What is the story of the conquest of New Spain?
The Conquest of New Spain, Mexico. By Bernal Diaz del Castillo (1495 – 1584) “The true story”, told by the eye witness, as being History as he has seen it and witnessed it. Hernando Cortez is the name of the leader of the expedition, commonly associated with New Spain, and Mexico, the ancient capital of the Aztec Empire.
When did Diaz del Castillo write the conquest of New Spain?
The Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Diaz Del Castillo was first published in 1632, but was written over 3 decades following the events it describes, which begin in the 1520s. Diaz Del Castillo died in 1582.
Why did Hernan Cortes write the true history of the conquest?
He wrote "The True History of the Conquest of New Spain" to defend the story of the common-soldier conquistador within the histories about the Spanish conquest of Mexico.
Did the Spaniards conquer Mexico?
But the Spaniards certainly did conquer Mexico; and that story, in all its blood and fire and cruelty, comes through vividly in the memoir of Bernal Díaz del Castillo, a work that has come down to us in this English translation as The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico.
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Who recorded the true history of Spanish conquest?
Bernal Díaz'sWe see the Spanish conquest of Mexico happening before our eyes in Bernal Díaz's graphic account. The True History of the Conquest of New Spain is one of the most disturbing books you will ever read. You know how it ends: the Spanish conquistadors (conquerors) defeat the Aztecs and colonise Mexico.
Where was the conquest of New Spain written?
GuatemalaFrom the original account written by Diaz at the age of 89 in Guatemala. He had accompanied the first two Spanish expeditions to Mexico, and the third, led by Cortez, which conquered Mexico.
Why did Bernal Diaz wrote The True History of the Conquest of New Spain?
He joined Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico and was with him as he marched on Tenochtitlan. At the age of seventy, he began to write his True History of the Conquest of New Spain. His intention was to remind the King of Spain of the heroism of the Spanish conquistadors who accompanied Cortés.
When did Bernal Diaz write the Conquest of New Spain?
In 1514 he visited Cuba and five years later accompanied Hernán Cortés to Mexico. In protest against the academic chronicles of sedentary historians, he wrote his Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España (1632; “True History of the Conquest of New Spain”; Eng. trans.
When did Castillo write his account?
Some version of his account circulated in central Mexico in the 1560s and 1570s, prior to its seventeenth-century publication.
When was the Florentine Codex written?
16th-centuryThe Florentine Codex is a 16th-century ethnographic research study in Mesoamerica by the Spanish Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún.
Why is Bernal Díaz del Castillo important?
Bernal Díaz del Castillo rose from impoverished origins to become an influential historian and powerful colonial official. His True History of the Conquest of New Spain detailed Hernán Cortés' 1519-1521 military expedition against the powerful Aztec Empire from the perspective of Díaz's fellow foot soldiers.
How did Bernal Díaz view the Aztecs?
From his almost lyrical descriptions of Tenochtitlán, it is clear that Bernal Díaz had high respect for Aztec political and social organization, for the skills and talents of Aztec workers and craftsmen, for the remarkable city that stood on pilings and built-up land in the middle of Lake Texcoco.
Who Was Bernal Diaz del Castillo exploring for and why was he exploring for them?
Bernal Díaz del Castillo (1495-1584) was a Spanish conqueror and chronicler. In 1514, he sailed to America with Pedro Árias Dávila to explore Central America. Then he was part of the three expeditions to explore Mexico: 1517: with Hernández de Córdoba.
When did Bernal Diaz del Castillo describe Tenochtitlan?
Bernal Diaz del Castillo, one of Cortés' men, describes Tenochtitlán: When we saw all those cities and villages built on water; and the other great towns on dry land, and that straight and level causeway leading to Mexico, we were astounded.
What was the fall of the native population of New Spain between 1492 and 1600?
During the first 100 years of Spanish rule, the Indian population of New Spain declined from an estimated 25 million to 1 million as a result of maltreatment, disease, and disruption of their cultures.
How does Las Casas feel about Spanish presence in the New World?
While the Pope had granted Spain sovereignty over the New World, de Las Casas argued that the property rights and rights to their own labor still belonged to the native peoples. Natives were subjects of the Spanish crown, and to treat them as less than human violated the laws of God, nature, and Spain.
Unabridged Translations
The True History of the Conquest of Mexico by Captain Bernal Diaz del Castillo, translated by Maurice Keatinge, London, 1800
External links
Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España. Tomo I, facsimile of 1939 edition, with introduction and notes by Joaquín Ramírez Cabañas, published Mexico City by Pedro Robredo; reproduced online at the Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes (Alicante, Spain, 2005) (in Spanish)
Who was the leader of the expedition to New Spain?
By Bernal Diaz del Castillo (1495 – 1584) “The true story”, told by the eye witness, as being History as he has seen it and witnessed it. Hernando Cortez is the name of the leader of the expedition, commonly associated with New Spain, and Mexico, the ancient capital of the Aztec Empire.
Who translated the Book of Mormon?
My interest in it was stimulated by the first-person narration of evidence that supports the origin of the "Book of Mormon", the book which was translated by Joseph Smith and published in. Barclay W. Conrad. Book: "The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico 1517-1521" by Bernal Diaz del Castillo.
