Contradiction and Inconsistency in the Conquest of the Aztecs

The inconsistencies in the Aztec view of the Spanish turn out to be fatal. Though their “…ancestors had long ago prophesied” that men like this would arrive, the Aztecs were entirely ignorant of what was to come, having “never seen horses or men like us before.” This ignorance shaped the Aztec response (or rather, responses) to the Spanish invasion.

Motecuhzoma’s envoys attempted to “keep the Spaniards from approaching…”. The Tlaxcaltecas, however, made alliances with the Spanish to defeat the Cholula. Others simply “knelt down and adored them as sons of the Sun”, with mass baptisms following. This wide array of contrasting responses to the Spanish question led to the division of what might have otherwise been a unified Aztec force.

Another contradiction in the Aztec response was equally damaging. Though the Aztecs were quick to grasp that the Spanish, with their “flashes of lightning”, were technologically superior on the battlefield, many still held onto the dogmatic belief that any invaders would be easily defeated. The Cholultecas placed “such confidence in their idol Quetzalcoatl that they believed no human power could defeat or harm them”, and thus were entirely unprepared to do battle when the time came.

The Spanish understanding of the Aztecs was also full of holes and inconsistency, yet, unlike in the case of the Aztecs, did not lead to division and complacency – in fact it led to quite the opposite. One major inconsistency with the Spanish view is that, though they recognized their incredible numerical inferiority, they held onto a distinct confidence in their superiority as both religious and military men. When Diaz writes, “we were scarcely four hundred strong” it is clear that the Spanish column could be wiped out with ease; indeed, he is wary “of entering the city of Mexico, since they would kill us as soon as they had us inside.”

In direct contrast to this fear of certain and imminent death, however, the Spanish still held a belief that they were better than their foes, writing explicitly that the “hearts of men are very fickle, especially among the Indians…”. The self-assumed religious superiority of the Spanish is even more evident, when Cortes says to Montezuma, “what [he and his people] worshiped as gods were not gods but devils”. This Spanish belief in their own superiority was essential to their choice to continue to act aggressively, yet the contradictory fear of numerical inferiority kept them cautious: they placed their “artillery in a convenient spot… we were warned to be very much on the alert.”