Chapter 22
The Doom of Cortés
One of the greatest 'lost opportunities' of European history will forever remain the expedition of Hernan Cortés. There is no denying that the man was intelligent and quite talented, and yet, his failure would stymie Spanish dreams of expansion for years to come. Why did he fail? Arguments can be made in many directions in this regard. A common theme in Roman histories is that Cortés was an arrogant fool who believed he could conquer a great Empire with a handful of Europeans and native allies. A man who was so full of his own ego that he could not see himself marching to his doom. This is a gross oversimplification of what made Hernan Cortés what he was, as well as his plans and actions taken to further those plans. Perhaps these same histories are eager to cover the failure of their own Prince to do the same with his own 'handful of Europeans' and native allies? After all, were it not for Cortés, would the Purépecha have been so successful in picking up the pieces?
No. Cortés was a flawed man, but not a failure nor a fool.
His death, and with it dreams of an easy conquest for the Spanish Empire, comes down far more on the lack of action by his supposed 'allies'. The Tlaxcala and their Roman 'Lord' left Cortés to die and used him for their own ends. A man who could have been great, cut down in his prime by betrayal by those whom he trusted. The Aztec could never have so easily defeated a veteran force of skilled Spanish conquistadors were they not lead into a trap and left to die. After all, did the Tlaxcala not leave when they saw their plan succeed? They weakened the Aztec and their 'allies' at the same stroke and secured their own lands.
Hernan Cortés died by no fault of his own.
--Dreams of Empire, Alvaro Romero, Madrid, 1943 [1]
The final days of the Cortés expedition are as shrouded in mystery as much of its beginnings. As is true for most of the Expedition's lifetime, there are very few firsthand accounts that have survived the years. Even fewer survive from the man himself, and much of what happened those days in Tenochtitlan are related to us by secondhand accounts of future writers. The firsthand accounts that survive can be counted on a single hand, and of these, only one or two can at all be considered 'reliable'. Even these have conflicting accounts of the Spanish actions, unable to agree upon if it was Cortés or Cuitláhuac who would break the fragile peace first. If the Spanish had launched an attack or if the Aztec had forced them into attempting a breakout.
As is often the case, it is likely that there is some form of middle-ground in these conflicting accounts.
What can be said with relative certainty, for instance, is that the Spanish were overall proper guests of the Aztec. They followed requests and generally remained in their quarters, save for a few explorations of the city. While it is almost certain that they plotted and planned to take advantage of their position, the Spanish evidently would be respectful guests in public. Though they were conspicuously absent from any sort of religious ceremony, even ones held in their 'honor'. Cortés, in particular, made no secret of his disdain for the ceremonies. He was not unique in this, as the Spanish loathed the entire concept of human sacrifice. And hardly made a secret of this fact.
Did that cause issues with the Aztec? Perhaps with the common citizens, though certainly not with the leadership. A leadership that was already very well aware of the fact that White Men hated everything to do with their religion, in large part due to their long conflict with the Romans. That the Spanish had no interest in their faith was no surprise and to be expected. Not that it stopped Cuitláhuac from using it as one example of the Spanish not being proper guests.
On the other end of the brewing conflict, the Aztec leadership and citizenry certainly made no effort to make the Spanish feel particularly welcome. Even when giving them quarters in an unused palace or acknowledging their attempts to follow requests. In their mind, why should they?
Cuitláhuac, for one, was very well aware that the Spanish were envious of his wealth. One of the very first things that Cortés had requested of the tlatoani had been gold. Knowledge of where the Aztec gained their riches and an ill-disguised desire for all of it to be their own. So ill-disguised, in fact, that it only served to further demonstrate that the Spanish had no interest in aiding the Aztec against the Romans. For all the flaws of Cortés, perhaps his greatest would prove to be his thirst for wealth and inability to hide it. It left no real doubt, not that there had ever been any, in the minds of the Aztec leadership.
For once, Cortés would likely have benefited from not being brutally honest.
With these issues coming from both directions, it was only a matter of time until something lit the spark. The Spanish grew more and more discontent with being practical prisoners. The citizens of Tenochtitlan grew tired of seeing these White Men lording themselves over them and having special access to their leadership. Cuitláhuac and his advisors became ever more convinced that Cortés meant nothing good for them. And, of course, Cortés was further swayed by his own thirst for wealth and the word of his men to seize what 'should be his'. It was a perfect storm of events that could, and has, have an entire book written about it.
For the sake of brevity, suffice it to say that both sides were biding their time, waiting for the chance to move. Both sides watching to see what the Tlaxcala would do, as they were the ultimate force multiplier for the Spanish.
It was into this hostile situation that Yiorgos decided to make his own choice. [2] For all that he had grown to consider Cortés an ally, the Roman was far more concerned with preserving his own adoptive people. He had expected that Cortés choice was a suicide mission and saw no real cause to waste the lives of the Tlaxcala who followed him. He no more betrayed Cortés than Cortés had betrayed him...yet it is undeniable that, in his own personal interest, Yiorgos made the choice to not support the Spanish. He left a token force to observe Tenochtitlan, while the majority of his forces would move on other nearby settlements to raid and pillage. His actions would rile the Aztec, of course, but they also showed the leadership inside Tenochtitlan that the Spanish would receive no aid from exterior forces.
The question remains, however, who lit the spark in the dry brush that was Tenochtitlan?
What is generally, though not universally, accepted is that Cortés made the first move. Word had reached him of the landing of Pánfilo de Narváez [3]. The other Spainard, on orders of the governor of Cuba, had landed in Arcadia with the express purpose of hauling Cortés in chains for his usurping of authority and unauthorized adventures. While it is true that Narváez was, as yet, unaware of the 'threat' of the Romans and the 'need' for a foothold on the mainland, due to Cortés scuttling his fleet, the man still had orders to follow. He, at the least, would no be swayed by any argument that Cortés could possibly make. His men? Perhaps.
It was the hope of swaying so many, albeit untested, troops that had Cortés eager to leave Tenochtitlan and subvert the new expedition as he had his own. It was this desire, along with the knowledge that it would bring even more men than the Romans had brought, that truly lit the spark that would set fire to the smoldering city. For his attempts at leaving gave the opening that the Aztec leadership had been expecting.
Cuitláhuac was no fool, after all.
Fully aware that allowing Cortés to leave would be allowing his greatest threat to walk free, the tlatoani had no intention of doing so. He was faced with a choice. Allow the Spanish to leave and trust that they would not turn around and conquer his people. Attempt to hold Cortés prisoner and rely on the Tlaxcala not attacking or on the upcoming Spanish forces to not attempt a rescue. Or...or he could do as his advisors, especially the unnamed survivor of Cholula, said he should do. While we may never know for sure what was running through the head of Cuitláhuac, the results rather speak for themselves. Faced with the prospect of inaction dooming his people, the man acted in a way that his predecessor might have balked at.
In the dead of night, the Spanish horses were butchered. Their compound was surrounded, silently and stealthily, as the veteran Aztec warriors used their knowledge of their City to their advantage. No gaps were left and every possible exit was covered and watched. The few Spanish guards were slaughtered before they could report the death of their mounts. If there was anything that the Aztec had learned over the course of their long war with the Romans and Purépecha, it was to not underestimate White Men. Nothing would be left to chance.
When the Spanish would wake in the morning, it would be to find themselves surrounded and outmatched.
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Where did I go wrong?
Hernan Cortés was not a man given to accepting failure. His own or that of others. He was even less inclined to accept that, maybe, he had made a mistake. His own concerns about moving too fast into Tenochtitlan had been pushed aside, with the news that more men were coming. More proper, Christian, men. He had every intention of joining those men, suborning them to his cause, and winning over the Aztec Empire. He saw all his dreams stretching before him. A throne atop a pile of gold, rich beyond measure. The King's right hand in the New World. All of it within his grasp, if he could just sway the new arrivals.
And now, he had no chance of that. He would not live through this day, would he?
"You fight well, White Men. But surely you must know you are doomed?" That voice called out from the circle of jeering Aztec warriors, surrounded by dead and dying Spanish soldiers. "You were never our friends! You sought to subvert us, steal our wealth and burn our city, as you did to Cholula!"
The morning attack had surprised the Spanish, caught rousing themselves from sleep. Men had fought like lions and took many of the attackers with them to the grave, but they were outnumbered and unprepared. Alvarado had died at Cortés feet, holding a spear that was- even now -jammed through the chest an Eagle Warrior. The ragged remnants of Cortés' force were around their leader, staring with wide-eyes at the warriors around them.
"If you mean to kill us, then do so!" Cortés fired back, aware that at least one man in the crowd would understand him. He clutched his battered sword tight and glared at the men who had
betrayed him. "Do not treat us as cattle to the slaughter! We are warriors and we will die as warriors!"
That he would have betrayed them, as well, was not lost on him.
In response to his words, the distinctive headdress of Cuitláhuac became visible. The Aztec leader, equally no fool, remained behind his men and out of proper sight of any bows the Spanish may have possessed. His voice still carried, as he began speaking, however. He spoke in broken, yet intelligible, Spanish. Making it clear that he had learned of these men, as they had learned of him.
"You are warriors, yet you sought to weaken us from within. Your promises of assistance against our foes were empty, intended as nothing more than to make us
trust you." His voice was calm yet filled with an undercurrent of very real rage. "The moment that we received word of more Spanish landing in our lands, you were eager to meet them. Do not think you can fool us!" The headdress shook as the man walked behind his warriors, his voice continuing to carry. "You sought to join these men, who arrived to take you, and use them against us. We have seen how you stare at our wealth."
Finally stepping into view, the Aztec leader was revealed to be holding a steel sword, of a design unfamiliar to Cortés. He pointed the blade directly at the Spainard, not a single shake in his arm. It was pointed unerringly, a promise held in the dull steel.
"You hoard our gifts, staring with greed at our gold and gems. You want every last drop of wealth our people possess." Cuitláhuac continued, walking no further, though he also made no attempt to hide behind his men again. He simply stared at the Spanish, a simmering rage in his dark eyes. "You mock our faith and treat us as savages, despite all our hospitality. Would you allow
us to live, were you able to defeat us?"
Cortés hissed through clenched, bloody, teeth. "I am no bloodthirsty murderer! I would not destroy your people, no matter how I loathe your devil worshipping
mockery of a 'faith'!"
"Yet you would destroy our faith as easily as we destroy you. Even knowing it would destroy the world around us."
Those words were spoken with an almost whispered tone, even as they carried to all in earshot. The Aztec leader lowered his blade, shaking his head ever so slightly. As if he had expected nothing else and still found himself disappointed.
Yet, Cortés had not actually lied. He bore no intention, nor desire, to destroy the Aztec people. Tear down their temples and show them the light of Christ, certainly. Use them to springboard his own power and wealth, also true. He did not want to kill them all. He was not a murderer. Had he succeeded in what he, now, admitted was always an unlikely venture? He would have
ruled them. Not massacred them.
I will never know how that would have went. Even should we win this battle, we will never escape this city. The Roman was correct.
Looking at the body of Alvarado at his feet, Cortés sighed softly, his blood-matted beard shifting as he grimaced. He was not a young man. He did not enjoy dying this early, but if this must be how he died, he would die
fighting. He would be damned if he allowed these devil worshippers to sacrifice him upon that accursed pyramid. And he knew that every one of his surviving men felt the same exact way.
"Victory or death, indeed." Cortés muttered, looking at his bruised reflection in his battered blade. Well. Death it was. Still... "You will not let us leave, then? Not even if we swear to never return."
Cuitláhuac stared into Cortés' eyes, and it was apparent he would not rise to the bait. A lie that was that obvious. For, even now, Cortés knew he would never give up. He was not a quitter and he would surely try again, were he allowed to leave. It was never even a question.
Cortés still sighed, softly, and raised his weapon. "So be it. You will never take me alive."
Hernan Cortés, and the majority of his men, would die that day. Slain in battle. A handful would be taken prisoner and sacrificed, though their leader was not one of them. True to his word in talks with his subjects, Cuitláhuac personally cut down the Spainsh leader. With the death of Cortés, the remaining Spainards would either die or be taken prisoner. Only a handful managed, through guile and sheer luck, to escape the city. These few men would eventually find their way to Yiorgos and those left behind with the Tlaxcala, telling the tale of what had occurred. It is through them, indeed, that we have one of the few reliable sources on those final days.
Regardless, with the fall of Cortés, the Aztec Empire would find breathing room. The remaining Spanish were too few in number, and the newly arrived force from Cuba had no interest in avenging the man they had come to apprehend. Especially not when the Aztec began to rouse their forces, to drive them into the sea if the Spanish did not leave their lands. [4]
It was an accepted fact that the Spanish controlled their new Veracruz and were allies with the Tlaxcala. But it would not be the Spanish who ended the Aztec Empire, nor who took Tenochtitlan for themselves. That is a story for another time. For as Hernan Cortés' story ends, we will return to the story of the Romans and the world they left behind. Of Demetrios and Heraklonas. Of Constantinople and the changed Europe it left. The end of one dream left room for others, after all.
1. Cortés, in later years, would become something of a folk hero to Spanish nationalists. Men and Women who felt their country had been robbed of a chance to become a world superpower. And who were convinced that, had Cortés survived, he would have pushed the Romans into the sea and forged a mighty empire in Mesoarcadia. An Empire that would stretch astride the world and make Spain into the beating heart of a worldwide society.
2. We may never know why Yiorgos chose what he did. The most common assumption of later historians is that he saw the Spanish and Aztec weakening each other as only to his advantage. Perhaps, as close as he became to Cortés, the Roman became aware that independence for his adopted people was doomed. If the Spanish won over the Aztec, they would not be satisfied with that land alone. In that regard, and in what could be argued a cynical move, it is entirely possible that Yiorgos decided a weakened Spanish enclave as an ally was more valuable and still more than sufficient, as his own Prince had done, to keep the Aztec in their own lands.
It is also possible that the atrocity at Cholula was still fresh to mind. He had to have been aware of what his adoptive people would have done, had they stormed the City on the Lake.
3. Narváez landed to apprehend Cortés. He did not land to conquer the Aztec, nor to form a Spanish state on the mainland. It is little surprise that, upon learning of the fate of Cortés' illegal expedition, the man retreated and contented himself in fortifying Veracruz and the surrounding lands. Yiorgos, in this regard, may have had a further hand in this as well.
4. Even as crippled as they were, the Aztec could still raise mighty armies, given reason to. Armies that would have swept aside the small Spanish expedition, even with Tlaxcala aid. Forming an uneasy truce was the only real choice the Spanish faced.
AN: Not quite what we wanted. But, at the same time, we felt dragging it out further to be counterproductive. Hopefully this works well enough? We just thought that, considering the way things are going, the Aztec would never let Cortés leave to join up with the other Spanish forces. And if he couldn't do that...well. There was only ever one way this was going to end.
After this, we'll get back to the Romans and Demetrios. Probably another State of the Empire bit first. After that, we'll finally show a little snapshot of Europe. Then really get into the meat of how things are going in Rome and in the land Rome left.
