The Fall of the Aztecs

The culmination of the Reconquista, when the last Muslim stronghold in Spain fell to Christian forces under Ferdinand and Isabella.

Columbus reaches the Americas, opening sustained European contact with the New World.

Cortés departs Spain to seek his fortune in the New World after an elbowed setback; he heads for Hispaniola.

Balboa crosses the Isthmus of Panama and gazes upon the Pacific, revealing a vast new ocean to Europeans.

Córdoba’s expedition reaches Isla Mujeres, encounters Maya cities, and discovers the Yucatán coast.

Diego Velázquez deputes his nephew Grijalva with ships to explore Cuba and the western approaches.

Cortez sails off with 11 ships and 500 men, starting the expedition to the Aztec lands.

Cortez and his men establish a town on the coast, creating a formal settlement and legal base for their expedition.

Cholula hosts the Spaniards who are later attacked; the city is sacked after suspecting Aztec manipulation.

Cortés’ party reaches Iztapalapan; crowds stare as they’re hosted on the lake.

Cortés and his forces, accompanied by Tlaxcalan allies, entered Tenochtitlan, where they were ceremonially received by Moctezuma II. The initial meeting on the causeway was followed by a formal audience in the palace, where Moctezuma reportedly acknowledged Cortés’ arrival as foretold by prophecy. The Tlaxcalan alliance, already established, played a key political role during the procession into the city. The events unfolded over two days, culminating in the Spaniards being housed in the palace as guests of the Aztec emperor.

Cortés and Spaniards are welcomed and installed in the Aztec palace in the city center, starting their tense encounter with Montezuma.

Spaniards marvel at the vast market, the regimented layout, tetramic trade, and the new world’s “science fiction” feel.

Diaz’s account of the temple, idols, and the shocking rites, including the idea of demons and blood rituals.

Cortés proposes the cross to frighten the Aztec gods; Montezuma objects and asserts respect for his own gods.

News arrives that new Spaniards with different appearances have appeared on the coast, prompting strategic rethink.

Cortés takes Montezuma hostage while leaving 80 men with him and taking Malinche and a smaller force to the coast.

Discussion of whether Spaniards could be sacrificed to satisfy Aztec ritual needs as spring’s rites loom.

During the Feast of Toxcatl, a major Aztec festival honoring the god Tezcatlipoca, Pedro de Alvarado, left in command of Tenochtitlan by Cortés, ordered a brutal massacre of unarmed Aztec nobles and warriors gathered in the Great Temple. The attack, motivated by fears of an Aztec uprising, escalated tensions and marked a turning point in the Spanish conquest, leading to open rebellion against the Spaniards.

Cortés moves inland from Tenochtitlan with Malinche, courting local city-states against the Mexica.

Pánfilo de Narváez, sent by Governor Diego Velázquez of Cuba, landed on the coast with a force of ~900 men to capture Cortés for insubordination. Cortés, alerted to Narváez’s arrival, marched from Tenochtitlan and ambushed his forces at Cempoala. Through a combination of surprise tactics, Tlaxcalan allies, and bribery of Narváez’s men, Cortés secured a decisive victory. Narváez was captured, his army absorbed, and Cortés returned to Tenochtitlan with reinforcements, reshaping the balance of power in the conquest.

Cortés races back to the capital with additional troops to reassert control.

Spaniards are besieged; discussion of how they might escape via causeways and the roof-top standoff with Montezuma’s crowd.

The palace dynamics, crowd reaction, and Montezuma’s uncertain fate are discussed in context of the festival and siege.

The night Cortés and Spaniards flee Tenochtitlán; chaos, intense fighting on canals, many drown or die.

Smallpox devastates Tlaxcala, spreading inland and reshaping Indigenous alliances and Spanish leverage.

Cortés sacks Texcoco, burning the city and destroying its libraries; cementing Spanish–Tlaxcalan power on the lake.

Martin López arrives with 12 ships and Cortés gains a naval edge for the campaign to retake the lake.

Cortés launches a fleet of brigantines into the lake to assault the Aztec capital.

The Spanish fleet presses its assault; naval action across Lake Texcoco marks a turning point in the siege.

Cortés initiated the final siege of Tenochtitlan by dividing his forces to attack along the three main causeways (Tacuba, Tepeyac, and Iztapalapa), cutting off the city’s access to food, water, and reinforcements. The Spaniards, supported by Tlaxcalan and Texcocan allies, systematically destroyed aqueducts and blockaded supply routes, starving the city into submission. This marked the beginning of attritional warfare, where the Aztecs, led by Cuauhtémoc, resisted fiercely but were gradually weakened by famine and disease.

The Siege of Tenochtitlan reached its climax. As the Spanish and their Tlaxcalan allies closed in, the Quetzal Owl Warrior—an Aztec warrior adorned in ritual regalia—appeared as a symbol of defiance, rallying the last defenders of the city. Despite fierce resistance, the Spaniards captured Cuauhtémoc, the final Aztec emperor, after he was dragged from a canoe while attempting to flee. His capture marked the fall of Tenochtitlan, ending the Aztec Empire. The city, already devastated by months of siege, starvation, and warfare, was left in ruins. The survivors, including refugees, fled across the causeways as Cortés consolidated Spanish control, laying the foundation for New Spain.

Cortez hosts a party; Cuauhtémoc’s torture and execution follow amid the chaos of the occupation.

Cortés sends Cristóbal de Olid to Honduras to establish separate rule; Velázquez opposes him back in Cuba.

Cuauhtémoc is captured and executed as a symbol of Aztec resistance and the Spaniards’ legal-empire logic.

Cortés returns to a fractious Mexico City, facing lawsuits and political plotting after his Honduras foray.

The Virgin Mary’s appearance to Juan Diego appears in a context of syncretic Catholic-Mesoamerican faith in New Spain.

Cortés dies in Seville after a life of conquest and lawsuits; his legacy is debated in Spain and New Spain.