Answer: Like other conquistadors, Hernando Cortés was eager to win riches and glory. He had heard rumors of a fabulously wealthy Native American empire in Mexico. With only about 600 soldiers and 16 horses, Cortés set sail for Mexico in 1519 in search of gold. Moctezuma (mok tuh zoo muh), the Aztec emperor who ruled over much of Mexico, heard disturbing reports of a large floating on the sea. It was filled with white men with long, thick beards. Aztec sacred writings predicted that a powerful white skinned god would come from the east to rule the Aztec. The strangers were approaching Tenochtitlán (tay nawch teet LAHN), the Aztec capital, which is now Mexico City. Moctezuma decided to welcome them as his guests. Cortés took advantage of Moctezuma’s invitation. Shrewdly, Cortés had already begun to win the support of other Indians who resented Aztec rule. One of his trusted advisers was an Indian woman the Spanish called Dona Marina. She gave Cortés valuable information about the Aztec and acted as a translator and negotiator. On November 8, 1519, Cortés marched into Tenochtitlán. The city was much larger than any Spanish city at that time. Thousands upon thousands of Aztecs turned out to see the astonishing newcomers riding horses. Díaz recalled: “Who could count the multitude of men, women and children which had come out on the roofs, in their boats on the canals, or in the streets, to see us?”—Bernal Díaz del Castillo, True History of the Conquest of New Spain At first, Cortés was friendly to Moctezuma. Soon, however, he made the emperor a prisoner in his own city. Tensions mounted in Tenochtitlán over the next half year. Finally, the Aztec drove out the Spanish. Their victory, however, was brief. Aided by people whom the Aztec had conquered, Cortés recaptured the city. In the end, the Spanish destroyed Tenochtitlán, and Moctezuma was killed. The Aztec empire had fallen. Another conquistador, Francisco Pizarro (pee sahr oh), set his sights on the Incan empire. Pizarro sailed down the Pacific coast of South America with fewer than 200 Spanish soldiers. In 1532, he captured the Incan emperor Atahualpa (ah tuh WAHL puh) and later executed him. Without the leadership of Atahualpa, Incan resistance collapsed. By 1535, Pizarro controlled much of the Incan empire.
