Hernando CortéS, Conqueror Of Mexico

In early 1519 Hernando Cortés landed on the coast of Mexico. Within two years Cortés and his men had devastated the Aztec civilization, sacked the city of Tenochtitlan and deposed Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec emperor. Frederick Ober’s book Hernando Cortés, Conqueror of Mexico charts the career of this ruthless figure who had set out to conquer the Aztec empire with just a six hundred men, fifteen horses, fifteen cannons and a few hundred indigenous carriers and warriors. The conquest of Mexico was well recorded and Ober uses a wide array of primary sources to build up a comprehensive picture of this infamous conqueror. Ober provides fascinating insight into Cortés’ lighting quick invasion of the Aztec Empire, the battles that were fought and how Cortés was able to build alliances to overcome his enemies. Frederick A. Ober was an American author and naturalist. During his writing career, which lasted 30 years, he wrote more than 40 books, mostly travel books, but also bird books, and biographies about Amerigo Vespucci, Hernando Cortés, and Israel Putnam. His biography of Cortés was first published in 1905 and Ober passed away in 1913.