How did just a handful of Spaniards topple the mighty Aztec Empire?

Answer 1

Initial contacts between Europeans and natives on the North American continent always resulted in the death of a substantial percentage of the native population due to exposure to European diseases, especially Small Pox. Often by the time hostilities broke out between European invaders and natives, the native population had been so descimated they just didn't have a chance. I don't know the specific numbers for the Aztec Empire, but I can assure you that their numbers were not so large by the time hostilities broke out. Many historians today wonder what would have happened if Europeans had been fighting a larger native population.

Answer 2

First the emperor Montezuma and the priests believed that Cortez was the God Quetzalcoatl who had promised to return because he was white like the stories about Quetzalcoatl said. This ensure that at first Cortez could not be touched by the Aztec warriors which numbered over 100,000 before disease set in. Then he allied himself with the Tlaxcallen tribe which was pretty powerful. The Aztecs made A LOT of enemies. By this time small pox and various other diseases had severely limited the number of warriors which the Aztecs had. They didn't so much lose to the Spanish as they did the Spanish allies led by the tlaxcallen. The Spanish did not have enough men to fight the Aztecs so they pretty much let their allies do most of the fighting and then came in as victors.

Answer 3

One word...............gunpowder . Though there are several more complex reasons , this is really the only one that matters . Also when the spaniards landed the Aztecs were far from a mighty nation . A better question may be ...why did a nation with such promise and resources reach such a precipitous decline . May be that this would better help us to understand the situation that is developing in our own country now .

Answer 4

The Mayans and Aztec were very impressed by them. Their armor, advanced weapons and horses were a sight to behold.
There had been an Aztec legend that depicted them as 'gods' and so they trusted the men from Spain.

Obviously, a breach of trust and advanced technology was the downfall of the Mayan and Aztec empires.

A lot of diseases that the Mayans and Aztec had never seen were also brought along with the men from Europe. A lot actually died from illness.

Answer 5

The conquistidors conqured not so much by superior weapons of pseudo-religious awe, as they did by the unintentional spread of European diseases against which the natives had no immunity. After the death of Montezuma, they were chased all the way to the coast by natives as they fled for their lives...
Not knowing they had already set the stage for the death of the Aztec empire by being carriers of microscopic germs the Spaniards didn't even know existed.

Answer 6

Guns helped alot.

The Aztec's thought that originally the Spaniards were Gods from a far off land and so were unwilling to fight at first. Then Once the Spanish knew the land and had a foot hold there they attacked and with superior technologly they won.

Answer 7

They were received in the Aztec court, surrounded by thousands of warriors, they held the Aztec King hostage and soon wipe out a whole race.

Answer 8

By posing as gods. Then by dividing various groups and playing them against each other.

Pretty standard stuff, really.

Edit: Yeah, biological warfare. Forgot that one.

Answer 9

Smallpox, mainly.

Answer 10

They had guns, they had element of surprise, and most lethal of all they had disease.