The Spaniard and Aztec civilisations were two wholly different universes whose doomed brush caused some surprising reactions from both parties. Neither of these states knew precisely what to anticipate or how to respond to each other’s behaviours. Differences in faith, imposts and arms became the make up one’s minding factors of who would be the dominant attacker in these brushs.
Even though both parties were unsure of what to anticipate, the Spaniards had already set a end for themselves before they set pes in Mexico. They wanted to suppress the other state and work them for anything of value. The flood tide of the Aztec Empire and the conquistadors occurred when Motecuhzoma and Cortes met face to face for the first clip. The Spaniards every bit good as the Aztecs had no hint what to anticipate. Motecuhzoma told Cortes, Our Godhead, you are weary.
The journey has tired you, but now you have arrived on Earth to sit on your throne, under its canopy. This was due to the fact that the Aztec faith told of a God, Quetzalcoatl, who would come from the celestial spheres and take his topographic point as swayer of the Aztec Empire. Thus Motecuhzoma showered the Spaniards with many all right gifts. Unlike the Spaniards believed, these all right gifts were non truly a mark of Aztec entry but instead as a mark of wealth and power.
In order to give proper regard to their alleged God, the Aztecs had to demo that they were a worthy and powerful state. The Spaniards took this as a failing. They thought the Aztecs feared them, which boosted up their assurance degree even though they were greatly outnumbered. The Spaniards had to pass on with the Aztecs by utilizing La Malinche as an translator. She fundamentally made the Aztecs believe that Cortes was a good adult male and would be do them no injury. They besides had other autochthonal people who were allied with the Spanish.
The Aztecs must hold viewed this as a mark that these aliens would be peaceable since they had others of their sort on the Spaniard’s side. La Malinche translated all that Motecuhzoma had said to Cortes. On page sixty-four of The Broken Spears it says, Cortezs replied in his strange and barbarian lingua? In other transitions in the book it depicts the Spaniards as wild and barbarian. This brings up another point that merely as the Spaniards idea of the Aztecs as being barbaric, some Aztecs felt the same manner about the Spaniards.
The Aztecs besides thought of the Spaniards as barbarians. Who would fault them? After all they must hold heard narratives of how the Spanish had killed 1000s of autochthonal people for seemingly no ground, firing and plundering all towns in his way. The Aztecs were incognizant of the hocus-pocus that Cortes would utilize on them. He had to catch the Aztecs unaware. He told La Malinche to state Motecuhzoma that, There is nil to fear? state him that we love him good and our Black Marias are contented. He took this to his advantage by lying to him.
The Spaniards later grasped Motecuhzoma’s custodies and patted his dorsum to demo fondness. The Aztecs were non at all prepared for an onslaught of contending which would happen subsequently on. The Spaniards knew that they could non take on the whole Aztec Empire since they were so many compared to the figure of conquistadors. They decided to take Motecuhzoma captive and maintain him hostage in order to command the Aztecs. These people did non cognize what was traveling on. As it says on page 65, many ran off and went into concealment.
The Spaniards already cognize that their arms caused much confusion and struck some fright in these native people, so they fired one of their canons and people ran and fled. They used arms unknown to them which gave the Spanish a little advantage by method of bullying so the Aztecs would non seek anything. The Spaniards did non instantly get down to assail the Aztecs yet because they knew they could be crushed because of the huge size of their ground forces. Alternatively, when the Spanish captured Motecuhzoma, they kept him alive in order to command the Aztecs. They used Motecuhzoma so that he would state his people to give the Spaniards commissariats, supplies, and valuables, chiefly gold. They had no pick but to obey the bids of their leader.
The Aztecs were confused, scared, and angry all at the same clip. It all seemed to go on so all of a sudden that no one precisely cognize what to believe. Even though the Spanish kept their leader prisoner it is surprising that that the Aztecs planned no effort to deliverance their leader or contend back at first. Most people would believe it was merely out of fright. One must recognize that the Aztecs thought the Spanish were Gods so this could was a major ground why the Aztecs did non form to assail the Spanish one time Motecuhzoma was taken surety.
Many were frightened and merely wanted the Spaniards to travel off. When the Aztecs came to give the Spanish commissariats, they gave them the supplies and shook in fright as they did so. After passing them the commissariats they turned and hurried off. This seems strange that a people with a repute of being really brave and warlike would be so frightened of the little group of work forces which captured their male monarch.
I believe this is due to the fact that they thought the Spanish were powerful existences, therefore they couldn T truly be hurt. There must ve been a point when the Aztecs realized the Spanish weren t supernatural existences and could be killed. I believe that at this point they started arising and contending back against the Spaniards. This was besides to the advantage of the Spanish that they struck at the Aztecs foremost before they had a opportunity to contend back. There were many minor misunderstandings due to the differences in the two civilizations that happened to give the Spanish the upper manus. The Aztecs were non a incapacitated group of people like I had thought before I had read this book.
The Spanish history of the conquering of Mexico portrays Motecuhzoma as one who wholly resignations to them out of fright instead than a misconception of civilization. It besides portrays the indigens as a incapacitated group of people who merely invariably are slaughtered by the high quality of the Spanish and it seems to except the losingss the Spanish had while contending these indigens. This is an illustration of how truth can be distorted if one merely listens to one side of an statement. As a basic regulation, one should ever look at both sides of a narrative in order to hold a more educated sentiment on that affair.
