Hernán+Cortés

= 1. Hernán Cortés´s life: = media type="custom" key="9617722" toc ernán Cortes was born in [|Medellín](Province of Extremadura, Spain) in 1485; died near Seville 2nd December 1547. His parents were Martín Cortés and Catalina Pizarro Altamarino, both of them were from god family. When he was 14 he was sent to the University of Salamanta, but two years after returned home. Then he determined upon a life of aventure and became accopaniament of Nicolas de Ovand (a native of Extremadura), who was abotu to sail for Santo Domingo to supersede Bobadilla in his commande, but there was an accident in this expedition and he left it.

After his remained for a year in [|Italy]( he was having experiencing great hardship and poverty), he returned to Medellin where he was able in 1504 to sail from San Lucar to Santo Domingo. He obtained exployment under [|Diego Velázquez], by this time he was remarkablof a graceful physiognomy and amiable manner as a well as for a skill and adress in military matters. In 1511 he accompanied Diego Velázquez, who was sent out by [|Diego Columbus] to colonized [|Cuba]. Later he held the office of mayor of Santiago in the new colony, and he married Catalina Suárez. media type="youtube" key="I-6x4HcveN4" width="415" height="343" align="center"

Grijalva( a lieutenant of Velazquez) discovered [|Mexico] where Hernán Cortés conquered the [|Aztec Empire] (with a force of 600 Spanish soldiers he was able to conquer a vast Empire that had tens of thousand of warriors. He did it though a combination of ruthlessness, guile, violence and luck) At the last moment, Velasquez appeared to have regretted the appointement possibly fearing that Cortés would carried off all the glory as well as the profit of the enterprised, and endeavored to recall the expediotion; but Cortés hastened his preparations, and on the 18th of November 1518, left Santiago with the 10 vessels, 550 Spaniards, nearly 300 Indians, a few Negroes at Trinidad and later at Habana(at both of which places he found orders from Velazquez, depriving him of his command) After writing a letter of remonstrance to the governor, he sailed, on 10th February, 1518,for the island of Cozume(coast of [|Yucatan]) on 4th March his first landed on the shores of Mexico, advacing solwly along the gulf.

Cortés returned to [|Tenochtitlán] with his reinforcements, but found it in a state of uproar, [|Pedro de Alvarado], had ordered a massacre of Aztec nobility in his absence. Aztec Emperor Montezuma was killed by his own people.Cortés never could have pulled off the defeat of the Aztec Empire. First of all, he had found Gerónimo de Aguillar (a Spanish priest). Between Aguilar and a woman slave named Maliche who could speak [|Maya] and [|Nahualt].Cortés was able to communicate effectively during his conquest.He had a lot of luck in many times. Form 1512 and 1528 Cortés seved as governor of New Spain, as Mexico came to be known. He oversaw the rebuilding of the city and exploration expeditions into other parts of Mexico. In 1528 he returned to ``Spain´´ to declare his case for more power. He was also, howwoever, removed from the govemorship and would never again have much power in the New World.

And finally: Cortés never lost the spirit of aventure. He financed and led an expedition to explore [|Baja California] in the late 1530´s and fought with royal forces in [|Algiers] in 1541. He decided to return to Mexico, but he died of pleuritis(which is a illnes that normaly causes by a pneumonia, it´s an inflamation of a pariental pleura and in the visceral pleura) in 1547 at the age of 62.

= ﻿2. Conquest of Mexico: =



ccompanied by about 11 ships, 500 men, 13 horses and a small number of cannons, Hernán Cortés landed in the [|Yucatan Peninsula] in Mayan territory. He met Gerónimo de Aguilar (Francisco priest) who had learned Maya during his captivity who could translate to Cortés. In March 1519 he claimed the land for the Spanish Crown. He stopped in Trinidad where he obtained more horses and more soldiers. He continued to Tabasco and won a battle against the native, there were many women and among this women was La Maliche his future mistress and mother of his son Martin. Through the help of this women he leraned from the Tabascan about the wealthy Aztec Empire.

In July 1519 his men took over Veracruz, because of that Cortés refused the authority of the Governor of Cuba to be directly under the orders of Charles V. To eliminate any idea to remove Cortés triped out his ships. At the mid-August 1519, leaving a lot of men in Veracruz, Cortés went to Tenochittlán with 600 men, 15 riders, 15 guns and a lot of air accompanies and indian warriors. In October 1519 he and his men with 3,000 tlaxcaltecas went to Cholula, the second biggest city of Mexico.

In November 8th, they were recibed by the emperor Montezuma II cordialy due of the mexican tradition and diplomatic customs. Montezuma let Cortés to enter in the hear of the Aztec Empire whit the hopes of knew better its weakenesses and to attack him after. However, Cortés realized that the Spanish people had attacked the coast and he decided to keep Montezuma as hostage.

Meanwhile, Velasquez had sent another expedition ahead [|Pánfilo de Narváez], to oppose Cortés, which reached Mexico in April 1520 with 1,100 men. Cortés left 200 men in Tenochittlán and the rest were with him to attack Narváez. Cortés beat Naráez and he cinviced Narváe´people to join him. In Mexico, one of the people which lived there, Pedro de Alvarado, did a slaughter in the Temple, which caused a local rebellion. Because of that Cortés went to Mexico, and he proposed an armistice to win the life of Montezuma. But this was stoned and died in July 1st 1520 and Cortés decided to flee. After the battle of [|Otumba] he went to [|Tlaxcala],after had lost 870men. Cortés had destroyed a city of Tenochittlán. And finally with the catch of the governor of Tenochittlán, in August 13th 1521, the Aztec Empire dissapeared and Cortés changed the name of the old ``New Spain´´ to ``the Mexica´´ city. From 1521 to 1524 he personally was in change of the government of Mexico. Now you are going to see a video wich explain the route which Hernán Cortés followed to reach Mexico:

Here we can see a video ( in Spanish ) about Corte's route.

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= ﻿3. Anecdotes that happened to Cortés: =

3.1. The Lovesick Cortés:
day, when he was walking on the street of Seville a passage girlfriend proposed Cortés to meet outside the village, where the woman lived. But the girl said:``Hernán you have to jump a wall of a mansion´´, but although he had to do it he went. When he was jumping the wall... As the wall was not in a very good condition the wall broke and Cortés fell down. He broke several ribs and he could not go to [|``La Española´´] with [|Nicolas de Ovando] how he had plained before, although he did it later.

3.﻿2. The Sad Night:
uring some time that Herán was absent in Tenochittlán there was a discursion and all the inhabitants were revolutionized because by that time there was a religious custom: they opened the chest and picked up ther heart and cut the head. By that time Pedro de Alvarado ruled over that territories and decided do a killing of all the indigenous. So when Cortés returned to Montezuma to calm all his people, but all this people did a rebellion against Montezuma( or many people think so but it is nor very sure because ther was a religion that prevented it) abd they killed him. So Cortés decided to espace, but they were discovered and they were involved in a fight between them and mexican. And in that fight were killed a half of his army. So that why he left Tenochittlán(30th June) with a few poeple. To this defeat was called ``**the sad night**´´



3.3. The legend says:
ne of the first flukes was Quetzalcoatl(the feathered snake) A number of matches that give to the conquest the character of a fairy tale: Many times ago, the legend says, Quetzalcoatl had come down to earth as a man with white ski and black beard, after twuenty years he had shipped to the east. Was sais that at any time he went to returne to reset his domain. His return would join in a Year One Reed and would bring many trials and sufferings. According to the Aztec calendar year 1519 was Year One Reed. Quetzalcoatl is composed by two words coatl wich means snake; abd quetzal which means beatiful feathered bird. To Aztec culture it was Tezcatlipoca borther but to the toltecas it was rival. Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl were names-among another else-used to name supreme beings in its functions as a creator. This is a the [|Quetzalcoalt] which is in El Museo De La Plata

= = = Timeline: = media type="custom" key="9625760" = Maps: = media type="custom" key="9539852" Click here to see this map on Google Maps:

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