The conquest of new Spain
by Bernal Diaz · first published 1963
64% recommend36% neutral
Why HN recommends it
First-hand account by a soldier who served under Cortés, valued for its vivid detail of the fighting and for showing how the Aztec world looked to those who encountered it; useful for anyone interested in the conquest.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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Despite the many issues, I'd still suggest anyone interested in the Aztec empire at the time of the Spanish conquest to read The Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Díaz del Castillo. Díaz was present not only on the Cortés expedition, but on the earlier expeditions led by Córdoba and Grijalva. The article mentions, plausibly so, that the issue of human…
on “Hundreds of skulls reveal massive scale of human sacrifice in Aztec capital” ↗…a specific culture. Morality is not a universal. For example, some human societies practiced cannibalism, even advanced societies like the Aztecs. There is a book that I love, "The true history of the conquest of new Spain", written by one of Hernan Cortez' conquistadores, Bernal Díaz del Castillo [1]. In the book, he describes the horror of the Spanish at the everyday cannibalism of human sacrifices by Aztecs and also…
on “Beyond Meat signs global supply deals with McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut” ↗…territory for Spain as of high importance, but their understanding of the world was more complex than what you describe. I really recommend reading Bernal Díaz del Castillo‘a firsthand account of the conquest of “New Spain” to get an idea of how these people viewed the world!
on “Who Did the Maya Sacrifice?” ↗…something like half of the Spaniards were killed in the street fighting in what is today Mexico City, both in the initial escape after negotiations went downhill and the return with a large army. The Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Diaz contains an interesting account of the fighting that took place, and he makes it clear that their allies were essential to their victory. It's a fascinating read.
on “Why was it believed that the Aztecs greeted Cortés as a deity?” ↗You probably won’t find it under that name though. The title in Spanish is La Verdadera Historia de la Conquista de la Nueva España, or in English, The True History of the Conquest of New Spain. It’s especially fun to compare it to the accounts written by historians in Spain who had never been to New Spain, and didn’t know anything about anything.
on “Ask HN: Interesting (Non software) books?” ↗Check out more history of natives' genocides in the Americas: ==== "A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies" - Paperback https://amzn.to/2dnhEhE - Kindle https://amzn.to/2dngoLi ---- "The Conquest of New Spain" - Hardcover https://amzn.to/2duUoKt - Kindle https://amzn.to/2d1NWyU
on “Descendants of Newfoundland’s “extinct” Beothuk Live on in Iceland (2011)” ↗Also "The Conquest of New Spain" .. written as a first hand account by a soldier for Cortes. Obviously cruel and exploitative what the conquistadors did, but it's an example how fact can be sometimes more incredible than fiction. How…
on “3D reconstruction of the capital of the Aztec empire” ↗I don't recall that being mentioned in Bernal Diaz del Castillo's "The Conquest of New Spain". I've also read "The Broken Spears", an Aztec account of the conquest which was recorded once surviving members of the Conquest or their descendants had learned written language. In both accounts, it…
on “Why was it believed that the Aztecs greeted Cortés as a deity?” ↗I read Bernal Diaz's Conquest of New Spain, and got a very similar impression, bolstered by the fact Diaz was a first-hand participant, and very proud of all this stuff. The conquistadors were also pretty horrible to eachother, so I got more the…
on “Contested Legacy of the Conquistadors” ↗…calmecacs[1] where they learned of war and ruling, and the commoner (macehuali) class also having mandatory military training in the telpochcalli[2]. Also, from what I've read in the True History Of The Conquest of New Spain by conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo, who participated in it, is that they generally ditched their metal armors rather quickly due to the heat, and instead adopting the indigenous cotton armors,…
on “Why the Bronze Age Collapsed” ↗In The True History of the Conquest of New Spain [1] (a first-hand account of Hernán Cortés' expedition in Mexico, that brought down Monetzuma's Aztec empire) there is a passage where the author, discusses the matter of human sacrifice and cannibalism…
on “A lost language encoded in Inca cords” ↗…Diaz, he no doubt has few illusions about medieval europeans. They literally did stuff like murdering fat people so they could use their fat to treat the wounds of their horses. Nobody could read 'The Conquest of New Spain' and come away with the impression that Cortez was anything but an absolutely awful, atrociously evil person.
on “Ancient DNA sheds light on what happened to the Taino, the native Caribbeans” ↗…imbalance to achieve a staggering military force and diplomatic multiplier. We don’t have to wonder why the conquistadors in modern day Mexico were so amazing. > All of this happened in, like, 15 pages of Conquest of New Spain. Note that the author, Bernal Dias, was a member of Cortes’s expedition and an outright loyalist of Cortes to the point of siding with him closely during the multiple stages of the Spanish expedition…
on “Conquest of the Incas” ↗