Aztec Downfall

Imagine that you are living in a jungle in the middle of central day Mexico. You are part of an indigenous group that call themselves the Mexica. Nowadays they go by the name Aztec and live in modern day Mexico. Although the Spanish lived across the ocean from the Aztec, they had many similarities and differences in their warfare. Weaponry, tactics, and worldview are all important elements of the Aztec and Spanish.

Often times people forget just how significant the fall of the Aztec empire is to our current culture. If the Spanish never invaded the Aztec’s there are a number of things that would be different today such as Christianity might not have been spread because the Aztec’s believed in serving many Gods as well as effects such as the expansion of Mexico or the non-existence of the Alamo. It is easy for people to analyze the culture we live in but they frequently neglect how it became this way. The cultural encounter of Spanish invading the Aztecs in the 1500’s was critical to world historic paths because they helped guide the Spanish to colonize the Americas as well as the creation of Mexico all caused by a number of factors such as religion, disease and War strategy.

How was Hernan Cortes able to conquer the Aztec empire? The fall of the Aztec Empire was led by an expedition by Hernan Cortes, a Spanish conquistador, in 1521. Cortes’ time was the era of Exploration. He became engrossed with the tales of Christopher Columbus and decided to join the exploration. Which led him to travel to the Americas and triumph of the Aztec empire. Such as a prophecy, weaponry, translators, disease and allies.

The Aztecs, part of modern day Mexico, were once the epitome of fine culture. They began their rule of southern and central Mexico during the 14th century and practiced an incredibly wealthy lifestyle. Nonetheless, this rule began to deteriorate when Spanish explorers disembarked at Tabasco and Vera Cruz on April 21st 1519. When the Spanish voyagers first arrived, they were welcomed warmly, respectfully and received Godlike treatment. Montezuma, the ruler at that time, believed that the Spanish military leader, Hernán Cortés, was the great god Quetzalcoatl. The Spanish took advantage of this Aztec belief and conquered Mexico within two years. By 1521, the Aztec culture was officially eradicated and a new culture, consisting of a

The Aztecs were one of the last tribes to arrive in Mexico, in 1195 CE, when they arrived in the Valley of Mexico other tribes had taken the best land so the Aztecs were left with the swampy shores. They soon adapted and began to conquer their neighboring tribes. They continued to expand until they had their very own empire. The empire continued to thrive, until the Spanish arrived and had a fixed mind set on wanting the empires region of land.

The Aztec and Spanish were both some of the strongest nations in the place they inhabited. The Spanish went to war to collect territory for their homeland in Spain. The Aztec went to war to please their gods and collect prisoners to sacrifice. The Spanish war strategies were for taking over the land they desired without war, but if it came to it they would fight. The weapons that both nations used were very dangerous, but were well suited for what they nation needed them for. The Aztec weapons were mostly for capturing prisoners. The Spanish weapons were used mostly for killing and were very durable. The Aztec and Spanish both had different reasons for going to war and the types of tactics they use

Throughout the book, writers mention that Aztec governments did everything that they could to give the Spanish everything that they needed, and that the Spanish took advantage of them. “…he took the Spaniards to be gods; he believed in them and worshiped them as deities.” The people of Mexico were loyal to those that they believed to be gods and “when they conquered the Mexica and all belonging to them, we never abandoned them or left them behind in it.” Under Spanish rule many men, women and children were exploited, tortured and murdered. The Broken Spears captured this in great detail while Traditions and Encounters skims over a lot of these details. This seems to create a gap between the two texts, making the differences between the authors more apparent.

Technological advancement greatly favored the Spanish. As mentioned before, the Spaniards where fighting to kill, so on all fronts they where better equipped. They came in on well-built ships, equipped with cannons. They carried iron swords and shields rather than spears and wooden shields of the Aztecs.

     The Aztecs were an American Indian people who ruled a mighty empire in Mexico from the 1400's to the 1500's. The Aztecs had one of the most advanced civilizations in the Americas and built cities as large as any in Europe at that time. They also practiced a remarkable religion that affected every part of their lives and featured human sacrifice. The Aztecs built towering temples, created huge sculptures, and held impressive ceremonies all for the purpose of worshipping their gods. The Spaniards destroyed their magnificent empire in the year 1521, but the Aztecs left a lasting mark on Mexican life and culture .

Maybe too much credit is given to Cortés as one of the greatest Spanish conquerors who developed effective strategy to defeat the Aztecs. Restall see this as somewhat of a myth accounting for the failure of historians to look at history before the 1519 (Restall, 19). Restall says “However, too often, without any direct evidence, the actions of Conquistadors after the 1519– 21 invasion of Mexico are taken as deliberately imitating Cortés, while pre-1519 patterns are ignored.” Whatever the case for whom should be given the credit for the strategy used to defeat the Aztecs; one must admit Cortés was able the win the trust of the people and use the Aztecs’ fear of him to control their empire. Cortés harbored fear of his own. Elliott says, “Cortés felt some uneasiness, when he reflected that it was in the power of the Indians, at any time, to cut off his communications with the surrounding country, and hold him a prisoner in the capital.” The Omens of the Aztecs betrayed them and caused them to see the arriving settlers as gods. They were not prepared to defend themselves against the advanced weapons of the Spanish. Much like the Aztecs, the Mayans faced hard times at the hands of the Spanish conquerors, but their defeat came much easier to the Spanish.

Another difference between the two lies in the economic climate of the two civilizations; the Aztec were conquers that took prisoners of war and collected tribute from the peoples they conquered, which gave them access to more resources and presumably wealth than trade alone; the

So the Spanish could easily penetrate any armour the Aztecs had, but the Aztecs would have lots of difficulty trying to break any of the Spanish armour. They also had horses, which the Aztecs had never seen in their life, which gave them a height advantage, and makes it harder for Aztecs to hit them. http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-enabled-spanish-defeat-aztecs-353188 Fri 7 August

The events that occurred between the Aztecs and Spanish Conquistadors have many sides and opportunities for debate. One of the most debated topics being; Who was more savage and who was more Civil? Both the Aztecs and Spanish had powerful and thriving empires. These empires displayed their dominance through their advanced technology and flourishing military. Though it may seem that the Spanish were more advanced than the Aztecs, the Aztecs and Spanish were actually quite close to being equal in technological advancements.

     A second major theme, which played a very important role in this event, was the incredible advantage given to the Spanish due to their technology. The Aztecs were an advanced civilization with a large infrastructure, an organized system of government and many artistic and cultural achievements. However, they severely lacked many important advantages that were common in Europe at that time. The Aztecs had no iron tools or weapons,

The Olmec, the Toltec and the Mayas led the rich Aztec empire, which was conquered by Cortes in 16th century. Mexico was a colony of Spain for the next 300 years, until the Mexicans rose up against the Spanish and won their independence in 19th century.