The History of Mexico, Chapter 2

The History of Mexico, Chapter 2 IV. Documents: 1. Cortés orders Cortés received very detailed orders from Cuban governor Diego Velázquez concerning the force he was to lead to Mexico. The orders, dated Oct. 23, 1518, contained 30 provisions: ONE: First of all, your principal motive and that of all your force is and must be to serve and praise our Lord and to spread our Holy Catholic faith. Thus you should not allow anyone, regardless of his position or rank, to speak ill of our Lord or of his mother Saint Mary or of the saints or to blaspheme the Lord in any matter. You should emphasize to your group that this is paramount. Those who commit any such offenses should be punished with the utmost rigor. TWO: To ensure that your expedition can more fully serve Our Lord, you will not permit any sinning, such as public concubinage, or permit any of those under your command to have illegal carnal knowledge of any woman, because that is a sin which God detests and because both divine and human laws prohibit it. You should punish with the utmost rigor any such offense. The law in such cases is clear. THREE: In undertakings such as yours, group harmony is quite advantageous. Likewise, dissension and discord are harmful. Since dice and playing cards cause conflict and lead to the blaspheming of God and the saints, you will ensure that no expedition member brings dice or playing cards. Those who violate this rule should be severely punished. You will also ensure that no one joins your expedition who is not a zealous servant of our Lord and of their Highnesses. (1) Similarly you should not include anyone who is known for belligerence or making trouble. FOUR: After your fleet leaves the port of Santiago de Cuba, you should ensure that when you dock in other Cuban ports no member of your expedition in any way offends anyone and that they do not forcibly take anything from port residents or the

nearby Indians. You should make this known in each port you visit and also let it be known that that those who violate this rule will be punished according to the law. FIVE: After, thanks to God our Lord, you have received the supplies and other items that you need, on each ship, you should inspect the men and their arms. Be sure that no one lends their arms to someone else for the review. Once the ships and the people are in order, you should, God willing, continue with your voyage as rapidly as possible. SIX: Before setting sail, you will carefully inspect all your ships to determine if there are any Cuban native men or women on board. If you find any, you should deliver them to the authorities in the name of their Highnesses. Under no circumstances should any of your ships have any natives on board. SEVEN: Once you have set sail, visit each of the ships. You will take with you a scribe who will list the individuals who are on each of the ships accompanying you. The captain of each ship should be supplied with a copy of the list. Also, missing individuals should be noted. Those who have provided you with money, but who did not accompany you, should also be listed. You will send me a copy of the lists so we will know went with you. [Instructions 8, 9, and 10 provide navigation instructions to pilots and ship captains.] ELEVEN. When, thanks to our Lord, you arrive at the island of Cozumel and at the other islands and lands you encounter, you will speak with the caciques [chiefs] and Indians you encounter and tell them our King has sent you to explore and visit. You should let them know that he is a very powerful king whose vassals we and they are. Let them know that for many generations he has been obeyed and that he has subjugated and continues to subjugate many lands. Inform them of the names of the lands and islands he dominates, including Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Cuba. Also let them know that he has granted land to the natives and that in each

grant he has appointed captains. Let them know that I have information about the island where they live and that I sent you to subject them to his Highness and his service. Let them know that those who serve his Highness will be well rewarded by him. In his name, I will also favor them. Assure them that they will be protected against their enemies. Tell all the natives that as a sign of serving his Highness they should provide you with gold, precious stones, pearls, and other things they have. Let them know that his Highness will treat them favorably. Inform them they should provide goods so that his Highness can know they are willing to serve him and so he can reward them. You will also tell them how sorry I was to learn of the battle involving Capt. Francisco Hernández de Córdoba. His Highness does not want his vassals to be mistreated due to him. Let them know that in the name of his Highness I have sent you to speak with them, to pacify them, and to let them know of the great power of our Lord. In the future those who want to peacefully serve the Spanish will be well received, and peace will reign. The Spanish will help them against their enemies. Also tell them whatever else you think will further your goals. TWELVE. In many places on the island of Cozumel crosses have been encountered on burials. These crosses are widely venerated. You will attempt by all possible means and with great diligence to learn the meaning the crosses have for those who erected them. Also inquire if they erected them because they have received the teaching of God Our Lord. You will be very heedful of this matter. All such information you gather should be recorded by your scribe. This should occur in Cozumel as well as in any other places crosses are found. THIRTEEN. You should determine, whenever possible, if the natives of the islands have sects, religions, rituals, or ceremonies and if they have mosques, (2) other houses of worship, idols, or similar things. Find out if they have people who officiate at their ceremonies, as the Muslim scholars and other ministers do. You will have your scribe record this information in detail and certify what you find.

FOURTEEN: You are aware that the principal reason that our Highnesses permit exploration of new lands is because so many souls, just like the souls here, have been and are outside our Holy Faith for lack of someone who can tell them the true teachings. You will use all means possible to effect the conversion of the natives of the islands and lands where you travel. You should make them understand that there is only One God creator of heaven and earth and of all the other things in heaven and on earth. Explain this as fully as you can and as time allows. Do as much and as well as you can in the service of God Our Lord and of His Highnesses. [Instructions 15, 16, 17, and 18 ordered Cortés to inquire about the Grijalva expedition. (3)] NINETEEN. You will be very careful to ensure the Indians you encounter, on land as well as at sea, are treated well. You will show them friendship and love. Do what you can, depending on who you encounter and where you are, to make the Indians you encounter happy. You will not allow anyone to harm them in any way. You will do everything you can to ensure that when they leave you they will be pleased to have met you and your men. To do otherwise would be a disservice to God Our Lord and their Highnesses and contrary to your mission. [Instruction 20 deals with bartering with Indians for items that belonged to the Grijalva expedition.] TWENTY-ONE. If you need to land to take on fresh water, firewood, or other supplies, only do so if there is no danger to your men. Send only the people in whom you have the utmost confidence. You will instruct them to be as peaceful and cordial as possible, but at the same time ensure they are well armed. You will instruct them not to cause conflict with the native people. Your men should only go ashore if there is no sign of danger. In no case should they sleep on shore. They should not venture so far from the shore that they cannot quickly return to their ships in case of Indian attack and be supported by those remaining on the ships.

TWENTY-TWO. If you encounter a town close to the coast and if it appears that its residents will allow you to enter without conflict or danger, you may visit it and reconnoiter. You will take with you your most pacific, prudent men and ensure they are as well armed as possible. You will instruct them in front of a scribe who will record your orders. Tell them that they should not take any object from the Indians, even if it is of little value. They should not enter homes nor should they abuse their women, or even touch, speak with, or approach them, or say anything that would lead to immorality. Nor should any of your men separate themselves from the group regardless of what invitations the Indians make. TWENTY-THREE. Since the Indians, to deceive you or kill you, may feign good will and invite you to their towns, you will be vigilant and keep your arms at the ready. You will not permit the Indians to mingle with your men. You will explain that this is to prevent any Spaniard from doing or saying anything that would cause offense. If they mingle with you, they might grab some of you and drag them off. You will instruct those remaining on the ships to be on the look out, so that they might come to your aid in case of attack. TWENTY-FOUR. After determining if they are any Spanish captives on Santa María de los Remedios, you will continue your voyage toward Punta Llama, which is the beginning of the land whose coast you will explore. Inspect all rivers and ports until you reach the Bay of San Juan and Chalchicueyecan (4). That is the point from which Grijalva sent me his wounded and sick, and wrote me about what had happened to his expedition. If you encounter him you will work with him because your group and his group have the same interests. You will work together in order to best serve God Our Lord and their Highnesses, bearing in mind the instructions each of you received. You will do this in the name of our Highnesses and in order to please God. If you barter or trade for anything, you will do so in the presence of Francisco de Peñaloza, the inspector.

TWENTY-FIVE. You will work diligently to learn about these islands and lands, and about the other regions that in the service of God Our Lord have been discovered or will be discovered. You will note what the people of each place talk about and their abilities, as well as the trees, fruits, herbs, birds, animals, gold, precious stones, pearls, metals, spices, and whatever else you learn about. You will have this all recorded by scribes. It is known that in these islands and lands there is gold. You will learn where and when it was obtained and if there are mines. If so, find out where the mines are. You will attempt to inspect them in order to make as accurate a description as possible. Chalchicueyecan is a likely gold source. From there, Grijalva sent me some grains of gold to be melted down. You will also learn if the people you speak with make their own gold ornaments or if the ornaments are from elsewhere. TWENTY-SIX. At each place you visit, before your scribe and many witnesses, and in the name of their Highnesses, you will take possession of the land with the greatest possible solemnity. You will perform all the judicial acts and formalities that usually accompany such ceremonies. In each location you will strive by all means possible and in an orderly fashion to gain information about other islands and lands, and to learn of the capabilities and weaknesses of such people. It is said that there are people with huge, wide ears and others who have faces like dogs, and that there are amazons. TWENTY-SEVEN. Many situations may arise that are not considered in my instructions. In such situations I am sure that you will act in the way that best serves Our Lord and their Highnesses. In all such cases, you will act as much as possible in conformity with the instructions provided above. You should make prudent decisions and rely on the wise, trustworthy members of your expedition and on those who are most disposed to serve Our Lord and their Highnesses. [Instruction 28 ordered Cortés not to allow those who owed money to the King and Queen to join his expedition.]

TWENTY-NINE: After you have arrived at Chalchicueyecan, you will send the boat that you have least need of back to Cuba. On it you will send me all the gold, pearls, and precious stones you have encountered, as well as spices, small animals, fruits, birds, and all the other things you have found. That will permit me to send an accurate report to the King, who will thus know what is to be found in these lands. [Instruction 30 confers on Cortés authority to enforce both civil and criminal law on the expedition.] Notes: 1. Their Highnesses refers to Fernando V, King of Castile and Aragón and to Juana, Queen of Castille and León. At this time no one person served as monarch of all of Spain. Velázquez did not know Carlos I had assumed the throne. 2. Early Spanish arrivals in the New World used the term mosque to refer to structures built for religious purposes since the only non-christian religious structures they were familiar with were mosques. 3. Grijalva returned to the Cuban port of Matanzas on Oct. 4, 1519. However, since this port was 450 miles west of Santiago, when Velázquez wrote the instructions he was unaware Grijalva had returned. 4. Chalchicueyecan was an indigenous town near the modern port of Veracruz. Velázquez referred to it as Santa Maria de las Nieves, a name that is no longer used. Author s translation of Cortés orders, which appeared in José Luis Martínez (ed.), Documentos cortesianos, Vol. I, pp. 45 57.