The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo, Vol 1 (of 2)

The battle, however, was still continued at various points, as several of Narvaez's officers maintained their positions on the tops of other temples. Cortes, however, with his accustomed forethought, sent round a herald to summons Narvaez's men, under pain of death, immediately to join the imperial standard. This, with the firing of the cannon, our hurrahing, and the belief that Narvaez was dead, had the desired effect, and only the troops of young Diego Velasquez and of Salvatierra, who had taken up a position with the troops under their command, on the summit of a very high temple, where it was difficult to get at them, refused to submit. Sandoval, however, was not to be deterred by their advantageous position. He took the half of his men with him, while the rest remained below, and we attacked them so vigorously with our swords, that at last they surrendered, and we took Salvatierra and Diego Velasquez prisoners.

In the hurry of the moment we had merely fastened fetters around Narvaez's legs; but Sandoval now, ordered him to be better secured. Cortes happened to come up at the time, when Leon, with Ordas, brought in Salvatierra, Diego Velasquez, and other chief officers prisoners; he was still in full armour, and had heated himself to such a degree by riding up and down, the weather besides being very hot, that the perspiration literally dropped from him, and he could scarcely breathe from over-exertion; he twice said to Sandoval, who was unable to catch his words at first, "Where is Narvaez? Where is Narvaez?" "Here he is! here he is!" cried Sandoval, "and quite safe." "That is all right, my son Sandoval," said Cortes in a voice still somewhat feeble; "do not leave this spot for the present, nor suffer any of your men to stir away, and keep a strong guard over the officers you have taken prisoners; I will see now how the battle is going on at the other points."

With these words Cortes rode off, and as he still found Narvaez's men offered resistance, he again sent round a herald to summon them to surrender, and to deliver up their arms to the alguacil.

All this took place during night-time, and it rained at intervals. When we first forced our way into the town it was as dark as pitch, and it rained heavily, the moon did not rise until some time after; but even the darkness itself favoured us, for in the midst of darkness numbers of shining beetles86 kept continually flying about, which Narvaez's men mistook for the lighted matches of our firearms,87 and this gave them a vast idea of the number of our matchlocks.

Narvaez having lost an eye and being otherwise dangerously wounded, he begged of Sandoval to allow the surgeon he had brought with him to dress his and the other officers' wounds. This the latter unhesitatingly complied with, and while the surgeon was dressing Narvaez's wounds, Cortes stepped up, as he imagined unknown, to see what was going forward. Some one, however, remarked to Narvaez that Cortes was standing near; when the former turned round and said: "Indeed, general, you have reason to be proud of this victory, and of my being taken prisoner!"

"I am," replied Cortes, "every way thankful to God for it, and likewise for the brave companions he has given me; but I can assure you that this victory is the least brilliant we have yet gained in New Spain."

With this Cortes broke off the conversation, and again cautioned Sandoval to guard the prisoners well. As I have above remarked, we had merely thrown fetters about Narvaez's legs, but we now secured him better, and placed a strong guard over him. I was among the latter, and Sandoval gave me secret orders not to allow any of his men to see him until next morning, when Cortes would make further arrangements respecting his person. We did not feel quite safe yet; for the reader will remember that Narvaez had detached forty of his cavalry to oppose our crossing the river. This body was still hovering about, and we feared would fall upon us unawares and release both Narvaez and the other officers again. We therefore kept a sharp look out, while Cortes despatched Oli and Ordas to persuade them, by enticing promises, to surrender quietly. For this purpose these officers were obliged to take a couple of horses of Narvaez's troops, as ours had been left at the back of a rising ground near Sempoalla.

When Oli and Ordas came up with them, they said so many fine things, and made such vast promises in Cortes' name, that they speedily came to terms, and surrendered themselves.88

Daylight in the meantime had broken forth, when this detachment reached our camp again; and the drummers and pipers of Narvaez's corps, without instructions from Cortes or from any one else, suddenly sounded their instruments, and cried out, "Long live these brave Romans, who, though small in numbers, have gained the victory over Narvaez and his troops!" And another merry-making fellow, called Guidela, a negro, cried out at the top of his voice, "Hark ye! the Romans themselves could never boast of so brilliant a victory as this!" Whatever we might say, we were unable to stop their hurrahing or their instruments, until Cortes had ordered one of the drummers, named Tepia, who was half mad, to be seized.

At this moment Oli and Diego de Ordas made their appearance with the detachment of cavalry, accompanied by Duero, Bermudez, and several other friends of our general. These now all came in a body to pay their respects to Cortes, who had taken off his armour, and was seated in an arm-chair, dressed in a wide orange-coloured surtout. It was really a most interesting sight to behold the serenity and joy which sat upon his countenance as he welcomed each, and amusing to hear the fine things he told them. He had indeed every reason to be proud of the power and the greatness he had so suddenly acquired!

After these officers had thus paid their respects to him, they repaired to their respective quarters. And now we must look over the list of the dead and wounded on both sides. Among the former was Narvaez's standard-bearer, named Fuentes, of a noble family of Seville; and three of his chief officers, one of whom was named Rojas, a native of Old Castile. One of the three soldiers, named Carretero, who deserted to the enemy, was likewise killed; and the number of their wounded was very great.

On our side we lost four killed, and had several wounded; the fat cazique himself being of this number; who, when he heard that we were in the vicinity of Sempoalla, had fled to Narvaez's quarters, and was wounded there. Cortes ordered his wound to be dressed, then sent him home, and desired that no one should molest him.

Cervantes and Escalona, who had deserted to Narvaez, derived very little benefit from their treachery; the latter had been dangerously wounded, and the other Cortes ordered to be well whipped.

Here I must also not forget the braggadocio Salvatierra, whose cowardice his own men declared was beyond all belief. They all swore never in the course of their lives to have witnessed such extreme fear as he evinced when he first heard the clashing of our arms at a distance; and when he heard the cry of Victory! Victory! Narvaez is fallen! he became quite ill, and threw down his arms.

Diego Velasquez had almost escaped my memory! He was also wounded, and, as had been previously settled, was taken prisoner by Leon, with whom he had quarrelled at Narvaez's dinner table. The victor, however, acted magnanimously; he took him to his own quarters, had his wounds dressed, and treated him with great respect.

Such is the history of our battle with Narvaez, and now we must see what further took place.

CHAPTER CXXIII

How the 2000 Indians of Chinantla, whom Cortes had demanded of the caziques there, arrived at Sempoalla after Narvaez's defeat.

Late in the evening of the same day on which we had gained the victory over Narvaez, the 2000 Indian troops arrived which Cortes had requested the caziques of Chinantla to send us. They came under the command of their caziques, and one of our soldiers named Barrientos, and marched into Sempoalla in the best military order possible, two abreast. They were all tall and powerful men, armed with their immense-sized lances and huge shields; every lancer was followed by a bowman. In this manner, under the sound of drums and trumpets, they marched in, with their feathers waving on their head and their colours flying, and continually cried out, "Long live the emperor! long live Cortes!" They made such a grand show, that though they were only 2000 in number, one would have thought at first sight there had been 3000. Narvaez's men were not a little astonished when they beheld these men, and remarked to each other that they would have fared worse if they had had to encounter these people, or if they had joined us in the attack.

Cortes received the Chinantlan chiefs most kindly, thanked them for the trouble they had put themselves to, and desired them to return to their homes, after presenting them with various things of Spanish manufacture. Barrientos likewise returned with them, and Cortes particularly admonished him not to allow these Indians to commit any depredations in the townships they passed through.

CHAPTER CXXIV

How Cortes despatches Francisco de Lugo, with two men who had formerly been ship-builders, to the harbour where Narvaez's flotilla lay, to bring all the captains and pilots of the vessels to Sempoalla.

After the whole of Narvaez's troops had been disarmed, Cortes despatched Francisco de Lugo to the harbour where the flotilla lay, in order to bring all the captains and pilots of the eighteen vessels to Sempoalla. He was likewise to convey on shore all the sails, rudders, and compasses, so as to render it impossible for the governor of Cuba to gain any information respecting the fate of his armament. Whoever refused to submit to Lugo was immediately to be thrown into chains. Cortes likewise ordered the latter to bring along with him a certain Sancho de Barahona, whom Narvaez had imprisoned along with some other soldiers. This Barahona was a man of great wealth, and had settled in Guatimala. He was in very ill health when he arrived in Cortes' quarters, who desired that every attention should be paid him.

When the captains and pilots of the several vessels appeared in Cortes' presence, he made them take a solemn oath to obey his commands in all matters. A certain Pedro Caballero, captain of one of Narvaez's vessels, he appointed admiral of the flotilla. This man, it was rumoured, had been bribed with some bars of gold to favour Cortes' party. Caballero received instructions not to allow any vessel to leave the harbour, and if any others should arrive there from Cuba – for Cortes had received information that there were two other ships fitting out there for this harbour – he was to seize them, send their sails, rudders, compasses on shore, and await further orders. This, as we shall afterwards see, Caballero punctually obeyed.

In our head-quarters the following important arrangements were made: Leon was to be sent to subdue the province of Panuco, and to make a settlement there; for which purpose 120 men were placed under his command, of whom 100 were of Narvaez's troops, the rest being made up of our own, who were better acquainted with the mode of warfare in this country. To this detachment were likewise added two vessels, in order more thoroughly to explore the coast and the river Panuco.

A similar commission, with an equal number of troops, composed as the former, and also to be accompanied by two vessels, was given to Diego de Ordas, to form a settlement on the river Guacasualco. He was likewise to despatch some of his men to the island of Jamaica to purchase cows, horses, pigs, goats, sheep, and Spanish fowls, for breeding; the province of Guacasualco being particularly adapted for the breed of cattle.

Cortes now ordered all Narvaez's officers and soldiers to be liberated, with the exception of Salvatierra, who feigned to be taken suddenly ill during the late battle. When their arms were to be returned to them, it occasioned a good deal of ill blood, for many of our men had taken possession of their horses, swords, and other matters, and no one felt inclined to return what he had once taken. When Cortes, therefore, issued orders that every one was to receive his own again, it caused great discontent among our troops; for we maintained we were justified in retaining what we had taken, as Narvaez had declared a war of extermination against us; had literally come with the intention to destroy us, and rob us of all our property; besides that, we, the well-deserving servants of the emperor, had been branded by him with the name of traitors. Cortes, however, was determined upon this point, and as we had elected him our captain-general, we could not do less than obey him. I myself had taken possession of two swords, three daggers, and a target, all of which I had to return.

Alonso de Avila, who was a captain, and one who durst speak out boldly to Cortes, privately reproached him, in conjunction with father Olmedo, for acting thus; and remarked to him, that he was performing the part of Alexander the Macedonian, who, whenever he gained a splendid victory, rewarded and honoured the vanquished instead of the officers and soldiers who had procured him the victory. They had every reason to make this observation, as we had to look quietly on and see Cortes give all the provisions and valuable matters, which the Indians of the surrounding country brought in as presents, to the officers of the vanquished general, and leave us unnoticed. This they maintained was not acting justly, and had every appearance of ingratitude towards them, who by their valour had raised him to the proud position in which he then stood.

Cortes, who was never wanting for an answer, replied, that for all he possessed he was indebted to us; but under existing circumstances he could not act otherwise. It was for the advantage of all to gain the troops of Narvaez by fair words, presents, and promises; their numbers were too great in comparison to ours; and if they were once to rise up in anger, they might easily put us all to the sword.

To this Avila replied in a very haughty manner, which obliged Cortes to exclaim, "Those who do not feel inclined to obey are at liberty to leave my standard; Spanish women bring forth sufficient children into the world, and every son is a soldier in Spain!"

"That is very true," answered Avila, rather disrespectfully; "and among these sons there are also numbers of generals and governors as well as soldiers."

As matters then stood, Cortes was compelled to put on the best countenance he could to this reproof, and to silence this open-hearted man by promises and presents; for the determined and bold character of Avila was too well known to him, and he feared his resentment. He therefore suppressed his injured feelings, and from that moment took every opportunity of sending him to some distance on one or other important commission; so he despatched him some after to St. Domingo, and subsequently to Spain, to present the garderobe and the treasure of Motecusuma to the emperor. This latter voyage, however, terminated very unfortunately, for Avila, with the whole of those treasures, was captured by the redoubted French pirate Jean Florin, as we shall see in the proper place.

But to return to Narvaez. He happened to have a negro servant with him ill with the smallpox, through whom this terrific disease, which, according to the accounts of the inhabitants, was previously unknown in the country, spread itself through New Spain, where it created the greater devastation, from the poor Indians, in their ignorance, solely applying cold water as a remedy, with which they constantly bathed themselves; so that vast numbers were cut off before they had the blessing of being received into the bosom of the Christian church.89

It was also about this time that the garrison of Vera Cruz demanded the portion of the gold which fell to their share in the division at Mexico. These men maintained, that, though they had not made the campaign of Mexico with us, they had shown themselves no less deserving in the cause of God and the emperor than ourselves, as they had guarded the coast and built a fortress; and that many of them who had fought at the battle of Almeria were still suffering from their wounds, while others again had been taken prisoners by Narvaez, who had treated them with great severity: they concluded, therefore, they were justly entitled to a share of the treasure found in Mexico.

Cortes acknowledged the justness of their claim, and requested them to despatch two of the principal men from among them to take charge of their respective share, and, if I am not mistaken, he added that it had been deposited for safe keeping in Tlascalla: at least, they immediately after sent two of their numbers there to take possession of it, of whom Juan de Alcantara the elder was one. We shall, however, soon see what became of Alcantara with all the gold; how quickly the wheel of fortune turned against us, and trouble and sorrow followed peace and joy; for we received intelligence that all Mexico had risen up in arms, that Alvarado was besieged in his quarters, and that the Mexicans were attempting to set fire to the new fortifications at every point. Seven of our men had already been killed, many were wounded, and immediate assistance was required.

This information was first brought us by two Tlascallans, and that without any letter from Alvarado. Soon after, however, two other Tlascallans arrived with a letter from him confirmatory of this bad news. God knows how shocked we were at this intelligence! We immediately resolved to hasten to Mexico by forced marches. Narvaez and Salvatierra were sent under escort to Vera Cruz, where Rodrigo Rangel, whom Cortes had just appointed commandant of that place, was made responsible for the safe custody of their persons. Besides these, Rangel took along with him several of Narvaez's men, who were suffering from ill-health.

Just as we were about to commence our march to Mexico, four distinguished personages arrived from that town, who had been sent by Motecusuma to complain to our general of the conduct of Alvarado. They told us, with tears in their eyes, that he had, without any provocation, sallied out with the whole of his troops, and fallen unawares upon their chiefs and caziques while they were celebrating a feast in honour of their gods Huitzilopochtli and Tezcatlipuca, Alvarado himself having previously given his consent to the celebration of that feast. Many of their chief personages had been killed and wounded, so that, at last, they were compelled to defend themselves, and six Spaniards were killed in the affray. To this and other complaints against Alvarado, Cortes told them, with a dark frown on his brow, that he would repair immediately in person to Mexico, and look into the matter. With this message the Indians returned to their monarch, who, it is said, was anything but pleased with it. Cortes, at the same time, wrote word to Alvarado that we were advancing by forced marches upon Mexico, and particularly cautioned him not to let Motecusuma escape out of his hands. He likewise informed him of the victory we had gained over Narvaez, though he had no doubt already been apprized of this, for it was known to Motecusuma.

CHAPTER CXXV

How we all, including Narvaez's troops, hasten to Mexico by forced marches.

On receiving the intelligence that Mexico was in rebellion, and Alvarado besieged in his quarters, the plan of forming settlements in Panuco and Guacasualco was for the present abandoned, and Leon and Ordas were again ordered to join the main body.

Cortes soon found that Narvaez's troops were very unwilling to join us in the Mexican campaign; but he desired them, in a most kind manner, to forget the old enmity which had existed between Narvaez and himself, and assured them that their only way to wealth and eminence was to join us in this campaign; by so doing they would enter into a country where they would be able to render services unto God and the emperor; and this, too, was an opportunity which perhaps would not so readily present itself again. In short, he told them so many fine things, that they one and all agreed to accompany us: if, however, they had had any idea of Mexico's vast power, not one of them would have been so ready to join us.

We now broke up our quarters, and marched forward with all expedition. In Tlascalla, we were informed that the Mexicans had continued their hostilities against Alvarado as long as Motecusuma and his generals believed we were at war with Narvaez. They had killed seven of our men and burned down a portion of our quarters there, and had not stayed hostilities until they heard of the recent victory we had gained: they still, however, refused to supply Alvarado with either water or food. This information was received in Tlascalla the moment we arrived there.

Cortes now reviewed the whole of his troops, which amounted to 1300 men, 96 horses, 80 crossbow-men, and a like number of musketeers. This body of troops Cortes considered sufficiently strong to venture fearlessly into Mexico with, particularly as the caziques of Tlascalla had furnished us with 2000 of their warriors.

We now continued our march with the same briskness until we came to Tezcuco. It was in this large town we began to discover the ill-feeling that was abroad against us. Not the slightest mark of respect was shown us here, nor did any of the chiefs call upon us. It was on St. John's day, in the month of June of the year 1520, we, for the second time, entered the city of Mexico. No cazique, none of the principal officers, none of our Mexican friends made their appearance, and the houses were deserted. It was not until we had arrived in front of our quarters that Motecusuma came out into the courtyard to welcome Cortes, and congratulate him on his victory over Narvaez. Our general, however, was flushed with the recent victory, and would not listen to him, so that the monarch returned pensive and sad to his apartments.

We soldiers again took possession of our old quarters, and Narvaez's men were provided with similar ones. Alvarado's men and ours, who had just arrived, now began to relate what had taken place during this interval of separation. The former related how they had been attacked by the Mexicans, and the terrible resistance they had been forced to make. Then we followed, and related how we had defeated Narvaez's troops, and taken him prisoner.

The next thing Cortes did was to inquire into the real cause of the insurrection of the Mexicans. Several soldiers, who were displeased with Alvarado, affirmed that Motecusuma had evinced excessive grief on account of these troubles, and they were quite confident that not a single one of the men under Alvarado would have been spared alive if Motecusuma had been in secret understanding with his subjects; on the contrary, he continually strove to quiet them, and to put down the insurrection. Alvarado, on his part, represented all this to our general in a very different light. According to his assurances, the Mexicans had risen up in arms to liberate their monarch, and to take revenge upon us, by the express command of their god Huitzilopochtli, for our having erected a cross and the image of the holy Virgin on his temple. Several Mexicans, he added, had tried to remove the holy image from the altar on which it is raised, but they had not been able to do so. Even the inhabitants themselves had looked upon this circumstance as a great wonder, and had mentioned it to Motecusuma, who then issued orders that it should not be touched. It was, however, not true, continued Alvarado, that Narvaez had sent word to the monarch he was coming to release him from his confinement, and lead us all away in chains: on the contrary, after Motecusuma found that though we were in possession of a sufficient number of vessels, but made no preparation for embarking, he well foresaw we never intended to leave the country again, but that more of us would continually arrive, and that we should return to Mexico accompanied by Narvaez's troops.

Upon this it was resolved they should put Alvarado with the whole of his men to the sword, and liberate the monarch. The less doubt they had entertained of Narvaez's being able to defeat us, the more sure they made of carrying out their plan successfully. This Alvarado considered sufficient to justify the conduct he had pursued. Cortes then wished to know why he had fallen upon the Mexican chiefs while they were celebrating a feast? Because, replied Alvarado, he had been assured by two of the principal men of the town, by one of the papas, and by other of the inhabitants, that the Mexicans intended falling upon him immediately after the feast had ended.