With Cortes gone, the hot-headed Pedro de Alvarado commanded Tenochtitlan with only 100 soldiers. Fearing an Aztec ambush, Alvarado struck first. The Aztecs responded by closing off the exits from Tenochtitlan. Cortes returned on June 25 and forced Moctezuma to plead for peace. Moctezuma was killed as he spoke to the masses and the Aztecs attacked. As they fled back to Tlaxcala, between 600 and 1,000 Spanish and several thousand Tlaxcalans were killed.
Warfare is a fascinating subject. Despite the dubious morality of using violence to achieve personal or political aims. It remains that conflict has been used to do just that throughout recorded history.
ReplyDeleteYour article is very well done, a good read.