Hernando Cortez and the Conquering of Mexico

Paper Summary:

This paper traces the conquest on Mexico and the Aztec civilization by Hernando Cortez and his men in 1519 against the backdrop of the forces which influenced the Europeans to seek such a mission. The paper shows that the Europeans struggled with their ambivalence towards the two Americas and towards the native people whom they viewed as heathens and whose complexed cultures they were unable to understand. The paper explains that Cortez knew he was on a mission, not just for wealth, but to preserve the hegemony, both psychological and literal, of Europe. The paper examines the Aztec civilization and follows the course of the conquest until the Aztec surrender to Cortez's troops in 1521.

From the Paper:

"The Aztec culture was well developed; they had developed an agricultural system that fed a large population; had developed math that helped provide them with an accurate calendar; had built a system of water canals for crop irrigation; mined for gold, silver, tin and copper; and had created weapons such as clubs lined with volcanic glass called obsidian. These clubs could decapitate an animal with a single blow. They had developed cooking and eating utensils, and a system of trade and barter. They also had schools; they held slaves, and they practiced human sacrifice in religious ceremonies."

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