On This Day

First meeting of Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II and Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés in Tenochtitlan, Mexico

Moctezuma Xocoyotzin (1466 – 29 June 1520), retroactively referred to in European sources as Moctezuma II, and often simply called Montezuma, was the ninth emperor of the Aztec Empire (also known as...

Moctezuma Xocoyotzin (1466 – 29 June 1520), retroactively referred to in European sources as Moctezuma II, and often simply called Montezuma, was the ninth emperor of the Aztec Empire (also known as the Mexica Empire), reigning from 1502 or 1503 to 1520. Through his marriage with Queen Tlapalizquixochtzin of Ecatepec, one of his two wives, he was also the king consort of the altepetl.

The first contact between the indigenous civilizations of Mesoamerica and Europeans took place during Moctezuma's reign. He was killed during the initial stages of the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire when Hernán Cortés, the Spanish conquistador, and his men seized the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan. During his reign, the Aztec Empire reached its greatest size.

Historical Significance

Moctezuma Xocoyotzin (1466 – 29 June 1520), retroactively referred to in European sources as Moctezuma II, and often simply called Montezuma, was the ninth emperor of the Aztec Empire (also known as the Mexica Empire), reigning from 1502 or 1503 to 1520.

Key People

Moctezuma II

Tlahtoāni of the Aztec Empire until 1520

Tlahtoāni of the Aztec Empire until 1520

Hernán Cortés

conquistador and explorer

Spanish conquistador and explorer

Events Before

  1. Martin Luther sends his Ninety-five Theses to Albert of Brandenburg, Archbishop of Mainz, precipitating the Protestant R

    Martin Luther sends his Ninety-five Theses to Albert of Brandenburg, Archbishop of Mainz, precipitating the Protestant Reformation

  2. Ottoman forces take Cairo, capital of the Mamluk Sultanate

    Ottoman Egypt was an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire after the conquest of Mamluk Egypt by the Ottomans in 1517. The Ottomans administered Egypt as a province (eyalet) of their empire.

  3. Bona Sforza is crowned queen consort of Poland

    Bona Sforza (2 February 1494 – 19 November 1557) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the second wife of Sigismund the Old, and Duchess of Bari and Rossano by her own right.

  4. Treaty of St Truiden: anti-French Trapdoors and Bourgondisch covenant

    Treaty of St Truiden: anti-French Trapdoors and Bourgondisch covenant

  5. Cardinal Thomas Wolsey of England makes a European plan

    Thomas Wolsey (March 1473 – 29 November 1530) was an English statesman and Catholic cardinal. When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, Wolsey became the king's almoner.

Events After

  1. Spanish conquistadors are expelled from Tenochtitlan following an Aztec revolt against their rule under Hernán Cortés du

    Spanish conquistadors are expelled from Tenochtitlan following an Aztec revolt against their rule under Hernán Cortés during "La Noche Triste" (the Night of Sadness). Many soldiers drown in the escape, and Aztec emperor Moctezuma II dies in the struggle.

  2. Hernán Cortés and the Tlaxcalans defeat a numerically superior Aztec force in the Battle of Otumba in Mexico

    The Battle of Otumba was fought between the Aztec and allied forces led by the Cihuacoatl Matlatzincátzin and those of Hernán Cortés made up of the Spanish conquerors and Tlaxcalan allies.

  3. Suleiman the Magnificent succeeds his father, Selim I, as Ottoman Sultan and rules until 1566

    Suleiman I (6 November 1494 – 6 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent, was the Ottoman sultan from 1520 to 1566.

  4. Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan begins crossing the Pacific Ocean

    Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan begins crossing the Pacific Ocean

  5. Martin Luther publicly burns Pope Leo X's papal bull 'Exsurge Domine' which demanded that Luther recant his writings

    Martin Luther was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Augustinian friar.

More from the 1510s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on November 8, 1519?
Moctezuma Xocoyotzin (1466 – 29 June 1520), retroactively referred to in European sources as Moctezuma II, and often simply called Montezuma, was the ninth emperor of the Aztec Empire (also known as the Mexica Empire), reigning from 1502 or 1503 to 1520. Through his marriage with Queen Tlapalizquixochtzin of Ecatepec, one of his two wives, he was also the king consort of the altepetl. The first contact between the indigenous civilizations of Mesoamerica and Europeans took place during Moctezuma's reign.
Why is First meeting of Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II and Spanish Conquistador Hernán C... significant?
Moctezuma Xocoyotzin (1466 – 29 June 1520), retroactively referred to in European sources as Moctezuma II, and often simply called Montezuma, was the ninth emperor of the Aztec Empire (also known as the Mexica Empire), reigning from 1502 or 1503 to 1520.
Who was involved in First meeting of Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II and Spanish Conquistador Hernán C...?
Key figures include Moctezuma II (Tlahtoāni of the Aztec Empire until 1520), Hernán Cortés (conquistador and explorer).

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