Sanyte Hailemariam

Dawn
History
3-12-2009

Spanish vs. Aztec

The Spanish had many advantages against the Aztecs which allowed them to conquer the

Aztec empire. At one point, the Aztecs believed that Cortes was anAztec god, Quetzalcoatl, and

treated him and his followers as guest not enemies. They gave them gifts of gold and chocolate

which they accepted as agod. Cortes’ first idea was to take over the Aztec land by force, but used

the Aztecs mistake of thinking he was a god to slowly make his attack on their empire. After the

Aztecs found out their visitor was not their god they began feuding which soon lead to the

Spanish victory.

One of the reasons the Aztecs lost to the Spanish was because they had more advanced

weapons such as gunpowder, crossbows and iron and armor. Also, when the Spanish came, they

carried deadly diseases such as smallpox which affected the Aztecs very severely because they

were not immune to it as the Spanish were able to care for more quickly and betterthen the

Aztecs. Eventually many Aztecs died because of it. In addition to the diseases the Spanish had

horses which allowed them to travel widely and faster than the Aztecs could. This allowed them

to quickly make attacks before the Aztecs could notify a higher power about anything that was

happening. To go further, the Spanish evenhad attack dogs which helped them to find certain

people and things and were trained with a vicious attitude that helped the Spanish eliminate

many more Aztecs. In the time the Spanish had their battles with the Aztecs they destroyed
many bloody alters used to make human sacrifices, which the Spanish hated, and built Christian

shrines. This was a symbol they would be staying a long time.