Anthony Rispoli

Writing Assignment #1
I Want it Now!: How the Spanish Instilled Fear to Get What They Wanted in Latin America
The Spanish were regarded by the natives of Mexico as tyrants during their conquest of
Mexico. They fought the mighty Aztec Empire and were able to gain and maintain control for
several hundred years. During this time, the Spanish encountered many different native people of
the Aztec empire. Some of them were supportive of the Spanish cause while others responded
hostilely. According to Bernal Diaz, Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, and Andres de Tapias
accounts of the new world, the people of the Aztec Empire rarely trusted the Spanish, leading
to various types of encounters and showing how the Spanish were perceived as threats to the
Aztec Empire.1
The Cholulan account of the first encounters with the Spanish support how threatening the
Spanish were to the Aztec empire. When the Spanish visited the city-state of Cholula,
Montezuma sent messengers in an attempt to deter them from continuing onwards to the capital,
Tenochtitlan.2 Historical sources say that the Spaniards were unfazed and that the Cholulans and
the messengers made preparations for a surprise attack3: The way they [Cholulans] proposed to
do it was to take us to the left of the road leading to Mexico, where there were dangerous
crossings formed by the waters flowing from the ridge where the volcano was.4 This quote
shows how far the Cholulans and the messengers were willing to go to prevent the Spanish from
1 Stuart B. Schwartz, ed. Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico
(Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2000).

2 Ibid, 116.
3 Ibid, 117.
4 Ibid, 117.

proceeding onwards to Tenochtitlan. The Spanish clearly intimidated the Aztec messengers with
their power and strength. This pushed the Aztec messengers and the Cholulans to organize the
surprise attack, which they felt was the only way the Spanish could be stopped. Furthermore, the
Cholulans were too cautious in dealing with the Spanish and ended up being caught, which
resulted in the destruction of their leadership and their city.
The Tlaxcalan came to realize that the Spanish were a legitimate threat to the Aztec Empire, and
ended up using that to their advantage. The Tlaxcalans had heard that Spanish conquistadors
were in Mexico, which gave them the impression that the Spanish were going to attack their citystate as the Tlaxcalans had been attacked numerous times in the past.5 The Spanish would be
attacked by the Tlaxcalans multiple times6, in which Bernal Diaz wrote about the worst
encounter in his biography: As for their bowmen, the javelins lay like corn on the threshing
floor...which would pierce and armour and would reach the vitals where there is no protection;
the men with swords and shields and other arms larger than swords...how they pressed on us and
with what valour and what mighty shouts and yells they charged upon us.7 The Spanish fought
valiantly, suffering only 61 casualties.8 Impressed by the fight, a Tlaxcalan captain met with the
Spanish and he told Corts of the attacks the Aztecs and their allies conducted against the state
and how Montezuma seized most of the resources the Tlaxcalan needed.9 The Caciques (leaders)
of Tlaxcala remained on friendly terms with the Spanish.10 It is written that ...they saw that we
5 Ibid, 103.
6 Ibid, 106, 107, 108.
7 Ibid, 107.
8 Ibid, 108.
9Ibid, 111, 112.
10 Ibid, 114.

[the Spanish] did not go to their city, came themselves to our camp and brought poultry and
tunas...each one brought some of the food which he had in his house and gave it to us with the
greatest good will without asking anything in return, and they always begged Corts to come
with them soon to their city.11 This shows how the Tlaxcalans used their fear of the Spanish to
their advantage. Despite being outnumbered the Spanish fought so valiantly that the Tlaxcalans
came to realize that even Montezuma will not be able to stop the Spaniards from reaching
Tenochtitlan. So instead of continuing with the warfare, they made a truce with the Spanish and
brought them food and other peace offerings to make them feel welcomed and comfortable. But
when the empire toppled, the Tlaxcalans would be in good favor with the new Spanish rulers.
The Nahua, specifically those tied to the Aztec nobility, feared the Spanish from the beginning. A
Nahuan account in the Florentine Codex describes the first encounters between Nahuans and
Spaniards. It says at one meeting, the Nahuan messengers found out about the power and
resources that the Spanish possess12, so much that they ...had descended into the boat, they
paddled hard; each one paddled as hard as he could, and some used their hands to paddle. They
fled with all possible speed, saying to one another as they came, O warriors, exert all your
strength, paddle hard!.13 The messengers told Montezuma what happened which left him
troubled, especially troubled about the surplus of Spanish resources, such as food, weapons
(cannon), and dogs.14 When Moteuccoma heard it, he was greatly afraid; he seemed to faint

11 Ibid, 114.
12 Ibid, 95.
13 Ibid, 96.
14 Ibid, 96, 97.

away, he grew concerned and disturbed.15 In the eyes of the Aztecs, the conquest of Mexico was
extremely threatening. Montezuma and the rest of the Aztec nobility realized that the Spanish
have the force and the resources to topple the regime. The fact that Montezuma was immediately
fearful of the Spanish proves how much the Spanish intimated him. After encountering the
Spanish upon arrival, the Aztecs quickly came to realize that it was the beginning of the end for
the empire and that they needed to do something to prevent the regime from toppling.
In conclusion, the Spanish conquistadors were threatening to all under the autonomy of the Aztec
Empire. After examining the sources, it could be concluded that the Spanish were feared by
peasants and emperor alike. The Cholulans were talked into creating a surprise attack to dispose
of the Spanish out of fear for the empire. The Tlaxcalans witnessed first hand what battling the
Spanish was like. After realizing that the Spanish military was stronger, the Tlaxcalans made a
truce in hopes of benefiting from the collapse of the Aztec empire. The Aztec nobility, more
specifically Montezuma, were rattled when learning of the sheer abundance of resources and
power the Spanish were in possession of. City-states like the Tlaxcala and the Cholulans were
threatened by the presence of powerful foreigners. Even the Aztec nobility were in fear of the
immediate future, for they knew the Aztec Empire would fall at the hands of the Spanish. The
European force threatened the authority of the Aztec Empire, something that was unprecedented.
The Spanish made everyone, including the mighty Montezuma, bow to the crown. Despite the
unsolved debate over the morality of the Spanish conquest, the Spanish involvement in the Aztec
Empire forever shaped the culture and history of Mexico and of Latin America.

15 Ibid, 97.

Bibliography
Stuart B. Schwartz, ed. Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the
Conquest of Mexico (Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2000).