Exercises on the Conquest of the Aztecs

The clumsy escape of the Spaniards from the Aztec city of Tenochtitlán, which took place at the turn of June 30 to July 1, 1520, resulted in the death of half of Hernán Cortés' men and became known as :

a) The night of defeat.

b) God's punishment.

c) The sad night.

d) Montezuma's Revenge.

e) Montezuma's punishment.

The Aztec capital was a grandiose city with thousands of inhabitants and was located on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco. The final siege of the Aztec capital by the Spaniards lasted for months and, after fierce fighting, the Spaniards conquered this city, which was called:

a) Cholula

b) Cempoala

c) Malinch

d) Tenochtitlan

e) Nahuatl

The conquest of the Aztec Empire by the Spaniards, in 1521, was only possible, in large part, because of the alliances that were made with indigenous peoples enemies of the Aztecs. To conquer the Aztecs, the Spaniards had the great help of:

a) Tlaxcaltecas and Totonacas.

b) Mayans and Incas.

c) Zapotecs and Totonacas.

d) Tlaxcaltecs and Zapotecs.

e) Olmexians and Mayans.

The Spanish expedition that left Cuba in 1519 and, in 1521, dominated the Aztec Empire, after conquering the city of Tenochtitlán, was led by:

a) Francisco Pizarro.

b) Hernán Cortés.

c) Christopher Columbus.

d) Amerigo Vespucci.

e) Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca.

Letter C

The Sad Night (La Noche Triste in Spanish) happened when the Spaniards chose to flee from Tenochtitlán in 1520. The city went into rebellion after Cortés was away for a few months to resolve some issues in the city of Vera Cruz. When he returned, he found the city in a state of chaos, with the Aztecs attacking the Spaniards. During the rebellion, Montezuma, the Aztec emperor, was killed, and the Spaniards, when trying to flee during the dawn, were surprised in an attack that killed half of Cortés' soldiers.

Letter D

The city of Tenochtitlán was built by Mexica people on an island located in the middle of Lake Texcoco, around 1325. Aztec legends tell that the city was built there after the Mexicas received a sign from Huitzilopochtli (main Aztec god). The seat city of the Aztec Empire was densely populated and, at the time of the arrival of the Spaniards, had more than 200 thousand inhabitants.

Letter A

The two peoples who allied with the Spaniards in the fight against the Aztecs were Totonacas and Tlaxcaltecas. The Totonacas were one of the first peoples that the Spaniards had contact with when they arrived on the Yucatan Peninsula. In the vicinity of the Totonaca city of Cempoala, Cortés determined the construction of the city of Veracruz. The Tlaxcaltecs were an independent people who constantly went to war with the Aztecs. After fighting Cortés' forces, Tlaxcaltecas were convinced to ally with the Spaniards and fight the Aztecs.

Letter B

The leader of the expedition that carried out the conquest of the Aztec Empire was Hernán Cortés, a Spanish nobleman born in the region of Extremadura, Spain. Cortés' expedition left Cuba with approximately 500 men, who settled in the Yucatan Peninsula region. From there, they began the process that resulted in the conquest of the Aztecs. Cortés is credited with having understood the characteristics of the region's power structure and used them to his advantage.