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 386 CORTES CORTLAND at feud with Montezuma, opposed the march'of Cortes. After four battles, wherein he each time defeated an enormous force of the enemy, he entered the city of Tlascala on Sept. 1 8. The Spaniards were thought to he of divine origin, and human beings were sent to them as sacri- fices. Ambassadors from Montezuma had met Cortes before he entered Tlascala, but with no important consequences. He endeavored, but in vain, to persuade the Tlascalans to abjure their religion ; prevailed upon them to own themselves vassals of the king of Spain ; and after a 20 days' stay in the city marched to- ward Mexico by way of Cholula, accompanied by some thousands of his new allies. Escaping an ambuscade set for him by the Cholulans at the instance of the Mexicans, and punishing the people for their proposed attack, he continued his march, and arrived before Mexico, Nov. 8, 1519, with 6,000 natives and his handful of Spaniards ; was received with great pomp by Montezuma and his subjects ; immediately se- cured a stronghold in a beautiful palace as- signed as his quarters ; and, using the occasion of an attack made by a party of Mexicans upon some of the Spaniards as a temporary justification for one of the boldest acts in all history, took Montezuma captive in his own palace, and conveyed him to his quarters under threats of instant death if he made a sign for help to his subjects. The 17 persons who had attacked the Spaniards were captured and burned to death before the gates of the im- perial palace. Montezuma was placed in irons during the execution, and forced to acknowl- edge himself a vassal of Charles V. Taking prisoner also Caminatzin, the bravest of the king's nephews, Cortes now persuaded Monte- zuma to induce all his nobles and vassals to swear allegiance to the king of Spain ; and this done, he obtained of the fallen king gold to the value of 100,000 ducats. Now, how- ever, he was informed of the landing of an armament under the command of Narvaez, come to displace him. Leaving 200 men in Mexico, whom with unparalleled audacity he recommended to the care of Montezuma as a vassal of Charles V., he took 70 men, was joined by 150 more whom he had left at Cho- lula, and captured Narvaez, who was en- camped in a city of the Cempoallans, with his 80 horses, 900 men, and 10 or 12 field pieces. The defeated troops readily ranged themselves under his standard ; but returning to Mexico, Cortes found that the people had revolted against the Spaniards. Montezuma, still a prisoner, on endeavoring to address his sub- jects, was assailed by the mob, and wounded so that in a few days he died. The Spaniards were furiously attacked and driven out of their quarters, and out of the city; their rear guard was cut to pieces ; and after a harass- ing retreat of six days, the Mexicans offered battle on the plain of Otumba, and here, on July 7, 1520, Cortes gained a victory which decided the fate of Mexico. He immediately proceeded to Tlascala, collected an auxiliary native army, and, having subdued the neigh- boring provinces, marched against Mexico, and took the city after a gallant defence of 77 days, Aug. 13, 1521. The accounts of his exploits which he sent to Europe caused his irregular conduct to be forgiven, and excited the liveliest admiration of his genius and skill. He was declared governor and captain general of Mexico, and had conferred upon him the marquisate of Oajaca, with a considerable rev- enue. His course of conquest, however, was such as to embitter the natives against him. He was particularly zealous to destroy their idols, and ever anxious to convert these pagans by force to Christianity. They took up arms against him in vain ; European arms, valor, and zeal conquered on all hands. Guatemozin, the new emperor, a man of greater energy than Montezuma, was with a number of his caciques executed with great cruelty, by the or- ders of Cortes. But his victories caused him to be dreaded at home ; commissioners were sent out to watch his course; and while he was completing his conquests his property was seized and his servants put in irons and im- prisoned. Indignant at such treatment, Cortes returned to Spain in great splendor, to appeal for justice. He was received with every dis- tinction, decorated with the order of Santiago at the hands of Charles V., and returned to Mexico with new titles, but with diminished power; the military authority only remained in his hands, a viceroy having been intrusted with the administration of civil affairs. In 1536 Cortes visited the peninsula of California, and surveyed part of the gulf which separates it from Mexico. Disgusted with the men sent out to watch him, he returned again to Europe, and accompanied Charles V. (who had received him coldly) on a disastrous expedition to Algiers in 1541, serving as volunteer. On the return of the expedition he was utterly neglected, and could not obtain an audience. One day he forced his way to the emperor's presence and upbraided him with his ingratitude, then withdrew finally from court, and died in soli- tude in the 63d year of his age. Five letters addressed to Charles V., and detailing his con- quests, are the only writings of Cortes. See "Letters and Despatches of Cortes," translated by George Folsom (New York, 1843). CORTETZ, or Cortitz, an island of Russia. See KOETETZ. CORTLAND, a central county of New York, touching Skaneateles lake on the northwest ; area, 480 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 25,173. It has an uneven surface and a good soil. It is well supplied with water, and contains salt and sul- phur springs. Iron ore is found in some locali- ties. The Syracuse, Binghamton, and New York railroad traverses it, and the Southern Central railroad passes through the S. -W. corner. The chief productions in 1870 were, 25,438 bushels of wheat, 151,810 of Indian corn, 389,667 of oats, 244,527 of potatoes, 114,197 tons of hay,