Great Batle of Otumba
Great Battle of Otumba:
The Turning Point for the Spanish
Isidro Gurrola
History MO4
Jaime Soto
March 12, 2008
Introduction The Battle at Otumba is considered one of the turning points in the conquest of Mexico, giving the conquistadors a victory at a time when the Aztecs could have destroyed them. A statue of Cortés, with the name Otumba on it, stands in the conquistador’s home province of Medellin, Spain, to recall the event (Barghusen 2000:59). The Battle of Otumba Mexico would occur a few days later after La Noche Triste, "the sad night", as the conquistadors were fleeing towards their Native allies at Tlaxcala. It was fought on the 8th of July 1520, between 200 Spaniards, with some thousands of Tlaxcalan’s, under Cortés, and a force of about 200,000 Aztecs. Cortés was able to conquer the Aztecs for several very different reasons such as arriving at a fateful time in the Aztec Calendar associated with the great god Quetzalcoatl myth, the Aztec's cruel tribute system, Doña Marina “La Malinche” and Geronimo de Aguilar as translators, the Spanish military dominance, Cortés’ Indian allies, the smallpox epidemic, and wars being fought on completely different terms all contributed in the Spanish success. In combination these reasons gave Cortés the upper hand in his conquest of Mexico. According to Prescott (1966:271), yet it was undoubtedly, one of the most remarkable victories ever achieved in the New World. The purpose of this paper is to look at the history of the Battle at Otumba, as well as the psychological warfare tactics, weapons, and military leadership.
Aztec Customs – Warfare Tactic Hassig (as cited in Vigil, 1998, p. 52) noted that many Aztec customs weakened the Indian cause and added to the Spanish advantage. For instance, Cortés was captured by Aztec warriors on several occasions but was not slain. This transpired because the Indian goal in warfare was to capture, not
The Turning Point for the Spanish
Isidro Gurrola
History MO4
Jaime Soto
March 12, 2008
Introduction The Battle at Otumba is considered one of the turning points in the conquest of Mexico, giving the conquistadors a victory at a time when the Aztecs could have destroyed them. A statue of Cortés, with the name Otumba on it, stands in the conquistador’s home province of Medellin, Spain, to recall the event (Barghusen 2000:59). The Battle of Otumba Mexico would occur a few days later after La Noche Triste, "the sad night", as the conquistadors were fleeing towards their Native allies at Tlaxcala. It was fought on the 8th of July 1520, between 200 Spaniards, with some thousands of Tlaxcalan’s, under Cortés, and a force of about 200,000 Aztecs. Cortés was able to conquer the Aztecs for several very different reasons such as arriving at a fateful time in the Aztec Calendar associated with the great god Quetzalcoatl myth, the Aztec's cruel tribute system, Doña Marina “La Malinche” and Geronimo de Aguilar as translators, the Spanish military dominance, Cortés’ Indian allies, the smallpox epidemic, and wars being fought on completely different terms all contributed in the Spanish success. In combination these reasons gave Cortés the upper hand in his conquest of Mexico. According to Prescott (1966:271), yet it was undoubtedly, one of the most remarkable victories ever achieved in the New World. The purpose of this paper is to look at the history of the Battle at Otumba, as well as the psychological warfare tactics, weapons, and military leadership.
Aztec Customs – Warfare Tactic Hassig (as cited in Vigil, 1998, p. 52) noted that many Aztec customs weakened the Indian cause and added to the Spanish advantage. For instance, Cortés was captured by Aztec warriors on several occasions but was not slain. This transpired because the Indian goal in warfare was to capture, not
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