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Hernán Cortés

1485 CE – 1547 CE

Retrace Hernán Cortés's life across the map — 7 events in chronological order, from a cinematic flythrough to a full timeline.

Life journey

1. Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire1519 CE
   The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire was a pivotal event in the history of the Americas, marked by the collision of the Aztec Triple Alliance and the Spanish Empire with its Indigenous allies. Between 1519 and 1521, Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés and his small army of European soldiers and numerous Indigenous allies, overthrew the most powerful empire in Mesoamerica.
2. Battle of Otumba1520 CE
   The Battle of Otumba was fought between the Mexica and allied forces led by the Cihuacoatl Matlatzincátzin and those of Hernán Cortés made up of the Spanish conquerors and Tlaxcalan allies. It took place on July 7, 1520, in Temalcatitlán, a plain near Otumba during the development of the conquest of the Mexica. The result of the battle was a successful defense for the Spanish, which allowed Cortés to reorganize his army, having suffered casualties a few days before in the episode known as La Noche Triste. A year later, by reinforcing his army with new men and supplies, and starting an alliance with the Tlaxcala Confederacy, Cortés found a way to reenter Tenochtitlan.
3. La Noche Triste1520 CE
   La Noche Triste, officially called in Mexico Victorious Night, was an important event during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, where Hernán Cortés and his army of Spanish conquistadors, including their native allies were driven out of the Mexica capital, Tenochtitlan.
4. Battle of Cempoala1520 CE
   The Battle of Cempoala was fought on 27 May 1520 at Cempoala, Mexico, between the forces of Pánfilo de Narváez and the forces of Hernán Cortés, which were supported by Chinantec warriors.
5. Battle of Colhuacatonco1521 CE
   The Battle of Colhuacatonco was fought on 30 June 1521 during the late stages of the Siege of Tenochtitlan between Spanish-Tlaxcalan forces and the Mexica Empire. It is regarded as the most important victory achieved by the Mexica during the siege.
6. Fall of Tenochtitlan1521 CE
   The fall of Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Mexica, was an important event in the Spanish conquest of the Mexica. It occurred in 1521 following extensive negotiations between local factions and Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés. He was aided by La Malinche, his interpreter and companion, and by thousands of indigenous allies, especially Tlaxcaltec warriors.
7. Spanish conquest of Guatemala1524 CE
   In a protracted conflict during the Spanish colonization of the Americas, Spanish colonisers gradually incorporated the territory that became the modern country of Guatemala into the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain. Before the conquest, this territory contained a number of competing Mesoamerican kingdoms, the majority of which were Maya. Many conquistadors viewed the Maya as "infidels" who needed to be forcefully converted and pacified, disregarding the achievements of their civilization. The first contact between the Maya and European explorers came in the early 16th century when a Spanish ship sailing from Panama to Santo Domingo (Hispaniola) was wrecked on the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in 1511. Several Spanish expeditions followed in 1517 and 1519, making landfall on various parts of the Yucatán coast. The Spanish conquest of the Maya was a prolonged affair; the Maya kingdoms resisted integration into the Spanish Empire with such tenacity that their defeat took almost two centuries.

Event data from Wikipedia/Wikidata (CC-BY-SA). Spotted a mistake? Email [email protected].