Battle of Otumba
Battle of Otumba (second half of the 17th century)
| date | July 14, 1520 |
|---|---|
| place | Otumba de Gómez Farías |
| output | Spanish victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 20,000–40,000 men (according to Spanish data) | less than 500 Spaniards and an unknown number of Tlaxcalcians |
| losses | |
|
high (according to exaggerated Spanish information more than 20,000) |
73 Spaniards and an unknown number of Tlaxcalcians |
The Battle of Otumba took place on July 14, 1520 on a lowland near Otumba de Gómez Farías . The Aztecs tried to stop the Spanish conquistadors under Hernán Cortés and the Tlaxcalteks allied with them after his loss-making retreat from Tenochtitlán on the way to his allies in Tlaxcala , but suffered a crushing defeat.
background
At the end of March 1519, the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés landed with an army of around 2,000 followers on the Mexican coast near Potonchán . After the Spaniards had allied themselves with the enemies of the Aztecs, the Tlaxcalteks , they marched on the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan . Initially the white gods were received by the Aztec ruler Moctezuma , but the initial hospitality quickly turned into suspicion.
Soon the Aztecs realized that the Spaniards were primarily interested in their gold and the subjugation of the Aztec Empire; In addition, Cortés and the Catholic priests traveling with him openly criticized the barbaric worship of gods by their hosts. Finally, Cortés and his army were trapped in their quarters in Tenochtitlán by rebellious Aztecs, but were able to flee the capital with heavy losses.
The battle
After the loss-making retreat from Tenochtitlán, also known as Noche Triste , Cortés tried to withdraw to the Tlaxcala area with his remaining troops. On the run, however, he was found on July 14, 1520 by a large army of around 20,000 to 40,000 Aztec warriors on a lowland near the present-day city of Otumba de Gómez Farías. For the Aztecs, this battle would bring their ultimate victory over the hated Spanish conquistador. However, despite his army plagued by hunger and exhaustion, and in the face of the fact that he and his followers would be sacrificed to the Aztec gods in the event of defeat, Cortés succeeded in defeating the enemy superiority with heavy losses.
On the one hand, he ordered his troops to target and kill the leaders of the Aztecs, who were easily recognizable by their feather headdress and field standards. In addition, the Spaniards were able to exploit the advantages of their armor and cannons against the Aztecs, who were only lightly armed with obsidian weapons at best, in a field battle. In addition, Cortés effectively used his cavalry in the open area of the battlefield , against which the Aztecs had not yet fought. After the death of their Commander in Chief Matlatzincatl from a targeted attack and heavy losses from repeated attacks by the Spanish cavalry, the Aztec army withdrew.
consequences
After the battle, which was costly for both sides, Cortés was able to retreat to Tlaxcala with the few survivors and, with newly arrived reinforcements, start a large-scale campaign of conquest against the Aztecs three weeks later. On August 13, 1521, he finally took Tenochtitlán after weeks of siege and thus sealed the end of the Aztec Empire.
Web links
swell
- Hugh Thomas : The Conquest of Mexico. Cortés and Montezuma. Fischer, Frankfurt am Main 2000, ISBN 3-596-14969-X