Cortés et la conquête du Mexique 1519-1521

In 1518, Velázquez put Cortés in command of an expedition to explore and secure the interior of Mexico for colonization. At the last minute, due to the old argument between the two, Velázquez changed his mind and revoked Cortés's charter. He ignored the orders and, in an act of open mutiny, went anyway in February 1519. He stopped in Trinidad, Cuba, to hire more soldiers and obtain more horses. Accompanied by about 11 ships, 500 men (including seasoned slaves), 13 horses, and a small number of cannon, Cortés landed on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mayan territory.

In May 1919, Cortés was ready to begin his march.

By July, he had captured and lost Tlaxcala, but had gained that people as an ally. With the native allied army at his rear, Cortés moved north.

In the last months of 1519, Cortés captured Tenochtitlan by surprise and when the Aztec emperor attempted to take back his capital city, the conquistadors held against all odds. It was now a race against time, could Cortés be reinforced before the city fell to another assault?

Late summer 1520, the Aztec emperor retakes his city as the spaniards marching to relieve Cortés are too late. Cortés survives but must hole up in a nearby fortress. 

In the following months, Cortés rejoin the rest of the Spaniards and prepares another attack on Tenochtitlan.

In July 1521, Cortés attacks, but most of his forces are tangled up with Aztec skirmishers on the way to Tenochtitlan. Nevertheless, with his crack spanish troops he attacks. The assault on the city fails and Cortés is killed, but his forces are mostly intact. Despite this failure, the Aztec empire has been crippled, yet it is a bitter stalemate for the Conquistadors.