The destruction of the Aztec Empire by Cortes and a handful of Spanish conquistadors. Holland and Sandbrook examine how disease, indigenous alliances, technology, and sheer audacity enabled the conquest of a civilization of millions.
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Highlights
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Empires fall when their subjects see an opportunity to rebel
Cortes didn't defeat the Aztecs alone — he was joined by thousands of indigenous allies who hated Aztec domination. The empire's oppression of its subjects created the coalition that destroyed it.
Biological factors can overwhelm all other historical forces
Smallpox killed more Aztecs than Spanish weapons. European diseases may have eliminated 90% of the indigenous population within a century — a demographic catastrophe that dwarfs any military conquest.