The wide area of dry land that borders the southern edge of the Sahara.
1519 (March 4): The Spaniards land in what is now Veracruz. The natives greet him with gifts. A contingent from Tenochtitlán also arrives with gifts. Cortes showed force and demonstrated his canons, terrifying the messengers.
Cortes sinks all the ships except one small vessel, and moves to the city-state of Tlaxcala. Generally speaking they begin on friendly terms.
The Spanish went on to Cholula. It's unclear what happened, but in the end many people in the city were killed by the Spanish.
1519 (Nov 8): Cortes and army arrives at Tenochtitlán, and begin on good terms. However, Cortes takes charge and demands tribute and some Roman Catholic shrines to replace the Aztec gods.
Cortes returns to the coast to defeat a rival Spanish army. The remaining soldiers join him.
The Aztecs revolt, driving the Spanish from the city. Cuitláhuac becomes emperor.
The Spanish go to Tlaxcala and make an alliance with them.
Most Aztec cities are conquered, and a siege of Tenochtitlán begins.
1521 (13 August): The last Aztec emperor, Cuauhtémoc, surrenders to Cortes.
Agricultural communities settled where they did because there was a water source near by for growing crops. It is very hard to grow plants or raise animals without a water source. People also settled near water sources so they could travel on ships and trade with other communities along the same water source. The people in the community also needed water to stay hydrated and to wash dirty clothes or to bathe.
The Preamble is the opening statement to the United States Constitution. The preamble explains the reasons why the Framers of the Constitution made our government a republic. By doing this, the founding fathers replaced the Articles of Confederation.
