THE SPANISH TREASURE

Okay.  Enough about female pirates.  it's crazy to think that some of my fellow shipmates might actually be women posing as men.  I guess there is  an adventurous side to all of us!  Adventurous or no, it's bad luck bringin' a woman on board.  Well, speaking of adventures, I think it is time I told the story of my favorite Spanish pirate of all time, Hernan Cortes.  There are so many stories floatin' around about this pirate.  Of course, he lived a long time ago, but, like all great pirates, we never forget the heroes...

 Hernan Cortes was born in 1485 already a soldier, fighting for his life.  On the whole, he was a sickly child and, therefore, completely determined to live his life in an adventurous way.  After a sickness kept him in Valencia in 1504, he was allowed to set sail for Santo Domingo where he became an employee of Diego Valasquez.  He soon became noted for his amiable countenance and for his skill in military matters.  This would lead to many exciting military opportunities for Cortes.  For example, in 1511 he was sent to subdue and colonize Cuba.  Many things were happening for Cortes around this time. Mexico had just recently been discovered. He now had a wife to deal with and, to top it all off, Cortes was now dealing with an incurable desire for gold.  Fortunately, for Cortes, an opportunity for glory soon arose.

Late in the year of 1518, Cortes was ordered by Velasquez to conquer the newly discovered area of Mexico.  He happily accepted his new mission and hastened to gather a crew.  Altogether, he left with ten vessels, 550 Spaniards, 300 Indians, a few black slaves, 10 brass guns, a dozen horses, and some falconets.  He was all set.  Or so he thought.  During the time Cortes was traveling to Mexico, Velasquez was sending messages to him ordering him to recall the expedition.  Cortes just ignored the messages.  He landed on the shores of Mexico in March of 1519.  Eventually, through tactics worthy of wartime, he took possession of the city of Tabasco.

With a conquest under his belt, Cortes felt confident in taking over other cities.  In fact, he sought to take over Mexico City, which was under control of the fierce ruler, Montezuma.  Once again, luck was on Cortes' side.  By the time he reached the city of Mexico, the natives there had already heard of him.  Apparently, they liked what they heard, for he was received with great celebration and he was believed to be a descendant of the sun.  They gave him a palace to live in, which was at once fortified by Cortes.  During this time, the Spanish had always been considered immortal in the eyes of the Mexicans.  So, of course Cortes became upset when he heard that one of his native cities had been attacked.  The Mexicans became undeceived by the Spaniards upon the receipt of one of the heads of the Spanish soldier's.  Cortes, upon hearing this news, immediately went to the palace of Montezuma and took him prisoner.  He also captured the Mexicans who had participated the attack on Vera Cruz and burned them alive in front of the imperial palace.  For the ultimate humiliation, Cortes forced Montezuma to pledge his allegiance to the king of Spain.

Though the battle did not end here, Cortes eventually gained control over Mexico in August of 1521.  Velasquez appointed him governor and captain-general of Mexico.  The power hungry nature of Cortes was only strengthened by this new appointment and he soon became an enemy among those he was trying to control.  His power waned and, after the discovery of the peninsula of California in 1536, Cortes returned to Europe, hoping to confound his enemies.  He was met with disillusionment and coldness.  No one wanted to hear of his adventures and he could scarcely obtain an audience.  We remember him as being the one who proudly said, "I am a man who has given you more provinces than your ancestors left you cities."  He retired to Seville, where he passed the remainder of his days in solitude.  He died in 1547.

Even though I guess you could say Hernan Cortes was more of an adventurer than a pirate, it doesn't matter to me.  In fact, us pirates look back on the days of Cortes as proud accomplishments in the history of our blood-thirsty world.  He may have died alone, but his memory always keeps us company.





BIBLIOGRAPHY

1.    This story was told in my own words from information I found at Virtuology.com's Museum of History, Hall of Exploreres.  This website seemed to be the most credible in telling the story of Hernan Cortes.

Websource:   http://www.virtualology.com/virtualmuseumofhistory/hallofexplorers/HERNANDOCORTES.COM/

2.    The image I used on this webpage of Hernan Cortes was found at a wonderful site created by Antonio Delacova, a professor of Latin American Studies at the Rose Hulman Institute of Technology in Indiana.  The images found here are the best I could find on Hernan Cortes.

Websource:
http://www.rose-hulman.edu/~delacova/cortes.htm

OU Home | Disclaimer | Copyright | Equal Opportunity | OU Web Policy