The narrative revolves around the Spanish conquest of Mesoamerica, particularly focusing on the fall of the Aztec Empire. While the Aztecs were aware of previous Spanish conquests, the perspectives of the conquered cities are notably absent.
What does it reveal about the values and beliefs of the past?
Importance of strength and power
The Spanish arriving on horses with swords and cannons shows that people at that time saw these new advancements as signs of power and strength. It also shows that conquests were done with violence and battles. Whoever won these conquests would gain power and allies.
Which questions can this source help me answer? Which can it not?
Why did the Spanish arrive in Mesoamerica in the first place?
It is never discussed how or why the Spanish arrived in Mesoamerica and how they came to conquer all the neighboring cities of Tenochtitlan.
Did the Aztec’s view the Spaniards as gods?
It is unclear whether or not the Aztec’s saw the Spanish as gods. While the source says they did originally see them as gods, it is also argued that historical perspective has distorted the understanding of the encounter.
How did Tenochtitlan fall to the Spanish?
Even though the Spanish had fewer soldiers than the Aztecs, they “had the support of tens of thousands of allies from cities that had formerly been under Aztec control.” The other cities supported the Spanish because they were tired of the tribute system that the Aztecs had forced them under. The largest contributor to the fall of Tenochtitlan was smallpox that the Spanish had brought to the Aztecs
Why was the Aztec empire in decline?
The Aztec empire was in decline because their military wasn’t as strong as before and they were unpopular among the other local communities. This is shown in the quote “it became increasingly difficult to extract tributes from neighbouring cities.”
Whose perspective does it reflect?
Spanish
The Spanish were “amazed by the beauty and complexity of Tenochtitlan, but were shocked by the brutality of the human sacrifices”.
Aztecs
The people of the city of Tenochtitlan felt “as if they had seen something astonishing. Terror dominated everyone, as if the world were being disembowelled” after seeing the Spanish.
What are the big ideas?
Meeting of leaders
There is a dialogue of the first meeting between Moctezuma II and Cortés after Cortés and his men arrived in Tenochtitlan. In which it is made clear that that the Aztec leader reveres and considers Cortés' people as gods.
The Spanish arriving in Mesoamerica
The Spanish arriving in Mesoamerica accelerated the decline of the Aztec empire. The Aztec saw them as gods because of their demonstrations of strength. The Spanish took control of Tenochtitlan because of their allies with the neighbouring cities. The Spanish brought many new things to Mesoamerica like weapons, but they also brought diseases like smallpox that ended up killing millions of Aztecs.
The Aztec empire
The Aztec empire was in decline. The demands doe tributes and sacrifices from the Aztecs made them unpopular in the region and lose allies.
Who wrote it? Why?
Aztec account
The dialogue section was written by an Aztec account. It had to be written by an Aztec because it took place a long time ago and few people were probably allowed to see the encounter between the two leaders of the Spanish and Aztec empires. But it had to be written as a record for their meeting taking place.
Did it result in change?
Yes
It did result in change. The Aztec empire lost their allies to the Spanish and eventually itself fell to the Spanish. The Spanish arrival brought advancements like swords and cannons, but also brought infectious diseases and killed millions of Aztecs from smallpox.
Whose perspectives are omitted/questions/challenged?
Spanish allies
There is mention of how the Spanish allies helped with the defeat of Tenochtitlan but there isn’t any perspective given from those allies.
Previous conquests by the Spanish
The Aztecs knew of the previous Spanish conquests before they arrived at Tenochtitlan but there was no mention of the perspective from the people of cities who had been previously conquered.
What ideas are left out?
The battle
There is no mention of there being a battle between the Spanish and the Aztecs. Only that the Spanish were outnumbered yet had many more allies. It mentions that Tenochtitlan fell to the Spanish but never explains in detail how it happened.
The Spanish expansion of power
It can only be inferred that the Spanish arrived in Mesoamerica because of their need to expand their empire to the Americas and grow in power.
How does the author communicate ideas?
Telling story in sections
The author Communicates their ideas in 4 sections. The first section explains the state of the Aztecs when the Spanish arrived. The second section is a record of the dialogue between the leaders of the Spanish and the Aztecs. The third section is a summary of the fall of Tenochtitlan and the reasons behind it. The final 2 parts are images with explanations of their significance.
What does it look like?
4 & 5 section: Images
images with brief explanations about important events
3 section: Fall of the empire
explanation of the fall of the Aztec empire after the Spanish arrived
2 section: Dialogue
a dialogue between the leaders of the Aztec and Spanish empires
1 section: Historical context
gives historical context about the Aztec empire (which was in decline)
