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- [00:00]
Lindsey Graham
There are more ways than ever to listen to History Daily ad free. Listen with Wondry plus in the Wondery app as a member of Noiser plus at noiser.com or in Apple Podcasts. Or you can get all of History Daily plus other fantastic history podcasts@intohristory.com It's February 3, 1519 in Havana, Cuba. It's a chilly morning and Spanish explorer Hernan Cortes is dockside overseeing preparations for his upcoming expedition. Fresh horses, water and boxes of dried meat are loaded on board Cortes 11 ships. In a few days time this fleet will depart for the west in search of gold and treasure in a land yet to be fully explored by Europeans. Mexico Cortes productive morning is interrupted though when two messengers arrive with an official decree from the Spanish governor of Cuba. The messengers hand Cortes a letter from the governor and it's not good news. Cortes has not made himself popular with the local aristocracy during his time in Cuba, so the governor is canceling Cortes expedition to Mexico. Cortes is stunned. Everything he's worked so hard for is about to slip away, but he refuses to accept defeat. Ignoring the governor's orders, Cortes tells his crew to work even harder because they'll be leaving sooner than expected. Officially, it's an act of insubordination, but Cortes is confident that no one will stop him. Even the governor's messengers see things his way. Swayed by the promise of great riches, they decide not to take Cortes into custody, but to join his expedition instead. And while it's true that Cortes crew will become very rich on this voyage, none of them yet know that this is a one way trip. Once they depart, they will never again return to Cuba. After defying the governor's orders, Hernan Cortes will sail his 11 ships and over 600 crew west to explore a vast new continent. Cortes won't be the first European to set foot in Mexico, but little is known about the land except that it's inhabited by people who worship their own gods and are rich with gold. So Cortes wants to convert the natives to Christianity and take as much gold for himself. But the expedition's success will do more than enrich Cortes and his men. It will shape the future of an entire country as Mexico will change forever when Hernan Cortes first reaches its shores on March 4, 1519.
- [02:39]
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- [03:19]
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- [03:54]
Lindsey Graham
From Noiser and Airship I'm Lindsey Graham and this is History. Daily history is made every day on this podcast. Every day we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world. Today is March 4, 1519. Conquistador Hernan Cortez arrives in Mexico. It's the morning of March 4, 1519, just off the coast of Mexico, a month after Spanish ships left Cuba. There's a brisk wind and the fleet of Hernan Cortes cut swiftly through the churning waters from the flagship. Cortes peers out beyond the waves and spray toward the horizon, eager for his first close look at the continent he's come to exploit. The land stretching out before him is flat and thickly covered in rainforest, so Cortes doesn't see that among the dark trees are watching eyes which have spotted his approaching ships. Warnings are already being passed along ancient roads and armies are being readied because Cortes reputation precedes him. About a month prior, Cortes and his men first landed on cozumel, an island 12 miles off the Mexican mainland. Cortes and his men were initially impressed by the indigenous Maya society, their well built houses and their giant limestone pyramid by the sea. But inside that pyramid they found something that horrified them a blood stained altar chamber littered with human bones. The inhabitants of Cozumel performed human and animal sacrifices here to appease their gods. As a devout Christian, Cortes believed it was his duty to convert the islanders to Catholicism. So he ordered the altar chamber to be scrubbed of blood and bones, then had his men remove all statues of the local gods, roll them down the pyramid steps and smash them into pieces. As for the Maya themselves, they were told to disavow their old gods and embrace a new faith. If they refused, they would be killed Faced with little choice, the locals converted to Christianity. Cortes took this as a great victory, and his crew of 600 soldiers loitered on Cozumel for a few more weeks. While on the island, they met a Spanish friar named Geronimo, who was shipwrecked there seven years earlier. In that time, Geronimo had learned the local language, so Cortes recruits him as the expedition's translator. Then finally, after about a month on Cozumel, Cortes sails west with his fleet once again. Now they are nearing the Yucatan Peninsula. But word of Cortes brutality on Cozumel has reached the mainland before him, and indigenous armies are watching for his fleet's arrival. After his first sighting of the Mexican coast, Cortes leads his ships around the tip of the peninsula to the mouth of the Tabasco River. As the Spaniards come ashore, they are met by thousands of Maya warriors. The two sides eye each other warily. Each seems so strangely dressed to the eyes of the other. Then Cortes makes an official proclamation on behalf of the Spanish government. Speaking through the translator Geronimo, the newcomers claim the Maya land as their own. They promise to take only what they need and assure the locals that they will be kind and peaceful new overlords. But these haughty announcements do not win over the Maya, who aren't interested in ceding land to any invaders so soon. This tense encounter explodes into battle. Cortes himself has no experience as a military leader, and his men are a ragtag group of treasure seekers and sailors. But the Spaniards have several advantages. The first is superior technology. The Maya can hurl spears and fire arrows, but they are no match for the metal armor the Europeans wear, who also have 10 brass cannons on their ships, which Cortes is quick to deploy. Although the cannonballs do considerable damage to the Maya ranks, it isn't this heavy ammunition that wins the battle. Instead, it's horses. As tough and well trained as the Maya warriors are, they have never seen horses before and are terrified of the beasts charging at them with thunderous hooves and bared teeth. Cortes only has 16 cavalrymen, but it's enough to make the Maya turn and run. When the fighting is over, more than 800 miles lay dead while just two Spaniards have been killed. The local people are left terrified to placate these dangerous invaders. In the days after the battle, they bring Cortes an assortment of gifts. Food, gold, and 20 women to be used as slaves. Cortes loads his men and his loot onto his ships and prepares to sail further up the coast. He feels vindicated as he departs because such a decisive victory in battle and the subsequent submission of the locals are proof that God must be on his side. And Cortes will have plenty more opportunities to exert his might over the indigenous people of Mexico in the weeks and months to come. Because his exploration and exploitation of this new world has only just begun.
- [09:00]
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- [09:51]
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- [10:51]
Lindsey Graham
It's April 23, 1519, more than seven weeks after Hernan Cortes arrived in Mexico. Cortes and his men have set up a new camp more than 200 miles up the coast from Tabasco. In his tent, Cortez swats away a persistent fly as he looks over a hastily drawn map of the area. He's deciding where to lead his men next when there's a sudden commotion in the camp outside. Cortes quickly pulls his metal breastplate over his head and marches out of the tent. A new band of locals has appeared at the tree line, and the Spanish sailors have readied their weapons to the to defend themselves. But Cortes realizes that this group belongs to a different indigenous civilization than the Maya. These warriors are from the great Aztec empire, which rules this part of Mexico from coast to coast. The leader of the group is Tetuil, an emissary from the Aztec emperor Montezuma. He's been sent to make contact with the Europeans and learn why they've come to these lands. In this first meeting between cultures, violence is avoided this time, but there is still a language barrier between the two peoples. The Spaniards translator Geronimo, only speaks Mayan. Tetuil speaks a completely different language. Communication seems almost impossible until one of the 20 young women given to the Spaniards as slaves reveals she is fluent in both Aztec and Mayan languages. Her name is Malinzin, and Cortes pairs her with Geronimo to translate Spanish into Mayan and then Mayan into Aztec. This is an important development for Cortes. He's in Mexico to take gold and spread Christianity. But he knows he doesn't have the numbers to accomplish either of those goals by force alone. Instead, he plans to use his translators to try a different tactic. Diplomacy. He asks Tetwheel for an audience with his leader, the Aztec emperor Montezuma. Wanting proof that the Aztecs are as rich as he's heard, Cortes gives Tetwheel an armored helmet and requests it be sent back to him from Montezuma, filled with gold. The Aztecs live amongst plentiful gold and don't understand. The Europeans thirst for it. They prize works of craft like jewelry, blankets, and tapestries more than they value the yellow rocks they find in the ground. So eight days later, Cortes gets the helmet back from Montezuma, and it is filled with gold. But this isn't the only gift Montezuma has for the Europeans. He sends back dozens of glittering treasures, including a solid gold disc the size of a wagon wheel, finely honed to resemble the Aztec sun God. Cortes and his men are elated to be given such enormous wealth. But despite the Aztec's generosity, Cortes doesn't get everything he wants. Montezuma refuses to meet with him. Instead, he demands that Cortes take the gold and go back to wherever he came from. This is not the answer Cortes wanted to hear. Montezuma's golden gifts haven't satisfied him. They've only whetted his appetite. So again, Cortez demands an audience with Montezuma. And again he is given treasure, denied a meeting, and told to leave. Acting as intermediary, Tetwheel doesn't understand why Cortes won't give up until he learns the man's dedication to his cause. Cortes says he won't stop until every single Aztec, including Montezuma himself is a devout Christian. Shortly after learning this, Tet Wheel and his men leave abruptly. They've seen enough of these European invaders and want nothing more to do with them. Frustrated in his desire to meet the emperor, Cortes fears that war is inevitable. So he decides that he must strengthen his position in Mexico in a temporary camp. Even with his advanced technology, Cortes is vulnerable to attack. What he needs is a more permanent and defendable settlement. Somewhere with a harbor, somewhere with walls. Furthering his exploration, he finds an unhappy local tribe known as the Teutonics. They are heavily taxed by Montezuma, and Cortes uses this grudge to recruit them as allies. Then, In May of 1519, the Teutonics help the Spaniards build the first permanent European settlement in Mexico, which Cortes names Vera Cruz. None of these accomplishments would have been possible without the translator Malinzen. By now, she's far more than just an interpreter for Cortes. Malenzen has become the conquistador's mistress as well. And she will be at Cortes's side as he embarks on a devastating conquest of the mighty Aztec empire. But before he can ever think of claiming the famous gold of the Aztecs, Cortes will first have to face down a rebellion in his own crew. One which will only end with bloodshed and leave Cortez's fleet lying at the bottom of the ocean.
- [15:26]
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- [15:57]
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- [16:36]
Lindsey Graham
It'S June 1519 in Veracruz the three months after Hernan Cortes arrived in Mexico. During their short time in the country, Cortez and his men have acquired more gold than they could possibly dream of. For Cortes, it's still not enough. But some of his crew are growing impatient. They have families back in Cuba and they want to return to the Spanish ruled island and spend their new wealth. They're also tired of taking orders from Cortes and risking their lives in this strange land. So rumors are growing that Cortes will soon face a mutiny. Although this voyage began when Cortes himself disobeyed orders, he cannot let his own men defy him. To take down the Aztec emperor Montezuma, Cortes will need every bit of strength at his command. He cannot let any of his men go back to Cuba, so he executes the ringleaders of the mutiny. But to prevent any further talk of retreat, Cortes then takes a remarkable step and orders his fleet to to be scuttled. The men still loyal to him start cutting lines, ditching anchors, running ships aground and sinking others. By removing his only means of retreat, Cortes sends a message to his men and to the Aztecs that the Spaniards are in Mexico for good. Then over the next two years, Cortes will cut a swath of destruction from east of west that will result in the deaths of tens of thousands of indigenous people, including Emperor Montezuma. The Aztecs don't only fall in battle, however. The Europeans have brought with them smallpox and other diseases which the Aztecs have no natural defense against. It will be a swift and cruel end to a once powerful civilization. From Mexico, Cortes will then continue to explore Central America, going as far west as California and as far south as Honduras. But these costly expeditions won't reward the conquistador with the same riches he found when he first arrived in Mexico. Eventually, Cortes will return to Spain, where he'll die in poverty in 1547. Today, he is remembered most as a cruel conqueror motivated by greed and racism, who nevertheless changed the face of an entire continent after he first arrived in Mexico on March 4, 1519. Next on History Daily. March 5, 1825. One of the last pirates of the Caribbean is hunted at sea, then captured on land from noiser and airship. This is History Daily hosted, edited and executive produced by me, Lindsey Graham Audio editing by Mohammed Shahzeeb Sound design by Matthew Filler Music by Lindsey Graham this episode is written and researched by Jack O'Brien edited by Joel Callan Managing Producer Emily Burke Executive producers are William Simpson for Airship and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.
- [19:33]
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