HIST/LAS 3401W: Study Guide for Cortés, Díaz and Florentine Codex (Primary Docs)

The readings for Week 4 present different perspectives on the Spanish Invasion of the Mexica empire and the capture of its capital, Tenochtitlan. Although Díaz wrote much later than Cortés, he wrote in a more narrative style and you may find it easier to start with him.

Hernán Cortés wrote a series of letters to King Charles of Spain during the course of his expedition in Mexico. More than mere reports, these letters were also Cortés’s attempt to win official authorization for his leadership of the conquest. Cortés had essentially mutinied against the authority of the Governor of Cuba and gone off on his own; therefore, he had to write about his actions in a way that would make them seem legal and legitimate in the eyes of the king (see the Requerimiento and Townsend, p. 86). Selections include his meeting with Moctezuma from his second letter (written in October of 1520 after his escape from Tenochtitlan and while preparing the siege) and his version of the Spanish setback during the siege from the third letter (written in May of 1522).

Bernal Díaz de Castillo, one of the soldiers who fought under Cortés, wrote his own account in old age in the 1560s (though it was not published in Spain until 1632). He wanted to provide a perspective that did not focus solely on the accomplishments of Cortés, and to defend the rights of Spanish soldiers to just recompense for their services. He was an eye-witness and participant, but could not have been present at every meeting and battle. (Spanish selections from Diaz in two PDFs.)

The Mexica accounts are drawn from the Florentine Codex. This work was compiled by Franciscan missionary Bernardino de Sahagun beginning in the 1540s and based upon interviews that he and his Nahua assistants conducted with indigenous inhabitants of central Mexico (most of them men of the former elite), particularly Tlatelolco. These informants may have told certain stories and not others knowing that a Spanish friar would read them, and their memories of the conquest may have been influenced by both the passage of time and indigenous historical traditions. Like Díaz, Mexica warriors would have been eye-witnesses to many events in Tenochtitlan but would have heard stories about others. (See Townsend, pp. 46-48 and the introduction in Mesoamerican Voices, pp. 23-24 and 26 for more on the Florentine Codex.) If you are reading in English, be sure to download both selections from the Florentine Codex (the second from the book Broken Spears).

Selections from all three sources include the meeting of Moctezuma and Cortés and a particular battle during the siege in which the Mexica were able to capture many Spaniards. In addition, I have included Díaz’s description of doña Marina and one of his accounts from the founding of the city of Vera Cruz. English selections from the Florentine Codex also include events prior to the Spaniards’ entrance into Tenochtitlan.

Read these accounts at various levels:

1. First, focusing on the narration of events they present, where do their accounts seem to coincide and on what details do they differ?  What might be the reasons behind the discrepancies in the various sources

2. Secondly, consider the larger perspective behind the choice of what “facts” to present. What was the worldview of each author (or authors), and what motives may they have had for presenting a particular viewpoint?

3. Finally, considering the varied perspectives of each source, in addition to Townsend’s analysis in Malinztin’s Choices, can you begin to construct an account of how the conquest unfolded and which factors might explain the ultimate Spanish victory?

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