1. A Deadly Meeting

4. - He believed that the recent changes in Spain
made Spain a better place in which to live
-  he embodied the Spanish worldview of the
time
-  “Gold, God, Glory”
- He was very ambitious
-  when he heard of the gold that Columbus
brought back from the Caribbean islands
(known as the “New World”), he decided to go
to the Caribbean (where Spain was building
colonies) to find his own fortune

5. - He arrived in Hispaniola (present day Haiti) in
1504
- The governor then gave him a large farm
- “But I cam to get gold, not till the land like
a peasant!”
- What does this comment reveal about
his worldview?
- He then joined an expedition to conquer a nearby
island  Cuba
- The Spanish conquered Cuba using their
usual formula….

6. The Conquistadors‟ Formula (p.
218)
1. An expedition would set out from a recent
colony.
2. After landing in a new region, the Spansih
would try to meet peacefully with the first
groups of Indigenous people they
encountered. (Their aim was to discover
which group in the area was the most
powerful.)
3. The Spanish would invite the leader of that
powerful group to a meeting to exchange
gifts. The Spanish would then seize the
leader and threaten to kill him unless his
followers obeyed their orders.

7. The Conquistadors‟ Formula
(cont‟d)
4. If they did have to fight, the Spanish would
try to do so on open ground. (Their horses,
armour, and weapons gave them a huge
advantage.)
5. The leader of the expedition would remain as
governor of the new colony and his second-in-
command would organize the next expedition.
The Indigenous peoples would be forced into
slavery.

10. -these expeditions brought back reports that caused
great excitement…
-it seemed that this new land was home to a
civilization that was stronger, more advanced, and
wealthier than any group of people the Spanish had
yet encountered….the Aztecs
Expeditions Were Sent to
the Yucatan Peninsula

11. -feeling as though he was finally going to have the
chance to claim his fortune, worked to finance
and assemble his own expedition to the Yucatan
-in a few short months he had 11 ships, 508 fighting
men, 100 sailors, 200 Indigenous slaves and 16
horses

13. • first thing upon arriving, he established a town on
the coast and declared an independent
government
• this meant that he was now responsible to the
King and not to Velazquez (proves that
Velazquez was right to worry about not
recognizing his authority)
• He then sent one ship to Spain with all of the
treasure that he had collected to so far and then
sank the other 10 ships
• Why would he do that?

14. • After establishing his colony on the coast, Cortés
decided that it was time to go to the heart of the
Aztec Empire, Tenochtitlan
• Along the way he and his army ecountered a
number of other Indigenous peoples – each time
he encountered an Indigenous group, he changed
is strategy….p. 230
• One of these groups was the Tabascan people
– they were given gifts (food, clothing, gold and
slaves)
• One of these slaves was Malinche
• She would prove to be the key to Cortés
conquering the Aztec Empire

15. Doña
Cortés
Cortés
continued his march to Tenochtitlan

16. • Both the Aztecs and the Spanish had powerful
tools of war, but they weren’t evenly matched
• Study page 223 and determine which side you
think had the technological advantage

17. • Weapons & Technology (for instance the musket,
crossbow, and steel)
• Disease (the Aztecs were not resistant to smallpox)
• Horses (these beasts fascinated and terrified the Aztecs
and the Spanish used cavalry to attack)
• Strong leadership with excellent strategy

18. • The earlier mentioned Conquistadors’ Formula with
several important ‘sub-strategies’:
• Use an intermediary to communicate with the
Indigenous groups
• Rally smaller Indigenous groups to join the fight
against the Aztecs
• Conquer any group that does not want to join the
fight

19. • Moctezuma was aware that the Spanish were
approaching
• He waited and thought about what to do upon their
arrival
• When the Spanish arrived, Moctezuma decided to allow
them to enter Tenochtitlan….
• Read ‘Exploring Sources’ p. 231

20. • Now the Spanish see the
Aztec‟s wealth
• This creates an even
stronger desire to lead
this mighty society - and
they eventually do…
• Read pages 232-233

21. First Contact:
the “Old World” and the “New World”

22. Summary of the Battle for Tenochtitlan
• Spanish place Moctezuma under house arrest in his
palace
• They then looted the royal palaces and forced
Moctezuma to declare himself a subject of Spanish
rule
• The Spanish then have to go „deal‟ with the arrival of new
Spanish troops on the coast
• While Cortés is gone to the coast, the men he leaves
in charge of Tenochtitlan massacre some Aztec people

23. • Cortés returns to uproar in Tenochtitlan – he forces
Moctezuma to speak to his people to calm them down,
but it doesn‟t work – they threw stones at him
• Moctezuma dies shortly after this
• The Aztecs attack the Spanish and their allies, killed
many of them and drove the rest out of Tenochtitlan
• After 6 months, Cortés to attack Tenochtitlan with a
stronger force, but finds that a smallpox epidemic killed a
HUGE amount of the Aztec population
• The Spanish cut the aqueducts to the city, then defeated
the Aztecs after an 80 day siege
• Cortés then laid the foundations for another Spanish
colony in its place

25. • The Aztecs hear of strangers
arriving on the coast
- Cortés and the Spanish build a
colony on the coast
- Cortés and the Spanish march
inland to Tenochtitlan, meeting
other Indigenous groups along
the way
- Emperor Moctezuma allows
the Spanish to enter
Tenochtitlan

26. • The Spanish place Moctezuma
under house arrest and force
him to declare himself a
subject under Spanish rule
• Moctezuma dies
• The city of Tenochtitlan is
destroyed by the Spanish
• The Spanish build a
colony in its place

27. .