• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Mythology / How Did the Aztec King Moctezuma II Mistake Conquistador Hernan Cortes For the Bearded God Quetzalcoatl?

How Did the Aztec King Moctezuma II Mistake Conquistador Hernan Cortes For the Bearded God Quetzalcoatl?

April 6, 2020 by Karen Hill

The two gods, Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca, constantly battled to determine who would rule the universe.

After one fight, Quetzalcoatl was driven from his capital city, Tenochtitlan, by Tezcatlipoca. According to Aztec myth, Quetzalcoatl would eventually return in triumph as a light-skinned, bearded god.

In 1519, the Aztec king, Moctezuma II was shocked when a light-skinned, bearded Spaniard named Hernan Cortes arrived in the capital city.

Moctezuma was convinced that Quetzalcoatl had returned at last. But Moctezuma was very wrong.

Cortes was not a god, but a conquistador in search of gold and riches.

With Indian allies and European guns, Cortes and his men destroyed the Aztec Empire in 1521.

Related Facts

  • What was the European Age of Exploration?
  • Why didn’t Aztec emperor Montezuma attack Hernan Cortes’s men when they arrived?
  • Who Was the Bearded White God of Mexico?
  • How Were People Created In Aztec Mythology and Why Did Quetzalcoatl Journey To the Underworld?
  • What Are the Four Aztec Suns In Aztec Mythology and How Did Tezcatlipoca Create Dogs?
  • How Was the World Created In Aztec Mythology and Why Was the Aztec Ritual of Human Sacrifice Important?

Filed Under: Mythology

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « How Was Tenochtitlan Founded and How Did the Aztecs Find the Eagle Perched On a Prickly Pear Cactus?
Next Post: Where In the World Is the United States of America Located? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy