ipl-logo

The Pros And Cons Of The Aztec Empire

811 Words4 Pages

Defeat struck the Aztec Empire in 1521 when Hernan Cortes and his army invaded and conquered Tenochtitlan, bringing the end of the great civilization. Could the Aztecs have done something before, something that could have changed the way the Empire had come to an end? Geography helped in a major way, surrounding the Aztecs with protection from Mt.Popocatepetl and Mt.Iztaccihuatl . The weapons and war strategies that the Aztecs used were very well planned and could have defeated the Spanish. Even so, Montezuma, the emperor of the Aztecs, had to ruin the victory. As he had many options to choose from but he ended up choosing the wrong one many times. To sum up, could the Aztecs have won against the Spaniards?

The Aztecs were peoples who …show more content…

One Aztec weapon was the War Club, which involved both hands to swing. It was a very hard weapon to move fast and free with. The weapon planned well by the inventors, not accounting weight and how free the individual could move with the weapon. This would have been a huge disadvantage on the battleground as the Aztecs would not have been able to strike the Spanish fast, as the Spanish had horses to ride on, which gave them the advantage of moving fast. Even though the weapon was not easy to carry around, it was a strong killing machine. The war club was lined with hard and jagged pieces of Obsidian, the sharpest rock in the world. It could cut through Spanish armor with ease and kill the soldier within seconds. It was a huge advantage for the Aztecs, as they could kill any person who came in their way with this one weapon. The Spaniards, on the other hand, had planned their weapons carefully to make sure that they had the perfect weapon. Swords are lightweight and easy to use on the battlefield. Held in one hand, Spaniards had a free hand to hold a shield or some other form of protection. Swords were also held while on a horse. As the Spanish ran around on the animal, they were able to slash the Aztecs fast and with ease. Even though swords were fast, they were not as strong as the war club. The swords were made of metal, which against the war club, would have been like paper next to a pair of scissors. This is a huge disadvantage because the swords could break and shatter into pieces if hit with a war club just as paper could be cut into small scraps with the pair of

Show More
Related

Summary Of Buddy Levy's 'Conquistador'

1181 Words | 5 Pages

When Cortes and his men first arrived on the island of Cozumel in 1519, they were unaware that a complex and advanced civilization was just beyond the shores of Mexico. Although, as stated, the Aztecs were a rather advanced civilization, when compared to the Spaniards that invaded their city, they were lacking in technology. Cortes used this to his advantage, stunning the natives with displays of cavalry and horses, as he

Read More

How Did Cortes Contribute The Most To The Fall Of The Aztec Empire

444 Words | 2 Pages

The factors that contributed the most to the fall of the Aztec Empire were; Aztecs mistaking Cortes for Quetzacoatl, Aztec conflict with neighbouring groups, and no cure for Smallpox. To begin, Mocetezuma confusing Cores for Quetzacoatl caused the downfall of the Aztecs. Because Moctezuma thought Cortes was Quetzacoatl he gave VOrtes a whole tour of the city and let him live in his dad’s old house. While on the tour Cortes saw the gold that the Aztecs had.

Read More

Battle Of The Alamo Research Paper

560 Words | 3 Pages

When they eventually did the real fight started. Even thought the Texans were easily outnumbered they fought much harder than they did which helped. The Texans ended up killing 1,500 Mexican soldiers but still lost. Towards the end of the battle the Texans ran out of ammo so they resorted to melee. Since many didn’t have a melee weapon they used their guns as melee weapons.

Read More

How Did Hernan Cortes Conquer The Aztec

259 Words | 2 Pages

Hernan Cortes. Spain’s savior, nightmare for the Aztecs. The man who brought gold and glory to Spain, at the cost of the destruction of a rich, thriving civilisation. Hernan Cortez was a cunning, manipulative, intelligent conquistador and he and his army single handedly took down one of the greatest civilizations of all time by forging, advanced weaponry, alliances and the Conquistador’s Formula. Some may argue that Dona Marina is most responsible because she advised and told Cortes what the enemy was planning, but she was merely a pawn in Cortes’s grand scheme of conquering the Aztecs, as Cortes was the true mastermind and defeated the Aztecs for these reasons: First Cortes and his army has more advanced weapons such as Halberds, crossbows,

Read More

Why Did The Tlaxcalans Conquer The Aztec Empire

1426 Words | 6 Pages

Conquistador Hernan Cortes and his Spanish troops did not conquer the Aztec Empire on their own. They had allies, with the Tlaxcalans being among the most important. Learn how this alliance developed and how their support was crucial to Cortes' success. In 1519, as conquistador Hernan Cortes was making his way inland from the coast on his audacious conquest of the Mexica (Aztec) Empire, he had to pass through the lands of the fiercely independent Tlaxcalans, who were the mortal enemies of the Mexica.

Read More

Cortez's Campaign Against Aztec Empire

1604 Words | 7 Pages

In the wake of his death a new leader was chosen by the people, Cuitlahuac, whose primary goal was to overthrow the Spanish power. Cortez no longer had control of Tenochtitlan or its inhabitants. The reality became pertinent to Cortez, although having the support of the Tlaxcala’s, the pure numeric superiority of the Aztecs was threatening and that fleeing or death seemed the only plausible end results. With this coming to a head on June 30th, 1520 “La Noche Triste” the night of sadness. Upon Cortez and his army inclusive of Tlaxcala allies trying to leave the city of Tenochtitlan, came upon vicious fighting and opposition from the Aztecs, resulting in the death of 450 Spaniards and thousands of Tlaxcala’s upon trying to flee Tenochtitlan.

Read More

The Aztec Dbq

679 Words | 3 Pages

The first reason that the shows extinction of the Aztec race was unavoidable was because of the diseases like smallpox that the Spanish brought with them. The reason they bought this because of the bad conditions on the ship and some people even died on the ship. The people who did

Read More

Compare And Contrast Inca And Aztecs

1807 Words | 8 Pages

The Mexica people of Tenochtitlan, situated on an island in Lake Texcoco and the inhabitants of Tenochtitlan’s two principal allied city-states, the Acolhaus of Texcoco and the Tepanecs of Tlacopan, formed the Aztec Triple Alliance which has also become known as the “Aztec Empire”. Henan Cortes, along with a large number of Nahuatl speaking indigenous allies, conquered Tenochtitlan and defeated the Aztec Triple Alliance under the leadership of Moctezuma II. In the series of events often referred to as “The Fall of the Aztec Empire”. Subsequently the Spanish founded the new settlement of Mexico City on the site of the ruined Aztec capital.

Read More

Advantages Of The Spanish Conquistadors Over The Aztecs

245 Words | 1 Pages

The strong tactics of the Spanish Conquistadors, the mistakes of Montezuma, and disease lead to the defeat of the Aztec army of 200,000 men. The Spanish Conquistadors had the advantage over the Aztecs, using the allies they had and the technology they used in battle. Montezuma, the ruler of Tenochtitlan made a mistake when the Spanish Conquistadors arrived, by thinking they were Gods.. The conquistadors also brought over diseases, which whipped out most of the Aztec army leading to a slight setback for the Aztecs. The Aztecs then, had no chance against the Spanish.

Read More

Bystander Effect In Night

774 Words | 4 Pages

Every day many of us are faced with the question, “Should I step in and help?”. Some of us immediately think yes and jump in to help, while others believe it is better to keep walking. The bystander effect happens when a person does not stop and help because they think someone else will. In these situations, some people stand up and respond to the crisis, because they are not worried about what will happen to them, but what will happen to the person in crisis instead. In the novel Night and the poem “The Hangman”, the bystander effect took place because people were afraid to bring attention to themselves.

Read More

Battle Of Tenochtitlan Analysis

1094 Words | 5 Pages

By doctrine the Aztec operated under centralized control, leaving the unit without guidance if a commander should go down as opposed to the flexible Spanish decentralized command and control allowing for formations to regroup and sustain fighting. The majority of interpretations of the Spanish Conquest of Aztecs claim Spanish victory due to Military Information Support Operations (MISO) by deceiving the Aztecs to believing Cortes was a god. Other individuals might claim that there was a significant technological advantage. In fact Cortes’ infantrymen supported by the cavalry and allies out maneuvered the once dominating Aztecs.

Read More

The Broken Spears Summary

573 Words | 3 Pages

The author gives insight on how many ways the Spaniards used their power to assist in the downfall of the Aztecs. The reason why the Spaniards became victorious, was because the Spaniards were looked upon as if they were gods because of their outer appearance. The Aztecs broke bread and welcomed the Spaniards with gifts and parties. The Aztecs triggered their relationship with the Spaniards by holding a ritual for the arrival of the god which included a human sacrifice. The Spaniards didn’t agree with the rituals and began to despise the Aztecs.

Read More

Aztec Empire Turning Points

1036 Words | 5 Pages

Their downfall began with the Spanish conquest. “When the Spaniards arrived in Tenochtitlan, the capital city of the great Aztec Empire, they were deeply impressed by the beauty, cleanliness and order of the city… it is said to have been one of the largest metropolises in the world.” (Tenochtitlan) The leader of this conquest was Hernán Cortés, and their goal was to take down the great Aztec empire. Cortés allied with the Aztec’s enemies and eventually turned on them as well.

Read More

Fall Of The Aztec Empire Essay

1135 Words | 5 Pages

The Aztecs’ religion is what got them into the most trouble. They sacrificed humans for their Gods, which was wrong in the Spaniards’ eyes (and mine too). They also were very superstitious .The Aztecs may have won the battle against the Spaniards if they too had advanced weaponry and battle tactics. The Aztecs and the Spaniards were vastly different people, however they had similarities.

Read More

Hernan Cortes Hero

975 Words | 4 Pages

Using war equipment that the Aztec had never seen before and different battle techniques, Cortes and his men were able to quickly and effectively conquer Tenochtitlan. During battle against the Aztecs, animals from Spain that served in many battles called horses (about twelve), as well as swords and crossbows (a much more advanced version of the Aztec war club and spear-thrower) were labelled as advanced technology as they were quicker, deadlier, and consequently more efficient. These many advantages against the Aztecs and their traditional weapons; and therefore the Spaniards won many battles alongside their allies, and succeeded greatly by using guns that were far more powerful than the Aztecs' weapons. Unfair as it is, this gave the Spanish explorer a supremacy in conquering one of the most elaborate European cities at the time. “The Aztecs were unable to rebel against the Spaniards because most of them were sick or dead from smallpox.

Read More

More about The Pros And Cons Of The Aztec Empire

Related Topics

Open Document