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Approved For Teaching In The Classroom By The N.E.A. Narrated By Lorne Greene And Filmed In A Special Gold Film Process! ''Appointment With Destiny: Cortez And Montezuma: Conquest Of An Empire'' Presents, As Though It Were Filmed Live In Newsreel Format, The Unfolding History Of Cortez's Adventures In The New World, From His Arrival Off The Coast Of Mexico At Vera Cruz, Though His Military Conquests Against The Aztecs On His Way To Their Capitol City Of Tenochtitlan (Now Mexico City) To His Ignominious Retreat From The Capitol After The Tragic Death Of Montezuma, All The While Assisted By His Aztec Translator And Consort, The Princess Sold Into Slavery And Given As A Gift To Cortez. Known To History As Dona Marina (Special Gold Monochrome Process, 1971, 45 Minutes) PLUS 2 BONUSES: 1) ANCIENT WARRIORS: THE AZTECS, A Survey Of The Aztec Empire Of Montezuma Before, During And After The Spanish Conquest (Color, 1993, 24 Minutes), And 2) YOU THERE: MEXICO CITY: JUNE 30TH, 1520: THE DEATH OF MONTEZUMA AND THE NIGHT OF SORROWS: Hypothetical News Coverage Of The Death Of The King Of The Aztecs Montezuma And The Resulting Fighting Evacuation Of His Capital City Of Tenochtitlan By The Spanish Conquistadors Led By Hernan Cortez That Became Known As La Noche Triste (Spanish, "The Night Of Sorrows", literally "The Sad Night") In A Classic Episode Of The CBS News Historical Drama Radio Series Featuring Their Renowned Newscaster John Hollenbeck (Audio Only, May 1, 1949, 29 Minutes) -- All Presented In Our Highest DVD Quality MPEG Video Format At 9.1 MBPS As A MP4 Video Download Or Archival Quality All Regions Format DVD!

*August 27, 2026: Expanded With YOU THERE: THE DEATH OF MONTEZUMA AND THE NIGHT OF SORROWS!

*September 24, 2024: Updated And Upgraded: Updated With ANCIENT WARRIORS: THE AZTECS, And Upgraded From A Standard Format DVD To An Archival Quality Dual Layer Format DVD!


The Spanish Conquest Of The Aztec Empire, also known as The Conquest Of Mexico or The Spanish-Aztec War (1519-21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the events by Spanish conquistadors, their indigenous allies, and the defeated Aztecs. It was not solely a contest between a small contingent of Spaniards defeating the Aztec Empire but rather the creation of a coalition of Spanish invaders with tributaries to the Aztecs, and most especially the Aztecs' indigenous enemies and rivals. They combined forces to defeat the Mexica of Tenochtitlan over a two-year period. For the Spanish, the expedition to Mexico was part of a project of Spanish colonization of the New World after twenty-five years of permanent Spanish settlement and further exploration in the Caribbean. Following an earlier expedition to Yucatan led by Juan de Grijalva in 1518, Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes led an expedition (entrada) to Mexico. Two years later, in 1519, Cortes and his retinue set sail for Mexico. The Spanish campaign against the Aztec Empire had its final victory on 13 August 1521, when a coalition army of Spanish forces and native Tlaxcalan warriors led by Cortes and Xicotencatl the Younger captured the emperor Cuauhtemoc and Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire. The fall of Tenochtitlan marks the beginning of Spanish rule in central Mexico, and they established their capital of Mexico City on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. Cortes made alliances with tributary city-states (altepetl) of the Aztec Empire as well as their political rivals, particularly the Tlaxcaltecs and Tetzcocans, a former partner in the Aztec Triple Alliance. Other city-states also joined, including Cempoala and Huejotzingo and polities bordering Lake Texcoco, the inland lake system of the Valley of Mexico. Particularly important to the Spanish success was a multilingual (Nahuatl, a Maya dialect, and Spanish) indigenous slave woman, known to the Spanish conquistadors as Dona Marina, and generally as La Malinche. After eight months of battles and negotiations, which overcame the diplomatic resistance of the Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II to his visit, Cortes arrived in Tenochtitlan on 8 November 1519, where he took up residence with fellow Spaniards and their indigenous allies. When news reached Cortes of the death of several of his men during the Aztec attack on the Totonacs in Veracruz, Cortes claims that he took Motecuhzoma captive. Capturing the cacique or indigenous ruler was a standard operating procedure for Spaniards in their expansion in the Caribbean, so capturing Motecuhzoma had considerable precedent but modern scholars are skeptical that Cortes and his countrymen took Motecuhzoma captive at this time. They had great incentive to claim they did, owing to the laws of Spain at this time, but critical analysis of their personal writings suggest Motecuhzoma was not taken captive until a much later date. When Cortes left Tenochtitlan to return to the coast and deal with the threat of the expedition of Panfilo de Narvaez, Cortes left Pedro de Alvarado in charge of Tenochtitlan. Cortes left with a small army to the coast with the plan of attacking during the night. After defeating Narvaez's fleet, Cortes convinced most of his enemy's crew to go with him by promising great riches. Upon reaching Tenochtitlan, Cortes and the new enlarged force received the message that "the Aztec had risen against the Spanish garrison" during a religious celebration. Alvarado ordered his army to attack the unarmed crowd; he later claims that the Aztec's had used the celebration to cover up a counterattack. Cortes realized that the defeat was imminent and decided to escape yet, the Aztecs attacked. The Massacre is most known as the Noche Triste (the sorrowful night) about "400 Spaniards, 4000 native allies and many horses [were killed] before reaching the mainland". Moctezuma was killed, although the sources do not agree on who killed him. According to one account, when Moctezuma, now seen by the population as a mere puppet of the invading Spaniards, attempted to calm the outraged populace, he was killed by a projectile. According to an indigenous account, the Spanish killed Moctezuma. Cortes had returned to Tenochtitlan and his men fled the capital city during the Noche Triste in June 1520. The Spanish, Tlaxcalans and reinforcements returned a year later on 13 August 1521 to a civilization that had been weakened by famine and smallpox. This made it easier to conquer the remaining Aztecs. The Spaniards' victory is attributed to their technological advances and the Aztec empire's vulnerability due to the smallpox spread. As a result, the Aztec's tactics countering the Spaniard's advanced technology is understated. According to Hassig, "It is true that cannons, guns, crossbows, steel blades, horses and war dogs were advanced on the Aztecs' weaponry. But the advantage these gave a few hundred Spanish soldiers was not overwhelming." In the words of Restall, "Spanish weapons were useful for breaking the offensive lines of waves of indigenous warriors, but this was no formula for conquest... rather, it was a formula for survival, until Spanish and indigenous reinforcements arrived." The integration of the indigenous allies, essentially, those from Tlaxcala and Texcoco, into the Spanish army played a crucial role in the conquest, yet other factors paved the path for the Spaniards' success. For instance, the Spaniards' timing of entry, the compelling ideologies of both groups, and the Spanish unfamiliarity with the Aztec Empire. Therefore, the Spaniards lacked a sense of danger and power structure within the empire. "A direct attack on a city as mighty as Tenochtitlan was unlikely and unexpected" from the enemy empires. As well, it was very uncommon that an attacking army would come unannounced. In addition, aside from the infantry and the allies' role in the Spanish conquest, cavalry was the "arm of decision in the conquest" and "the key ingredient in the Spanish forces". Many of those on the Cortes expedition of 1519 had never seen combat before, including Cortes. A whole generation of Spaniards later participated in expeditions in the Caribbean and Tierra Firme (Central America), learning strategy and tactics of successful enterprises. The Spanish conquest of Mexico had antecedents with established practices. The fall of the Aztec Empire was the key event in the formation of the Spanish Empire overseas, with New Spain, which later became Mexico.

June 30-July 1, 1520: The Spanish Colonization Of The Americas: Indigenous Rebellions In Mexico And Central America: The Spanish Conquest Of The Aztec Empire (The Conquest Of Mexico, The Spanish-Aztec War (1519-1521), The Conquest Of Tenochtitlan, The Conquest Of Mexico-Tenochtitlan): La Noche Triste (Spanish, "The Night Of Sorrows", literally "The Sad Night"): -- #DOTD: #RIP: Spanish conquistadors led by Hernan Cortes fight their way out of Tenochtitlan in what became known as La Noche Triste, an important event during the Spanish conquest of Mexico. Cortes, his conquistadors and native allies were driven out of the Mexican capital at Tenochtitlan following the death of the Aztec king Moctezuma II, who had been held hostage by the Spaniards. Various sources give dates ranging from June 30 to July 4, a problem further confounded by the use of the Julian calendar in Europe at this time, which had diverged from the true (solar) date by almost 12 days. In June 1520, news from the Gulf coast reached Cortes that a party of Spaniards much larger than his had been sent by Governor Velazquez of Cuba to arrest Cortes for insubordination. Leaving Tenochtitlan in the care of his trusted lieutenant, Pedro de Alvarado, Cortes marched to the coast, where he defeated the Cuban expedition led by Panfilo de Narvaez sent to capture him. When Cortes told the defeated soldiers about the riches of Tenochtitlan, they agreed to join him. Reinforced by Narvaez's men, Cortes headed back to Tenochtitlan. During Cortes' absence, Pedro de Alvarado in Tenochtitlan obtained information that the Aztecs were planning to attack him. In response, de Alvarado ordered a preemptive slaughter of Aztec nobles and priests celebrating a festival in the city's main temple. In retaliation, the Aztecs laid siege to the Spanish compound, in which Moctezuma was still being held captive. By the time Cortes returned to Tenochtitlan in late June, the Aztecs had elected a new Hueyi Tlatoani (ruler) named Cuitlahuac. Cortes ordered Moctezuma to address his people from a terrace in order to persuade them to stop fighting and to allow the Spaniards to leave the city in peace. The Aztecs, however, jeered at Moctezuma, and pelted him with stones and darts. By Spanish accounts, he was killed in this assault by the Mexica people, though the Mexica people claim he had been killed instead by the Spanish. With Moctezuma dead, Cortes and Alvarado knew they were in a precarious position. Under constant attack, and with gunpowder, food, and water in short supply, Cortes decided to break out of the city by night. In order to put the Aztecs off their guard, he sent messengers asking for a one-week ceasefire, at the end of which the Spaniards would return any treasure of which they were in possession and would be permitted to leave the city peacefully. Since the Aztecs had damaged bridges on four of the eight causeways into the island city, the Spaniards devised a portable bridge they could use in order to cross any unspanned sections of water. Cortes ordered that as much of the accumulated gold and other booty as was feasible be packed and carried away, and invited the Spanish soldiers to take and carry away as much as they wished of the remainder. This invitation would lead to the demise of many soldiers who, overburdened with treasure, found it impossible to navigate the causeways and other obstacles encountered on the way out of the city. On the night of July 1, 1520, Cortez's large army left their compound and headed west, toward the Tlacopan causeway. The causeway was apparently unguarded, and the Spaniards made their way out of their complex unnoticed, winding their way through the sleeping city under the cover of a rainstorm. Before reaching the causeway, they were noticed by Aztec warriors known as the Eagle Warriors, who sounded the alarm. First by a woman drawing water, and then by the priest of Huitzilopochtli from atop Templo Mayor. The fighting was ferocious. As the Spaniards and their native allies reached the causeway, hundreds of canoes appeared in the waters alongside to harry them. The Spaniards fought their way across the causeway in the rain. Weighed down by gold and equipment, some of the soldiers lost their footing, fell into the lake, and drowned. Amid a vanguard of horsemen, Cortes pressed ahead and reached dry land at Tacuba, leaving the rest of the expedition to fend for itself in the treacherous crossing. Seeing the wounded survivors straggle into the village, Cortes and his horsemen turned back to the causeway, where they encountered Pedro de Alvarado, unhorsed and badly wounded, in the company of a handful of Spaniards and Tlaxcaltecas. According to Bernal Diaz del Castillo, it was at this point that tears came to Cortes' eyes, as he realized the extent of the debacle. Cortes, Alvarado and the strongest and most skilled of the men had managed to fight their way out of Tenochtitlan, although they were all bloodied and exhausted. Cortes himself had been injured in the fighting. All of the artillery had been lost, as had most of the horses. The sources are not in agreement as to the total number of casualties suffered by the expedition. Cortes himself claimed that 154 Spaniards were lost along with over 2,000 native allies. Thoan Cano, another eyewitness to the event, said that 1170 Spaniards died, but this number probably exceeds the total number of Spaniards who took part in the expedition. Francisco Lopez de Gomara, who was not himself an eyewitness, estimated that 450 Spaniards and 4,000 allies died. Montezuma's son, Chimalpopoca (Moctezuma) was killed and the Tepanec prince Tlaltecatzin, King Cacamatzin, his three sisters and two brothers were also killed. Diaz states the Spaniards suffered 860 soldiers killed, which included those from the later Battle Of Otumba. The Tlaxcaltecas lost a thousand. The noncombatants attached to the expedition suffered terribly, 72 casualties, including five Spanish women. The few women who survived included La Malinche the interpreter, Dona Luisa, and Maria Estrada. The event was named La Noche Triste ("The Night of Sorrows") on account of the sorrow that Cortes and his surviving followers felt and expressed at the loss of life and treasure incurred in the escape from Tenochtitlan. Further battles awaited the Spaniards and their allies as they fought their way around the north end of Lake Zumpango. One week later, at the Battle Of Otumba, not far from Teotihuacan, they turned to fight the pursuing Aztecs, decisively defeating them - according to Cortes, because he slew the Aztec commander - and giving the Spaniards a small respite that allowed them to reach Tlaxcala. It was in Tlaxcala that Cortes plotted the siege of Tenochtitlan and the eventual destruction of the Aztec Empire.