The Conquistadors: Exploration, Greed, and Destruction — Fexingo History

When Hernán Cortés and his men landed in Mexico, they brought more than steel and gunpowder. Smallpox, measles, and typhus ravaged indigenous populations who had no immunity. But the deadliest was cocoliztli, a mysterious hemorrhagic fever that killed millions between 1545 and 1576. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the science and history behind these epidemics. They discuss the probable pa...

Columbus's first settlement on Hispaniola, La Isabela, failed—but its legacy was the encomienda system. This episode traces the origins of colonial forced labor from the 1493 settlement to the 1503 redistribution policies of Nicolás de Ovando. We explore how the Taino cacique Guacanagarix’s alliance soured into servitude, how the Requerimiento was first read in 1494, and how the Laws of Burgos (15...

While the Mexica (Aztecs) of Tenochtitlan often dominate the narrative of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, their western neighbors, the Purépecha (Tarascans), built an empire that rivaled — and in some ways surpassed — the Triple Alliance. Episode 45 of The Conquistadors explores the unique civilization of Michoacán: its metallurgy, its centralized bureaucracy under the cazonci (emperor), its fierce res...

Before Cortés burned his ships, another Spaniard had already gone native — and fought against his own countrymen. This episode tells the extraordinary story of Gonzalo Guerrero, a shipwrecked sailor who was captured by Maya lords, earned his freedom, rose to become a Maya war captain, and when Hernán Cortés came calling with offers of rescue, refused. Guerrero married a Maya noblewoman, fathered t...

While Cortés toppled Tenochtitlan, a far bloodier and more stubborn conquest unfolded in the Yucatán Peninsula. This episode follows Francisco de Montejo and his son, Montejo el Mozo, as they faced the Maya — a decentralized, jungle-adapted people who resisted Spanish rule for over twenty years. We explore the brutal tactics of Montejo, the role of Maya alliances and betrayals, the legend of the T...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the critical role of water in the fall of Tenochtitlan. They discuss how Cortés cut off the city's freshwater from Chapultepec, the construction of brigantines to control Lake Texcoco, and the devastating impact of thirst and saltwater on the Mexica defenders. They also cover the role of indigenous allies, the capture of Cuauhtémoc, and the aftermath of the...

This episode of The Conquistadors steps away from battles and massacres to focus on one of the most pivotal and controversial figures of the conquest: La Malinche, also known as Malintzin or Doña Marina. Lucas and Luna explore her transformation from a Nahua noblewoman sold into slavery to Hernán Cortés's interpreter, advisor, and strategic partner. They discuss her linguistic genius—speaking Nahu...

When Pizarro executed Atahualpa in 1533, the conquest of the Inca Empire seemed complete. But the Inca resistance had only begun. Within three years, Manco Inca—a puppet ruler installed by the Spanish—escaped Cusco and launched a massive rebellion that nearly drove the conquistadors from the Andes. This episode follows the dramatic siege of Cusco in 1536, the desperate defense of Sacsayhuamán, and...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna dissect the Requerimiento, a legal document read to indigenous peoples before conquest that demanded submission to the Spanish crown and the Catholic Church. They explore its origins in the 1513 Junta de Burgos, its actual use—often read in Spanish to empty forests or before battles—and its enduring legacy in international law. The conversation covers the roles of k...

On the night of June 30, 1520, Hernán Cortés and his army fled Tenochtitlan under a hail of Aztec arrows. Hundreds of Spaniards and thousands of Tlaxcalan allies drowned in the canals or were captured and sacrificed. This episode walks through the events of the Noche Triste — the strategic errors, the desperate retreat, the famous cry over the bridge, and how Cortés turned disaster into propaganda...

In October 1519, Hernán Cortés and his army entered the great city of Cholula, home to the second largest pyramid in Mesoamerica and a major center of the cult of Quetzalcoatl. What began as a diplomatic meeting turned into one of the most brutal massacres of the Spanish conquest. Over the course of a few hours, thousands of unarmed Cholulan nobles and warriors were slaughtered in the main plaza....

In this episode of The Conquistadors, Lucas and Luna explore the role of religion in the Spanish conquest of Mexico, focusing on the first Catholic mass celebrated on mainland Mesoamerica. They examine the mass held on March 25, 1519, near modern-day Veracruz, led by Franciscan friar Fray Bartolomé de Olmedo. The episode unpacks how religious ceremonies were used to legitimize Spanish claims, asse...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the crucial alliance between Hernán Cortés and the Tlaxcalan confederacy—a partnership that turned the tide against the Aztec Empire. They discuss the political landscape of central Mexico in 1519, the fierce resistance of the Tlaxcalans, and how Cortés exploited existing rivalries to build a formidable indigenous army. The episode delves into figures like X...

In this episode of The Conquistadors, Lucas and Luna explore the encomienda system, the Spanish labor and tribute mechanism that shaped colonial life in Mesoamerica and beyond. They trace its origins from the Reconquista in Spain to its implementation in the Caribbean and Mexico, discussing figures like Nicolás de Ovando and Bartolomé de las Casas. The conversation delves into the harsh realities...

In episode 33, Lucas and Luna explore the tragic end of the Purépecha Empire, often overshadowed by the Aztecs but a formidable power in its own right. They delve into the reign of Tangáxuan II, the last cazonci, who faced the ruthless conquistador Nuño de Guzmán. Lucas explains how the Purépecha, under Tariácuri, built a unified state centered on Tzintzuntzan, with skilled metallurgy and a unique...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna dive into the 1550 Valladolid Debate, a watershed moment in the Spanish Empire where Bartolomé de las Casas and Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda argued over the humanity of Indigenous peoples. We explore how the Requerimiento, a document read to natives before conquest, evolved from a legal loophole into a moral crisis. Lucas explains the Aristotelian concept of 'just war' a...

In 1540, a coalition of indigenous groups in western Mexico rose up against Spanish rule in one of the most serious challenges to colonial authority in the Americas. This episode dives into the Mixtón War, named after a fortress on the Mixtón mountain. We explore the causes: Spanish brutality under conquistador Nuño de Guzmán, forced labor in encomiendas, and the disruption of indigenous lifeways....

After the fall of Tenochtitlan and the conquest of the Tarascans, the Spanish found themselves facing a very different kind of enemy in the arid north: the nomadic Chichimeca. For nearly fifty years, from 1550 to 1590, the Chichimeca War raged across the Mexican Bajío and the silver-rich Zacatecas region. This episode explores the causes of the conflict, the guerrilla tactics of the Chichimeca peo...

In 1540, just years after the fall of Tenochtitlan, a massive rebellion erupted in western Mexico that would test the limits of Spanish power and forge an unprecedented alliance among indigenous peoples. This episode explores the Mixtón War, a desperate uprising of the Caxcan, Zacateco, and other Chichimeca peoples against the brutal encomienda system and the violent policies of Nuño de Guzmán. At...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the final, brutal siege of Tenochtitlan in 1521, focusing on the unique naval and tactical aspects that decided the fate of the Aztec capital. They discuss Hernán Cortés's desperate decision to build thirteen brigantines in Tlaxcala, the ingenious use of freshwater and fire ships, and the role of indigenous allies like the Tlaxcalans in blockading the city....

In episode 27, Lucas and Luna explore the Spanish conquest of the Zapotec and Mixtec kingdoms of Oaxaca, a region rich in cultural heritage and resistance. They focus on the remarkable figure of Cocijoeza, the Zapotec ruler who used a combination of military strategy and diplomacy to negotiate a treaty with the Spanish, preserving a degree of autonomy for his people. The episode delves into the Sp...

In the shadow of the Aztec Empire, the Spanish also conquered the sophisticated Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations of Oaxaca. This episode explores how Hernán Cortés sent Pedro de Alvarado and later Francisco de Orozco to subdue the region in the 1520s. We focus on the fierce resistance of the Zapotec ruler Cocijoeza, who allied with the Aztecs against the Spanish, and the strategic mountain fortres...

In October 1519, just weeks after entering Tenochtitlan, Hernán Cortés orchestrated a massacre in the holy city of Cholula, killing thousands of unarmed nobles and civilians. This episode unpacks the events leading up to the slaughter: Cortés's alliance with the Tlaxcalans, his suspicion of a Cholulan plot, and the role of La Malinche in uncovering alleged treachery. We examine whether the massacr...

In the early 1530s, while Francisco Pizarro was toppling the Inca and Hernán Cortés was consolidating control over central Mexico, a ruthless conquistador named Nuño de Guzmán carved a path of destruction through western Mexico. This episode focuses on Guzmán's conquest of the Tarascan (Purépecha) Empire, a powerful state that had resisted Aztec expansion for generations. We explore the Purépecha...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the Spanish conquest of the Philippines, a campaign that began decades after the fall of the Aztec and Inca empires. They focus on Miguel López de Legazpi, the conquistador who established the first permanent Spanish settlement in Cebu in 1565, and his partnership with the Augustinian friar Andrés de Urdaneta. The episode examines the complex web of indigeno...