Cynthia Escalante

Cynthia Escalante Dawn Miller History 3/12/09 How the Spanish Conquered the Aztecs There were many ways how the Spanish were able to conquer the Aztec Empire. First, after the battle in Veracruz the Spanish gained a new friend (Malintzin). She was a Mayan who spoke Mayan and Nahutl and would help conquer the Aztecs because Maintzin would tell the Spanish the Aztec plans. Also, Cortés took with him to Tenochtitlan 500 Spaniards, 200 Cubans and Africans, and weapons like guns, cannon balls and gun powder. The Aztecs did not have any weapons like guns so the Spanish had an advantage. Furthermore, the Spanish had animals like dogs who they trained to be mean and they also had horses. In addition the Spanish also brought diseases like smallpox and thousands of Aztecs died from them because theirs immune systems were not used to it. When Cortés arrived at Tenochtitlan, Motecuhzoma and the Aztecs greeted Cortés as a god. That was advantageous because the Aztecswould bow to the god and do anything for him. The Spanish also created alliances with tribes who disliked the Aztecs and helped them take over Tenochtitlan. In final analysis, there were a lot of ways the Spanish were able to conquer the Aztecs.