Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano, 1st Marquess of the Valley of Oaxaca (/ɛərˈnɑːn kɔːrˈtɛs/ air-NAHN kor-TESS; Spanish: [eɾˈnaŋ koɾˈtes ðe monˈroj i piˈθaro altamiˈɾano]; December 1485 – December 2, 1547) was a Spanish conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of what is now mainland Mexico under the rule of the king of Castile in the early 16th century. Cortés was part of the generation of Spanish explorers and conquistadors who began the first phase of the Spanish colonization of the Americas.
Hernán Cortés | |
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18th-century portrait of Cortés based on the one sent by the conqueror to Paolo Giovio, which has served as a model for many of his representations since the 16th century | |
| 1st Governor of New Spain | |
| In office 13 August 1521 – 24 December 1521 | |
| Monarch | Charles I of Spain |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Cristóbal de Tapia |
| In office 30 December 1521 – 12 October 1524 | |
| Preceded by | Cristóbal de Tapia |
| Succeeded by | Triumvirate: Alonso de Estrada Rodrigo de Albornoz Alonso de Zuazo |
| In office 25 June 1526 – 3 July 1526 | |
| Preceded by | Alonso de Estrada Rodrigo de Albornoz |
| Succeeded by | Luis Ponce de León |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Hernando Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano December 1485 Medellín, Castile |
| Died | December 2, 1547 (aged 61–62) Castilleja de la Cuesta, Castile |
| Nationality | Castilian |
| Spouses | Catalina Suárez
(m. 1516; died 1522)Juana de Zúñiga (m. 1529) |
| Domestic partner(s) | La Malinche Isabel Moctezuma |
| Children | Don Martín Cortés, 2nd Marquess of the Valley of Oaxaca Doña María Cortés Doña Catalina Cortés Doña Juana Cortės Martín Cortés Leonor Cortés Moctezuma |
| Occupation | Conquistador |
| Known for | Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, Spanish conquest of Honduras |
| Signature | |
Born in Medellín, Spain, to a family of lesser nobility, Cortés chose to pursue adventure and riches in the New World. He went to Hispaniola and later to Cuba, where he received an encomienda (the right to the labor of certain subjects). For a short time, he served as alcalde (magistrate) of the second Spanish town founded on the island. In 1519, he was elected captain of the third expedition to the mainland, which he partly funded. His enmity with the governor of Cuba, Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar, resulted in the recall of the expedition at the last moment, an order which Cortés ignored.
Arriving on the continent, Cortés executed a successful strategy of allying with some indigenous people against others. He also used a native woman, Doña Marina, as an interpreter. She later gave birth to his first son. When the governor of Cuba sent emissaries to arrest Cortés, he fought them and won, using the extra troops as reinforcements. Cortés wrote letters directly to the king asking to be acknowledged for his successes instead of being punished for mutiny. After he overthrew the Aztec Empire, Cortés was awarded the title of marqués del Valle de Oaxaca, while the more prestigious title of viceroy was given to a high-ranking nobleman, Antonio de Mendoza. In 1541 Cortés returned to Spain, where he died six years later of natural causes.