The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo, Vol 2 (of 2)

CHAPTER CCII

How the viceroy sends out a squadron of three vessels into the South sea to the assistance of Francisco Vasquez Coronado, in the conquest of Cibola. 56

I have already mentioned in a former chapter that the viceroy and the royal auditors had sent out an armament for the discovery of the seven towns, which are also termed the towns of Cibola. A certain cavalier of Salamanca, called Francisco Vasquez Coronado, who was governor of the province of Xalisco, and was married to the beautiful and virtuous daughter of the treasurer Estrada, had marched out as captain-general with a strong body of horse and foot, in order further to explore the country. Having appointed a certain Oñate to govern in his absence, he took his route overland, and arrived, in the space of a few months, among the so-termed seven towns. Whether he had despatched thither the Franciscan monk, father Marcos de Nizza, in advance, or whether both arrived there at the same time, I am unable to say; however, when they came into the country of Cibola they found to their surprise the meadows abounding with cows and bulls, though different in shape to ours in Spain; the houses of the towns were several stories high, and were ascended by regular steps. The father seeing all this considered it well worth his while to return to Mexico and inform the viceroy of the country they had discovered, that he might send thither an armament of some extent. This the viceroy accordingly did, and he sent out three vessels under the chief command of Hernando Alcaron, one of the officers of his household, who was accompanied by Marcos Ruiz de Rojas, of Madrid, and a certain Maldonado, as second in command. I ought to mention that all I have related respecting the discovery of this country I have from hearsay.

CHAPTER CCIII

Of a very extensive armament which was fitted out by Alvarado in the year 1537.

Here I must not pass by in silence the vast armament which Alvarado fitted out in the year 1537, in the harbour of Acaxatla, lying on the coast of the South Sea, in the province of Guatimala, of which he was then governor.

This expedition was fitted out according to an agreement he had entered into with the crown during his stay in Spain, by which he bound himself down to fit out a certain number of vessels at his own expense, for the express purpose of discovering some western passage to China, the Moluccas, or to other of the Spice islands. In consideration of which he was promised a certain portion of the lands he should discover, or of the annual rents that should arise from them; however, as I never saw this agreement myself, I am unable to give any further particulars about it.

Alvarado, who had always proved himself a most faithful servant to his majesty, both during the conquest of New Spain and in the campaigns of Peru, and, with his four brothers, had taken every opportunity to promote the interests of the crown, was desirous on this occasion to surpass every armament which Cortes had fitted out before him. He therefore equipped thirteen vessels of considerable burden, all well provided with ammunition, provisions, and water, and care was taken to select the best sailors and the most experienced pilots. As the harbour where he built these vessels lay above 800 miles from Vera Cruz, all the ironwork and the greater part of the building materials had to be transported thither from the latter port by land; and all this proved so expensive to him, that he might have built eighty vessels of the same size at Seville for an equal sum of money. He not only spent in fitting out this armament all the riches he had brought with him from Peru, and all the gold he could collect from his mines in Guatimala and other possessions, but he borrowed large sums of money, besides that he purchased quantities of goods on credit. To all of which was added the large sums of money he had to pay the captains of the vessels, the officers, and the troops, which amounted to 650 men; further, the purchase of horses, the best of which cost him 300 pesos a piece, and the inferior ones from 150 to 200 pesos; and lastly, the cost of a considerable store of ammunition and powder. In short, the sums of money he laid out were beyond conception. By this expedition he not only thought to render his majesty distinguished services, but he also hoped to reach China, the Moluccas, or the Spice islands, by a western passage, and either to make conquests there, or at least to open a trade between these countries and the province of which he was governor; he was therefore determined to stake both his life and the whole of his property in the enterprise.

The armament being at length fully equipped, Alvarado took the chief command himself, as captain-general, and ordered the imperial flags to be hoisted. The number of troops he had on board amounted to 650 men, including 200 horse, and after attending mass he set sail in the year 1538, but I forget in which month. He first of all shaped his course for the harbour de la Purificacion, in the province of Xalisco, where he took a further supply of water and provisions on board, besides a few additional troops.

When the viceroy received intelligence that so vast an armament had been fitted out at such a distance from Vera Cruz and Mexico, he was filled with utter astonishment. He consulted the most experienced pilots and cosmographers, and learnt from them, but particularly from his relative Villalobos, who was a very skilful geographer and navigator, that it was every way possible to reach China by sailing due west from the new world. This created a great desire in him to share the expenses of the expedition with Alvarado; for which purpose he first made the latter a proposal by letter, and then despatched to him his major-domo Agostino Guerrero and Don Luis de Castilla, to settle the terms of an agreement. In consequence of this proposal an interview took place between the viceroy and Alvarado in the township of Chiribitio, lying in the province of Mechoacan, a commendary belonging to Juan de Alvarado. Here both these distinguished personages inspected the armament, and then travelled in company to Mexico, in order to select an officer as captain-general of the whole expedition. Alvarado was desirous of appointing his relative Juan de Alvarado, of Guatimala, who, however, must not be confounded with the person of the same name just mentioned; but the viceroy's choice fell upon his relative Villalobos. Alvarado himself had been obliged to relinquish all thoughts of taking the chief command himself, as the affairs of his own province required his immediate presence there; nevertheless, he was desirous of being present at the departure of the armament, for which purpose he journeyed overland to the harbour of Natividad, where all the vessels lay in readiness, and only awaited his commands for setting sail.

Just as he was about to issue these commands, he received a letter from Christobal de Oñate, whom, as I have above stated, Vasquez Coronado, during his absence in Cibola, had appointed governor of Xalisco. In this letter Oñate stated that he was threatened on all sides by large bodies of Indians, who had, in particular, taken up a strong position on the mountains of Chochitlan, and had killed a considerable number of his troops; and that, if he did not receive immediate assistance, he must be cut off, with the whole of his men. In short, Oñate drew so dreadful a picture of the posture of affairs, that the whole of New Spain itself seemed to be threatened with destruction, if the Indians could march down victorious from their strong position on the heights. Alvarado, on receiving this intelligence, hastened with a large body of troops to Oñate's assistance, whom he indeed found in so perilous a position, that if this timely help had not come, the Indians would very shortly have mastered his small body of troops. After Alvarado's arrival the enemy did not repeat their attacks so often, yet they fought with great courage each time the combat was renewed. It was in one of these engagements between the rocky mountains that a horse stumbled, and rolled headlong down a steep declivity. Alvarado, who happened to be ascending the same height, was unable to get out of the way of the rolling horse, which carried him down, and lay upon him, when both reached the bottom, so that his body was bruised all over, and he found himself very ill. However, the bruises he had received were not considered dangerous, and he was conveyed in a sedan to the neighbouring town de la Purificacion for medical aid, but on his way thither he had frequent swoons, and scarcely a few days elapsed before he rendered up his spirit to God, after he had partaken of the holy communion, and made his confession. Some persons even maintained that he left a will, but nothing was ever seen of it.

This excellent cavalier would, no doubt, have survived, if he had not been carried to the town in the weak state he was in, but had been promptly attended by a surgeon on the spot where the accident took place. However, it was thus ordained by the Lord, whose will be praised, and may God have mercy on his soul. Alvarado was buried with every possible splendour in the town where he breathed his last. Subsequently, I heard that Juan de Alvarado carried his earthly remains to Chiribitio, where they were again entombed with the greatest funeral pomp, many alms were distributed, and several masses were ordered for the repose of his soul.

When intelligence of Alvarado's death reached the fleet and the head-quarters of Cochitlan, there being no one there to take the chief command, a number of the troops dispersed with the money they had received in advance. The consternation which this sad news created in Mexico was very great, particularly as the viceroy, after Alvarado's decease, was desired to send immediate assistance to Xalisco; but as he was unable to leave himself just then, he despatched the licentiate Maldonado thither with as large a body of men as could be assembled in the hurry of the moment; though subsequently he marched in person against the Indians, and completely subdued them, after protracted and fatiguing campaigns.

When the news of Alvarado's death reached Guatimala, the grief of his family knew no bounds; and his wife, Doña Beatriz de la Cueva, with whom he had lived on the most affectionate terms, cried incessantly, and she and all the ladies of her household cut off their hair. His death was also a severe blow to his lovely daughter, his sons, and his son-in-law Don Francisco de la Cueva, on whom Alvarado had conferred the government of Guatimala during his absence. Every one of the Conquistadores of this province deeply lamented his death, and put on mourning for him. The bishop Don Francisco Marroquin was likewise deeply affected at the sad news, and performed a solemn mass for the dead, assisted by the whole body of the clergy, and ordered daily prayers to be offered up for the repose of his soul. Alvarado's major-domo, to show his excessive grief, had even plastered all the walls of his house with a species of black bitumen, which stuck so fast, that it could never after be taken off again.

Several cavaliers waited upon the disconsolate widow to condole with her, and begged of her to moderate her grief, and humbly to resign herself to the will of God. This, as a good Christian, she promised to do; but as women are unable to moderate their grief for the loss of those they have loved, she said she was tired of life, and longed to quit this vale of sorrows. I have merely mentioned this circumstance because Gomara, in his Chronicles, puts the following blasphemous words into her mouth: "That the Lord Jesus could not have visited her with a severer calamity;" and he maintains that it was owing to her having given utterance to this that the town of Guatimala was shortly after visited by so direful a calamity; for the volcano, which lies about two miles from the town, during a violent storm, suddenly vomited huge masses of stone and clouds of ashes, succeeded by a deluge of water, from the bursting of the crater, by which a great part of the town where the widow of Alvarado resided was totally destroyed, and she herself, with several of her ladies, drowned. However, this lady certainly gave utterance to nothing more than what I have mentioned above, and what Gomara states is an invention of his own: and if it pleased the Lord Jesus to call her away from this earth, it is not for mortal man to scrutinise the mysterious decrees of heaven.

With respect to this dreadful tempest and earthquake, I will give the particulars in another place. I cannot help mentioning with regret, that, notwithstanding the many important services which Alvarado and his five brothers, as also the other Alvarados, had rendered to the crown, the sons and daughters of the first-mentioned retained none of the townships comprehended in his commendary, and that the fact of his having subdued the whole province was never even taken into consideration, and it was no longer borne in mind that he accompanied the expedition under Grijalva, and was present in all the campaigns of Cortes. The manner in which he himself, his wife, his children, and his brothers lost their lives, is altogether remarkable. Alvarado himself, as we have seen, met with his death in the expedition against Cochitlan; his brother Jorge, who fought in some of the campaigns of Mexico and those of Guatimala, died in Madrid in the year 1540, whither he had gone to solicit his majesty for some remuneration for the services he had rendered the crown; Gomez was killed in Peru; Gonzalo died in Guaxaca or Mexico; and Juan, who was a natural brother, ended his life at Cuba, whither he had journeyed to look over some property he possessed in this island. The eldest of Alvarado's sons, named Don Pedro, repaired, with his uncle Juan the younger, to Spain, to represent to his majesty the many valuable services his father had rendered to the crown; but neither of them were ever after heard of, and they must either have been lost at sea or taken prisoners by the Moors. His second son, Don Diego, finding that all his father's property was gone, returned to Peru, where he lost his life in battle. With respect to Alvarado's widow, I have above stated how she perished, with several of the ladies of her household, during a fearful tempest. And thus, unfortunately, did Alvarado die, at a distance from his wife and daughters, whom he loved with so much affection; and the wife without her husband, for whom she cherished the dearest remembrance! One of the sons, in his journey to Spain, was never heard of again, and the second was killed in Peru. May they become glorified with the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!

A short time ago two tombs were constructed near the altar of the principal church of Guatimala, in one of which the remains of Alvarado are to be deposited, which were taken to Chiribitio; and in the other Don Francisco de la Cueva and his wife, Doña Leonora, Alvarado's daughter, have expressed a wish to be buried, when it shall please the Almighty to call them from this earthly life.

In order to return to the armament which Alvarado had fitted out, I must not omit to mention that the viceroy a year after ordered the best of the vessels to be selected, and these he sent out to sea, under the command of his relative Villalobos, with instructions to sail in a westerly direction, in search of China; but as I never heard how this expedition terminated, I will say nothing further about it; though one thing is certain, the heirs of Alvarado never derived any advantages from it, and the whole of the vast sums which Alvarado had expended in fitting out this armament were for ever lost to the family.

We must now see what Cortes is doing in Spain.

CHAPTER CCIV

What befel the marquis del Valle on his second visit to Spain.

When the emperor, after punishing the town of Ghent, fitted out the large fleet to besiege Algiers, the marquis del Valle, with his eldest son, likewise entered the service, and he also took along with him his natural son Don Martin Cortes, whom he had by Doña Marina, besides several pages, servants, and horses, and embarked in a fine galley, with Don Enrique Enriquez. However, as the whole of this fleet, by the mysterious destiny of heaven, was cast away in a violent storm, the galley in which Cortes had embarked was also dashed to pieces, and he, with his son and most of the other cavaliers, narrowly escaped with their lives. During the universal disorder which reigned at the moment, when every one saw death before his eyes, Cortes, according to the assurances of his servants, had tied up his splendid jewels in a kerchief, and fastened them tight to his arm; for it was customary for persons of distinction to take their jewels with them; but he unfortunately lost them in the rush every one made to save his own life; which indeed must have been a loss to him of several thousands of pesos.

After this great destruction of men and vessels, the principal officers, who formed the royal council of war, advised his majesty to relinquish all idea of besieging Algiers, and to withdraw to Bugia, as it would be fruitless to make any attempts on the former place at present. When Cortes, who had been purposely excluded from the council of war, learnt this, he declared, that if his majesty would leave the matter to him, he would, with the assistance of God, and the good fortune which had ever attended his majesty's troops, very soon take the town of Algiers, even with the few remaining forces: and as one word led to another, he launched out into the praise of his officers and companions in arms, who had formed the siege of Mexico with him, and he declared that we thought nothing of hunger and hardships; that we had proved ourselves heroes on every occasion; and though we had many times been covered with wounds, and ready to sink with fatigue, yet we used to continue the conflict, and took every town and fortress that came in our way.

As many cavaliers were present when Cortes uttered this, they did not fail to acquaint his majesty with it, expressing their regret at the same time that Cortes had not sat in the council, nor did they omit to mention that the latter himself felt hurt at his having been excluded. Other cavaliers, however, openly avowed that he had been purposely excluded, because it was well to be foreseen he would have opposed the general opinion of the council, and have given his voice for prosecuting the siege. After the destruction which had been caused by the tempest, they continued, advice was scarcely needed, for all that could be done was to save the life of his majesty, and of so many distinguished cavaliers who had accompanied him on this expedition. With the assistance of God, they concluded, the expedition against Algiers might be renewed on some future occasion: and thus it was resolved the troops should return to Spain.

After the miserable termination of this perilous expedition, Cortes grew wearied of any longer stay at court; and as old age was growing upon him, and he was beginning to feel the effects of the many hardships and fatigues he had endured through life, his greatest desire was to obtain permission from the emperor to return to New Spain. To all this may be added, the breaking off of the marriage which was to have taken place between his daughter Doña Maria and Don Alvaro Perez Osorio, heir to the marquisate of Astorga, to whom Cortes had promised, as a marriage gift, above 100,000 golden ducats, besides other valuable matters. Doña Maria had expressly arrived in Seville from Mexico, at her father's desire, that the marriage might be consummated, and he was consequently much hurt and annoyed when the match was broken off. The fault, it appears, lay with the bridegroom; and certain it is this matter caused so much annoyance to Cortes that it brought on a severe fever, accompanied by dysentery. Finding that his sickness was growing upon him, he left the town of Seville, and retired to Castilleja de la Cuesta to enjoy more repose. Here he ordered all his affairs, made his last will, and was called away from this world of troubles on the 2d of September, 1547, after receiving the holy sacrament and extreme unction. He was buried with every pomp and magnificence in the chapel containing the sepultures of the dukes of Medina Sidonia, and he was followed to the grave by a large body of the clergy and a number of cavaliers. Subsequently his remains were taken to New Spain, and interred, according to a desire expressed in his last will, either in Cojohuacan or Tezcuco,57 I forget which.

The following is what I know respecting Cortes' age. When we first set out with him for New Spain from Cuba, in the year 1519, we often heard him say in the course of conversation, that he was thirty-four years of age, and from this day until the day of his death twenty-eight years had elapsed, which will bring his age to sixty-two.58

The following were the children he left behind him born in lawful wedlock: the present marquis Don Martin; Doña Maria, who was to have been married to Don Perez Osorio, but who afterwards married the earl of Luna de Leon; Doña Juana, the wife of Don Hernando Enriquez, heir to the marquisate of Tarifa; and Doña Catalina de Arellano, who died in Seville. Besides these there was another daughter of Cortes, named Doña Leonor, who was married to a wealthy gentleman of Biscay, living in Mexico, named Juan de Toloso, who possessed lucrative silver mines. When the present marquis del Valle arrived in New Spain, he greatly disapproved of this match.

Besides these children, Cortes had two sons and three daughters born out of wedlock. One of these sons, named Don Martin, was a comendador of Santiago, whom he had by the interpretress Doña Marina. The other son, Don Luis, was also a comendador of Santiago, whom he had by a certain Hermosilla. Of these daughters one was named Pizarro, after her mother, an Indian woman of Cuba; the other was born of a Mexican woman.59 Cortes had, during his lifetime, richly provided for these daughters, and had bestowed lucrative townships upon them; among others, that of Chinanta. There is no doubt he also remembered them in his will, for he was a man of deep penetration and had sufficient time in his latter days to order all his affairs in a proper manner, he would naturally not omit to fulfil anything that might tend to lighten his conscience. In this way, like a good Christian, he also left a fund for erecting an hospital in Mexico, and a cloister in Cojohuacan, where he desired his remains might be interred; besides this, he left large sums for other pious purposes. However, in order not to go too much into detail I will say nothing further on this head, indeed I have forgotten many circumstances relative to his bequests.

Cortes' armorial bearings and their motto bespoke his great valour, and were suitable emblems of his heroic deeds. The motto was in Latin, but as I am no Latin scholar I will not attempt to explain its meaning. His escutcheon bore the seven heads, chained, of monarchs whom he had conquered. These I believe, and have heard others say, represent the monarchs Motecusuma of Mexico, Cacamatzin of Tezcuco, Cuitlahuatzin of Iztapalapan; the kings of Tlacupa and Cojohuacan, and a powerful cazique of the province of Tulapa, near Matlaltzinco, who was nephew to Motecusuma, and the nearest heir to the throne of Mexico. The last was Quauhtemoctzin, who fought the terrible battles with us during the siege of Mexico.

I must now say a few words with respect to Cortes' outward person. He was of good stature, his limbs well proportioned and strongly knit together, but his complexion was rather of an ash-coloured grey, nor was there much cheerfulness in his look; and if his countenance had been somewhat larger it would have been more handsome. His eyes, generally speaking, had a remarkably sweet expression, but he could also look very grave. The hair of his beard, like that of his head, was black, but not very thick. His chest was well developed, his shoulders broad, his legs were rather bowed, but his ankles and feet were well proportioned. He had very little embonpoint, and was rather lean. He was a capital horseman, remarkably expert in all martial exercises, both as a foot and cavalry soldier; but what was more than this he was uncommonly courageous and never shrunk back from any danger. In his younger days, while living at Hispaniola, he had frequent adventures about women, and often fought with the most expert swordsmen for the possession of some fair one, and always carried off the palm of victory. On one of these occasions he was wounded beneath the underlip, the scar of which was visible through his beard. His bearing, his gait, his conversation, his behaviour during dinner-time, and the taste he showed in his dress, all bespoke the cavalier of distinction and good breeding. He always dressed according to the fashion of the day; wore very little silk, satins, or expensive damasks; but the whole of his garments were plain and very neat. He never bedizened himself with heavy gold chains, but always had the same one, which was of exquisite workmanship, and had attached to it a kind of trinket, having on one side the image of the blessed virgin, holding her heavenly Son in her arms; on the other that of St. John the Baptist, with a Latin inscription. On one of his fingers he wore a valuable ring set with a most splendid diamond. To his velvet cap was fastened a medal, with a bust in relief and some name, but I have forgotten what it was, as latterly he used to wear nothing but cloth caps, without any medal.