Hernn Corts

Erynne Hagerty

Spanish 2

Period 2

Seora Jara

2 December 2015
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Erynne Hagerty

Spanish 2, Period 2

Seora Jara

6 November 2015

Hernn Corts

The man who was named Hernn Corts was born in 1485 and deceased on December 2,

1547, aging him to be around sixty one or sixty two. Corts had often referred to himself

Hernando or Fernando Corts. He was born in the city of Medelln in Spain and was raised by

his father, Martn Corts de Monroy, who was a captain in the Spanish army. At the time of his

fourteenth birthday, Corts had left to begin his studies of Latin under the tutelage of his uncle-

in-law, who lived far away in Salamanca. However, after two years he returned to Medelln

despite his parents wishing for him to have a well-paying legal job after his studies. Although, he

would later go on to do much more than simply his parents had wished him to do.

Before he made his name, Corts left for Hispaniola and became a colonist. He became a

notary who was appointed by the governor of Hispaniola in the town of Azua de Compostela for

some six years. Azua de Compostela was the second Spanish town that was founded on

Hispaniola, an island located in the Caribbean island group. Corts had arrived in Hispaniola in a

ship that was commanded by Alonso Quintero, someone who tried to deceive his superiors and

reach the New World before them in order to secure personal advantages (Wikipedia 1). These

mutinous behaviors and acts were more than likely the inspiration for Corts future career.

Afterwards, the eighteen year old Corts registered as a citizen upon his arrival in Santo

Domingo in the year 1504. It did not take an exceptional bulk of time for Nicols de Ovando to
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give him an encomienda afterwards, which was a dependency relation system. Over the next five

years, he established a colony, and in 1506, he took part in the conquest of Hispaniola and Cuba,

which resulted in him receiving a large estate of land, along with Indian slaves for his efforts. He

quickly became known as a good leader, an intelligent administrator, and a ruthless fighter

(Minster 1), which were the qualities that interested the governor of Cuba enough to select him

to be a part of his expedition, the expedition that began the story of the conquistador, Corts.

It was during the Conquest of Mexico that occurred during the years of 1518 to 1520

where Corts truly began to create his name. Diego Velzquez, the governor of Cuba, put him in

charge of an expedition, where he would explore and secure the interior of Mexico for

colonization. Despite a positive beginning, over the course of time, the relationship between

Governor Velzquez and Corts started to become strained (TotallyHistory 1), and ultimately

led to Velzquez recalling the expedition due to the old argument between the two (Wikipedia

1). Despite the command, Corts ignored his orders, and blatantly disobeyed Velzquez,

continuing the expedition in a loud and clear act of mutiny in February 1519. After making a stop

on the island of Trinidad for the sake of hiring more soldiers and buying more horses, Corts

rounded up approximately eleven ships, five-hundred men, thirteen horses, and a small number

of cannons to accompany him when he landed on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mayan territory.

However, in Tabasco, Corts was met with resistance from natives. He quickly overpowered

them, and the natives surrendered (Szalay 1). After receiving translations and assistance from an

indigenous woman called La Malinche [who was to be the] future mother of his son Martn

(Don Quijote 1), Corts was educated on the embellished Aztec Empire. His men took over

Veracruz in July 1519, which prescribed dismissing the authority of the Governor of Cuba to
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place himself directly under the orders of King Charles (Wikipedia 1). However, he wished to

eliminate any and all ideas of retreat, thus Corts made the decision to burn his ships.

After he had arrived and seized Veracruz, he requested of the tributaries of the Aztecs to

arrange a meeting with Moctezuma II. Despite Moctezumas refusing, Corts left a hundred men

in Veracruz and traveled to Tenochtitln with six-hundred soldiers, fifteen horsemen, fifteen

cannons, and hundreds of indigenous carriers and warriors during mid- August of 1519.

However, Corts was peacefully welcomed on November 8, 1519. This was not without ill-

intent, for Moctezuma truly planned to learn their weaknesses and crush them by purposefully

allowing them into the Aztec capital. Moctezumas plan failed, however, and was he taken

hostage by Corts after he had heard that several Spaniards on the coast had been killed by

Aztecs while supporting the Totonacs. While keeping him hostage, Corts utilized La Malinche

and manipulated Montezuma and ruled Tenochtitln through him (Szalay 1). On July 1,

1520, Moctezuma was killed, though the cause of his death is debatable. As the Aztecs drove

the Spaniards out of Tenochtitlan (Tangen 1), Corts made the decision to run to Tlaxcala, and

although they got there, they fought a battle in Otumba and lost 870 men. Corts and his men

finally prevailed once reinforcements arrived from Cuba, and they began a policy that cut off

supplies along with subduing the Aztecs allied cities. Throughout the battles, the Spaniards had

brought ailments that the Aztecs had no immunity to three-quarters of the native

population died of violence or diseasesin just the first century of the conquest (Tangen 1).

The aftermath of the siege resulted in the fall of the Aztec Empire on August 13, 1521, and

Corts had become the absolute ruler of a huge territory extending from the Caribbean Sea to

the Pacific Ocean (Innes 1).

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While Corts did not fulfill his parents wishes for his future, he did accomplish a great

number of things more than what they had predetermined for him. His doing so resulted in a

forever changed world. He conquered the great Aztec empire, a previously thought unachievable

goal. At the end of his life, Corts died a bitter man from a disease that is known as pleurisy in

Seville on December 2, 1547. In the end, Corts had managed to overthrow the great Aztec

empire, which placed Mexico under Spains rule. His name will forever be remembered in

history, although not in a particularly kind view. In fact, he is most often remembered for being

cruel and is castigated by modern Mexicans.

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Bibliography

"Hernn Corts." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

Innes, Ralph Hammond. "Hernan Cortes, Marques Del Valle De Oaxaca | Spanish

Conquistador." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 06

Nov. 2015.

"Hernan Cortes - Spanish Conquerer | Don Quijote." DonQuijote. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.

Tangen, Turid. "The Conquest of the Aztecs." Cortes Conquers Aztecs: 1521. Ed. Sara Bussema.

N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2015.

Szalay, Jessie. "Hernn Corts: Conqueror of the Aztecs." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 28

Aug. 2013. Web. 01 Dec. 2015.

Minster, Christopher. "Cortes: The Most Ruthless Conquistador." About.com Education. N.p.,

n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2015.

"Hernn Corts (1485-1547) Biography Life of Spanish Conquistador." Totally History Hernn

Corts Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2015.