Moctezuma - History Lab

Conquest of Mexico. Moctezuma’s reception

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:33 +0000

The image depicts the retinue formed by the Emperor Montezuma and his nobles, organised to meet Hernán Cortés and welcome him as he entered the city of Mexico-Tenochtitlán, the Aztec capital. This work is part of a set of 24 panels produced using the technique of ‘enconchado’. This passage of the Conquest of Mexico was narrated by numerous chroniclers, who served as inspiration for the authors of several pictorial series in which the images depict the most significant events of the story. The series is signed in 1698 by two painters who lived in Mexico City, the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain: Juan and Miguel González, the most famous artists in the production of enconchados. The entire ensemble was commissioned for King Charles II and from the beginning of the 18th century it became part of the royal collections. In the enconchados, the pictorial layer is combined with fragments of mother-of-pearl arranged on a preparation of plaster applied to a wooden support, often covered with canvas. The production of this type of work can be traced to Mexico between the mid-17th and 18th centuries.

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Codex Techialoyan of Cuajimalpa (anonymous)

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:09 +0000

After the discovery of the new lands on the American continent, from the second voyage of Columbus onwards, the conquest of the Indian territories progressed through modern times. At the end of the 15th century, the indigenous lands were incorporated into the monarchy. Hernán Cortés arrived in Cozumel in 1518, receiving Moctezuma, ruler of Tenochtitlán in 1519. Once Veracruz was founded, Cortés marched to conquer the Aztec Empire with 400 Spaniards, 15 horses and 1,400 Totonac warriors (it is important to remember the conquistador’s alliances with the Mayan people to expel the warlike Aztecs), where he defeated Xicotencatl and established an alliance with the Tlaxcalan people. The impact of Dutch and English propaganda on the Spanish conquest of the Americas should be noted, as they warned of the bloodthirsty nature of the Castilians. It is also important to highlight issues such as the diseases brought from Europe that affected the Indians, the impact of legends and the arrival of divinity for the Mayans, as well as the war context that pitted Mayan and Aztec peoples against each other, leading to political alliances to defeat the latter. The difference between the indigenous peoples and the Spaniards was notorious and evident. The latter advanced in an organised manner and with metal protections with the morrion on their heads, while the American tribes had tanned leather protections.

The post Codex Techialoyan of Cuajimalpa (anonymous) first appeared on History Lab.

Hernán Cortés and the Conquest of Mexico

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:11 +0000

A 7-minute video in which the figure of Hernán Cortés and the Conquest of Mexico are briefly analysed. It is essential to revisit the events that ancient chronicles have left us. What happened between 1519 and the fall of the Mexica Empire constitutes the first Hispanic continental advance in the New World. These events have lent themselves to various mythologies that present the Spaniards as a sort of supermen in shining armour, but also as a predatory band that wiped out an arcadian world. Iván Vélez, with great acuity and critical sense, analyses the complex warlike, juridical, economic and religious aspects that accompanied the conquest, but also the political order that succeeded it. A raw, exciting and extraordinary story about one of the greatest adventures the world has ever seen.

The post Hernán Cortés and the Conquest of Mexico first appeared on History Lab.

Hernan

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:27:23 +0000

Historical series that narrates the conquest of Mexico by Hernán Cortés, from a non-hagiographic perspective. The historical reconstruction is good, but the continuous jumps in time in the script make it difficult for viewers who do not know the history of the conquest to understand the events. Óscar Jaenada’s performance triggered very conflicting opinions. At the beginning of 2021, only one season has been broadcast, consisting of 8 episodes. There will be a second one, which is pending broadcast.

The post Hernan first appeared on History Lab.