After entering Mexico-Tenochtitlan in November 1519, conquistador Hernán Cortés described the Aztec capital in a letter dated 30 October 1520. He wrote that he could not adequately convey its grandeur, praised its straight, broad streets, canals, palaces, temples and vast market, and said no city in the world could compare. The capital stood on islands in Lake Texcoco and was linked to the shore by causeways; modern digital reconstructions use archaeological and documentary evidence to recreate it. San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán is a separate archaeological site in Morelos and was not the city Cortés described.
Cortés’s 1520 praise described Mexico-Tenochtitlan, not San Lorenzo
MexicoGeneral
Key facts
- The description is of Mexico-Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital, not the San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán archaeological site in Morelos.
- Cortés entered Tenochtitlan on 8 November 1519 but wrote the celebrated description in a letter dated 30 October 1520.
- He wrote that he could not adequately describe the city's grandeur and that no city in the world could compare with it; “the most impressive thing he'd ever seen” is a paraphrase, not his exact words.
- Mexico-Tenochtitlan stood on islands in Lake Texcoco and was connected to the shore by causeways.
- Archaeological and documentary evidence underpins modern digital reconstructions of Mexico-Tenochtitlan.
Sources
Cortés Describes Tenochtitlan – AHAhistorians.org
The material on this page is provided for use as a primary source through which to understand the period and the historical context in which it was produced.
1519 Timeline from 1 November (Paso de Cortés) to 8 ...publiconsulting.com
November 1519 Cortés remained in Amecameca for two full days, where he was well treated and given gold as well as forty slave girls.
How Did Hernán Cortés Conquer Tenochtitlan?historyhit.com
On 8 November 1519, Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés reached Tenochtitlan – capital of the Aztec Empire. It would prove to be an era-defining moment ...
Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empireen.wikipedia.org
Cortés arrived in Tenochtitlan on 8 November 1519, where his men and Indigenous allies took up residence. claims that he took Moctezuma captive.
Battle of Tenochtitlan | Summary & Fall of the Aztec Empirebritannica.com
In 1519 Spanish conquistador (explorer-conqueror) Hernán Cortés landed an expeditionary force of some 500 soldiers and 100 sailors at Potonchan, Cortés marched ...
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