I Do Not Mention This
Circumstance, Which Is Known To The Whole Army, By Way Of Boast, But As My
Duty Of Historian Requires It Of Me, And Indeed His Majesty Was Informed
Of It, In The Letters Which Were Written To Him By Cortes.
About eighty of
us went on this occasion along with Mazariegos, and had the good fortune
to find the district in the best disposition.
The chiefs returned with us
to Cortes, and brought a most abundant supply of provisions along with
them. In about four days, however, all the chiefs deserted us, and we were
left with only three guides to pursue our march, as well as we could.
After crossing two rivers, we came to another town in the district of
Huy-acala, which was abandoned by the inhabitants, but in which we took up
our quarters.
In this place, Guatimotzin, the last king of the Mexicans, closed his
unhappy career. It appeared that a plot had been concerted by this
unfortunate monarch with many of the Mexican nobles who accompanied him,
to endeavour to cut off the Spaniards; after which they proposed to make
the best of their way back to Mexico, where, collecting all the forces of
the natives, they hoped to be able to overpower the Spanish garrison. This
conspiracy was revealed to Cortes by two Mexican nobles who had commanded
under Guatimotzin during the siege, and who had been baptized by the names
of Tapia and Velasquez. On receiving this intelligence, Cortes immediately
took the judicial informations of these two and of several others who were
concerned in the plot; from which it was learnt, that the Mexicans,
observing that we marched in a careless manner, that discontent prevailed
among our troops, many of whom were sick, that ten of our Spanish soldiers
had died of hunger, and several had returned towards Mexico, and
considering also the uncertainty of the fate of the expedition and the
miseries they endured from scarcity of provisions, they had come to the
resolution of falling upon us at the passage of some river or marsh, being
encouraged by their numbers, which exceeded 3000 well armed men, and
thinking it preferable to die at once than to encounter the perpetual
miseries they now endured by accompanying us in this wilderness.
Guatimotzin acknowledged that he had heard of this proposal, which he
never approved of, declaring that he did not believe it would ever have
been attempted, and anxiously denied that the whole of the Mexican force
had concurred in the plot. His cousin, the prince of Tacuba, declared that
all which had ever passed on the subject, between him and Guatimotzin, was,
that they had often expressed their opinion, that it would be better to
lose their lives at once like brave men, than to suffer in the manner they
did by hunger and fatigue, and to witness the intolerable distresses of
their friends and subjects who accompanied them. On those scanty proofs,
Cortes sentenced Guatimotzin and the prince of Tacuba to be immediately
hanged; and when the preparations were made for the execution, they were
led forth to the place attended by the reverend fathers, who did their
utmost to console them in their last moments.
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