"In 1519 Hernan Cortes and a small band of Spanish conquistadors overthrew the mighty Mexican empire of the Aztecs. Using excerpts primarily drawn from Bernal Diaz's 1632 account of the Spanish victory and testimonies - many recently uncovered - of indigenous Nahua survivors, Victors and Vanquished clearly demonstrates how personal interests, class and ethnic biases, and political considerations influenced the interpretation of these momentous events."--Jacket.

Introduction: Civilizations in Conflict. A Long Tradition: The Indigenous Peoples of Mesoamerica ; Tenochtitlan: The Foundation of Heaven ; Mexica Civilization and Society ; Renaissance Conquerors ; The Spanish Sources ; The Indigenous Historical Traditions -- The Documents. 1. Forebodings and Omens. Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, from the Florentine Codex ; Fray Martin de Jesus de la Coruna, Popular Auguries and Prophetic Dreams ; Diego Duran, from The History of the Indies of New Spain -- 2. Preparations. Bernal Diaz, from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain ; Hernan Cortes, Letters to Charles V -- 3. Encounters. Hernan Cortes, Letter to Charles V ; Bernal Diaz, from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain ; Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, from the Florentine Codex -- 4. The March Inland: Tlaxcala and Cholula. Bernal Diaz, from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain ; Andres de Tapia, Another Spanish View of the Cholula Massacre ; Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, from the Florentine Codex ; From the Lienzo de Tlaxcala -- 5. Tenochtitlan. Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, from the Florentine Codex ; Bernal Diaz, from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain -- 6. Things Fall Apart: Toxcatl and the Noche triste. Francisco Lopez de Gomara, from Istoria de la conquista de Mexico ; From the Florentine Codex and the Codex Aubin ; Bernal Diaz, from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain ; Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, from the Florentine Codex -- 7. The Siege and Fall of Tenochtitlan. From Chronicles of Michoacan ; Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, from the Florentine Codex ; Francisco de Aguilar, Eighth Jornada ; Bernal Diaz, from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain ; From Cantares mexicanos -- 8. Aftermath: Tradition and Transformation. Bernal Diaz, from The True History of the Conquest of New Spain ; From the Codex Mendoza ; The Shape of the Land: The Codex Mendoza and the Relaciones geograficas ; Don Domingo de San Anton Munon Chimalpahin, The Death of Cuauhtemoc ; Title of Acalan-Tixel ; Town Council of Huejotzingo, Letter to King Phillip II ; The Annals of Cuauhtinchan -- Appendices. Chronology of the Conquest of Tenochtitlan (1485-1584) ; Questions for Consideration ; Biographical Notes ; Glossary of Spanish Terms ; Glossary of Nahuatl Terms.