4.1 The Fall of Two Empires pp. 92-97

Objectives: Describe how the Spaniards conquered the Aztec and Inca empires. Explain how Spanish conquests changed Mexico and South America.

A. Strangers off the Coast (pp. 92-93) In 1519 the Aztec emperor Montezuma heard rumors of invaders in the east. These invaders were conquistadors (Spanish conquerors/explorers); their leader was Hernán Cortés. Cortes’ conquistadors had the advantages of horses, armor and firearms, and diseases. They were motivated by “God, gold, and glory.”

B. Cortés Marches Inland (p. 93) Cortés and his conquistadors knew they would find gold in Tenochtitlán. Cortés claimed Mexico for Spain and the Roman Catholic Church. Montezuma’s gifts of gold to appease (buy off) the conquistadors only made them more eager to reach the capital.

C. Cortés in Tenochtitlán (p. 94) The Aztec gave Cortés and his conquistadors a grand welcome when they arrived in Tenochtitlán. Cortés responded by imprisoning Montezuma in his own palace. The Spaniards then ransacked all the gold and other treasures they could find in the capital.

D. Disease—A Deadly Weapon (p. 94) As a prisoner, Montezuma was killed during a revolt against the Spanish. That revolt drove the Spaniards from Tenochtitlán. But smallpox—a disease to which the Spaniards were immune but the Aztec were not—turned into a deadly weapon that wiped out thousands of people.

Smallpox (eradicated in 1979 aren’t you glad!)

E. The Final Conquest (p. 95) Cortés and even more conquistadors returned to Tenochtitlán ten months later. The Aztec surrendered to Cortés in 1521; it had taken only two years for the Spaniards to destroy the mighty Aztec empire. Cortés ordered a new capital city—Mexico City—to be built on the ruins of Tenochtitlán.

F. Pizarro and the Inca (pp. 95-96) Thirteen years later another Spanish conquistador, Francisco Pizarro, conquered the Inca of Peru. Like Cortés among the Aztec, Pizarro made a captive of the Inca leader Atahualpa. Although the Inca offered up rooms full of gold and silver as a ransom for Atahualpa’s release, Pizarro had him executed.

Review: 1. Who was the last Aztec emperor? 2. Who was the leader of the Spanish quest to conquer the Aztec? 3. Define conquistadors— 4. List some advantages of the conquistadors. 5. What were three motivations of the conquistadors? 6. What was the name of the Aztec capital city? 7. What was Cortés interested in finding in Tenochtitlán? 8. What disease wiped out thousands of Aztec people? 9. What city was built on the ruins of Tenochtitlán? 10. Who was the leader of the conquistadors who conquered the Inca of Peru? 11. Who was the Incan ruler?