the Indian was accompanied by new steps in man's conquest of the land (Plate 1). It is this second conquest which it is proposed to consider.