History on Fire

EPISODE 21 - The Conquest Of Mexico (Part 2): The Dogs Of War

Added 2017-11-03 19:00:01 +0000 UTC

“My advice is not to allow into your house someone who will put you out of it.” —Cuitlahuac

“He added that we could look for no help or assistance except from God, for now we had no ships in which to return to Cuba. Therefore we must rely on our own good swords and stout hearts.” — Bernal Diaz

“We knew that they had come determined to leave none of us alive except those who were to be sacrificed to their idols.”— Bernal Diaz

In the 1500s, two highly militaristic peoples fueled by religious ideologies requiring bloodshed clashed with one another. This is the tale of what happened when a band of Spaniards run into the Mexica (Aztec) empire. By the time the dust will settle, out of the 25 million indigenous inhabitants of Mexico, little over a million will be left standing.

In this second episode:

The first battle ever featuring horses in Mexico
Enormous, angry dogs wearing armor and trained to eat human flesh
Malintzin and her choices
From slavery to becoming one of the most important women in Mexico
The tale of Quetzalcoatl
“If the Spaniards want to eat you, let them”
Apparently, the Spaniards don’t appreciate food sprinkled with a sauce of human blood
Rescuing five sacrificial victims before returning them to be sacrificed
Cortes deserved an Academy Award for best political theater
The Fat Chief
Cortes and his ships
Moctezuma and his Blues Brothers excuses
War and peace in Tlaxcala