Spanish colonization of the Americas

To begin with, Hernan Cortes wanted to conquer, what is now known as Mexico, and to do that he would have to defeat the Aztecs. The Aztecs controlled majority of Mexico, and was Cortes’s main target to defeat, so that he could have control over what he set out to conquer. Throughout his journey through Mexico he discovered a native group who were also against the Aztecs, the Tlaxcalans. The only way he could defeat them was with there help. With both armies united, they went on with their…

Indies”, written in 1565, says many things regarding both the Indians and the Spanish Christians. Bartolome de las Casas describes a number of events that took place between the Indians and the Christians who settled in the Indies, many of which were not respectable events. In “The Devastation of the Indies”, Bartolome writes about his view on the way the Indians were, on the way the Spanish were, and on the way the Spanish treated the Indians. Bartolome de las Casas starts this…

Another difference show how the historical facts present different story. The ending of the movie is a very significant difference from history the final scene focus on the Spanish arrival in the 16th century. Yet the Maya city in the movie, dated around the 9th century. Cortis was able to conquer the Maya after a long battle that went on for a very long time. In “Apocalypto” the arrival of the Spaniards symbols the end of existing Maya culture and beginning of a new era. The arrival was…

The conquest of the Americas during the 15th and 16th centuries, as documented by Christopher Columbus and Bartoleme de Las Casas, was tale of hammer and nail. In both accounts the Natives were described as meek and docile, with little to no weaponry that could withstand Spanish attack. Both Columbus and Las Casas stated that the Indians were naive, lacking evil, and respectful, Las Casas even stating they were “weak and complacent”. In the eyes of these Spanish explorers, the Indians were…

referred to as the Mexica People. The term Aztec was coined by the Spanish but was made popular by the Germans in the early 1900s. The topic of this essay is to find out if the Spanish Conquest of the Americas had a significant impact on the Aztecs. In the first paragraph, the way of life preceding Spanish arrival and interaction will be analysed in the 1st body paragraph. When and how the Spanish conquistadors arrived in the Americas and the purpose for their arrival will be the topic of the…

It is well understood that the age of exploration was one wrought with the total destruction of the native inhabitants of the new world by European explorers. However, it is a misconception that Europeans didn’t notice or care about the utter genocide of the native populations. One man named Bartolomé de las Casas, a Dominican friar and historian, played a monumental role in bringing the knowledge of this destruction to Europe. After spending time among the conquistadors in the new world, Casas…

From 1492 when Columbus first “discovered” the Americas, Iberian colonisation of the native Amerindian peoples had begun. Already inhabited by the native peoples, the Spanish and Portuguese begun the task of conquering through killing, enslaving and bringing the natives under their rule and power. This large and expansive conquest of Central and South America killed conceivably as much as 90% of the natives in little under 200 years, due to the introduction of old world disease and the power of…

‘Tenichititlan’ by the Spanish in the year 1520. While this famous massacre is most often remembered of the fall of the Aztec Empire, and the rise of Spanish domination in the region, the fall of the empire was most attributed to Hernan Cortes and his small army of men disregarding orders from the Spanish crown, and using violence and persuasion to bring down an empire. In the years leading up to this famous massacre, there was a long background in Mexico and South America for the Spanish…

Narrative of Cabeza de Vaca is an autobiographical account of the eponymous Spanish explorer’s eight year journey of survival in a strange land which provides a detailed description of the vast terrain, multifarious wildlife, and the diverse cultures of the early Americas. The importance of this unique piece lies within the writing’s function as a gateway providing a glimpse into the cultures of the indigenous people of the Americas as the first recorded confrontation and intermingling between…

defend against. The arrival of the Spanish brought Mesoamericans the combination of disease, war, slavery and forced relocation that nearly wiped them completely out. Their cultures never recovered. It 's estimated that about 88% of the Maya inhabitants died during the first decade of Spanish colonial rule due to a combination of disease and war. Although disease was responsible for the majority of deaths, ruthless warfare between rival Maya groups and Spanish expeditions is what pushed…