is for Aztecs

These were the people that first greeted Hernan Cortes and the Spanish. They believed in many gods and did things very differently from the Spanish but one thing they had in common was they they both had a boss, a king. They lived throughout most Mexico

is for Because

Cortes was supposed to be a lawyer because family said so. He wanted to be famous because it also led to fortune. Cortes became famous for overthrowing the Aztecs because he wanted to make a legacy for himself.

is for Conquer

Hernan Cortes conquered the Aztecs officially in 1519. He planned multiple marches with different armies and planned on going to the heart of Aztec people in Mexico. The first large battle was the Massacre of Cholula. After this Hernan officially went to Mexico after hearing about gold stocks. This was went he decided to overthrow the Aztecs. He killed about "3,000 nobles, priests and warriors". With this advantage he conquered the Aztecs.

is for Disfunctional

Cortes was extremely dysfunctional. For example after disobeying Velazquez and conquering the Aztecs, Cortes decided to marry his sister in law. As well as whilst making commitments to leadership in multiple areas. Cortes had a child with the woman acting as his interpreter.

is for Expedition

In 1504 Cortes sailed to the New World. For five years he made his name well known on an island. In 1511 he joined a Diego Velazquez on a Cuban expedition. Velazquez became Cuban governor as well as help Cortes rise to fame in their government. Cortes was put in charge of a Mexico mainland expedition. At the last minute Velazquez was worried about Hernan and told him not to continue with the expedition. Cortes defied him and went anyways. This is how he was greeted by the Aztecs and eventually conquered them.

is for Fallen Empires

Hernan Cortes was the reason behind multiple fallen empires. Cortes is mainly credited to the destruction/conquering of the Aztecs. When traveling to Cuba with Diego Velazquez he held a large contribution in conquering Cuba. This was when Cortes gained political power. After the plans made stated on the previous page Cortes conquered the Aztecs. Lastly, once he had set a name for himself and had a family he continued to devalue many Natives and their way of life.

is for Gold

After Cortes was assigned and technically removed from the expedition to the Mexican Mainland he traveled there anyways. This development led to Cortes meeting a Native woman who worked as his interpreter. Dona was the reason he heard of the Aztec people's gold and treasures. ONce he had went through the stages of his plans to conquer the Aztecs, Hernan finally conquered them and took ownership of all the gold the people had/ found access to.

The most important god to the Aztecs. He was the most fearsome and powerful god of the Aztecs. He was the god of war, sacrifice, and the sun. He was the patron god of the Aztec capital city, Tenochtitlan. His name meant "left-handed hummingbird" and was often drawn with feathers and scepter shaped like a snake.

is for Huitzilopochtli

is for Interesting

Beside all of the expedition facts, Cortes was also very interesting. He was the once removed second cousin of Fransico Pizarro, another important explorer. Cortes was the man who found Baja California. One landmark you may know to be the Gulf of Mexico was once called the Sea of Cortes.

is for Jobs

Cortes had many jobs throughout his life. After quitting law school at 16 Cortes got a notary job for 5 years in Hispaniola. After making a name for himself he began working with the governor. Whilst being the governors righthand man he was made to explore Cuba where he made a place in politics. After this he was told to travel to the Mainland of Mexico, he was removed because Velazquez did not trust him but Hernan continued with the job anyways.

is for Known

After this book the most important thing to learn is that Hernan Cortes was Known for conquering the Aztecs. Cortes was known for his cooperation with a Mexican expedition that lead to his fame in overthrowing practically an entire religion.

is for Later Life

After conquering the Aztecs and "betraying" Velazquez he got married and had children. Cortes once was a leaders righthand-man but later in life became a leader and conqueror of his own. In 1514 the king of Spain disowned Cortes and sent him back to Spain where he had to defend himself. Cortes took part in an unsuccessful Algier expedition where he hardly survived the sinking of his ship. December 2, 1547 Cortes died.

is for Mexico

Mexico was home to the Aztecs. This place was the religious heart of all Mexican Mainland Natives. When Cortes was assigned to an expedition towards Mexico he soon got taken off. Defiance was the only reason he found Mexico and had the ability to conquer the Astecs

is for New World

After returning home at 16 because he did not want to be a lawyer Cortes had heard of Columbus' New World discovery. Suffering from the disease of curiosity Cortes sought fame and fortune. In 1504 he sailed to the New World and made a home in Hispaniola. This was where Cortes became a notary and made a name for himself.

is for Omen

An Omen was something that had apparently foretold the end of the Azteca empire when Montezuma came witness to 8 of them. When the spanish arrived and conquered them many Aztecs knew that the Omens were very correct in their seeings and statements.

is for Politics

Politics played a large role in Hernan Cortes' life. Politics were the reason why his family sent him to law school at such a young age and why he decided to be an explorer. After exploring Cuba and conquering it with Velazques Cortes found his "in" after Velazquez was given the title governor. Lastly, poorly executed politics was the reason behind his near death in 1541.