View source for Spanish conquest of Yucatán

{{Short description|Campaign against Late Postclassic Maya}}
{{see also|Spanish conquest of Guatemala|Spanish conquest of Petén}}
{{use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2021}}
{{good article}}
{{Spanish conquest of the Maya}}
{{Spanish colonial campaigns}}
The '''Spanish conquest of Yucatán''' was the campaign undertaken by the [[Spanish Empire|Spanish]] ''[[conquistador]]es'' against the [[Mesoamerican chronology|Late Postclassic]] [[Maya civilization|Maya]] states and polities in the [[Yucatán Peninsula]], a vast [[limestone]] plain covering south-eastern [[Mexico]], northern [[Guatemala]], and all of [[Belize]]. The [[Spanish colonization of the Americas|Spanish conquest]] of the Yucatán Peninsula was hindered by its politically fragmented state. The Spanish engaged in a strategy of concentrating native populations in newly founded colonial towns. Native resistance to the new nucleated settlements took the form of the flight into inaccessible regions such as the forest or joining neighbouring [[Maya peoples|Maya]] groups that had not yet submitted to the Spanish. Among the Maya, ambush was a favoured tactic. Spanish weaponry included [[broadsword]]s, [[rapier]]s, [[lance]]s, [[pike (weapon)|pike]]s, [[halberd]]s, [[crossbow]]s, [[matchlock]]s, and light [[History of artillery|artillery]]. [[Maya warfare|Maya warriors]] fought with flint-tipped spears, bows and arrows and stones, and wore padded cotton armour to protect themselves. The Spanish introduced a number of [[Old World]] diseases previously unknown in the [[Americas]], initiating devastating plagues that swept through the native populations.

The first encounter with the [[Yucatec Maya language|Yucatec Maya]] may have occurred in 1502, when the fourth voyage of [[Christopher Columbus]] came across a large trading canoe off [[Honduras]].  In 1511, Spanish survivors of the shipwrecked [[caravel]] called ''Santa María de la Barca'' sought refuge among native groups along the eastern coast of the peninsula. [[Hernán Cortés]] made contact with two survivors, [[Gerónimo de Aguilar]] and [[Gonzalo Guerrero]], eight years later.  In 1517, [[Francisco Hernández de Córdoba (Yucatán conquistador)|Francisco Hernández de Córdoba]] made landfall on the tip of the peninsula. His expedition continued along the coast and suffered heavy losses in a pitched battle at [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]], forcing a retreat to [[Cuba]]. [[Juan de Grijalva]] explored the coast in 1518, and heard tales of the wealthy [[Aztec Empire]] further west. As a result of these rumours, [[Hernán Cortés]] set sail with another fleet. From [[Cozumel]] he continued around the peninsula to [[Tabasco]] where he fought a battle at [[Potonchán]]; from there Cortés continued onward to conquer the [[Aztec Empire]]. In 1524, Cortés led a sizeable expedition to [[Honduras]], cutting across southern [[Campeche]], and through [[Petén Basin|Petén]] in what is now northern Guatemala. In 1527 [[Francisco de Montejo]] set sail from [[Spain]] with a small fleet. He left garrisons on the east coast, and subjugated the northeast of the peninsula. Montejo then returned to the east to find his garrisons had almost been eliminated; he used a supply ship to explore southwards before looping back around the entire peninsula to central [[Mexico]]. Montejo pacified [[Tabasco (former state)|Tabasco]] with the aid of his son, also named [[Francisco de Montejo the Younger|Francisco de Montejo]].

In 1531 the Spanish moved their base of operations to [[Campeche, Campeche|Campeche]], where they repulsed a significant Maya attack. After this battle, the Spanish founded a town at [[Chichen Itza]] in the north. Montejo carved up the province amongst his soldiers. In mid-1533 the local Maya rebelled and laid siege to the small Spanish garrison, which was forced to flee. Towards the end of 1534, or the beginning of 1535, the Spanish retreated from Campeche to [[Veracruz]]. In 1535, peaceful attempts by the [[Franciscan Order]] to incorporate Yucatán into the [[Spanish Empire]] failed after a renewed Spanish military presence at [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]] forced the friars out. Champotón was by now the last Spanish outpost in Yucatán, isolated among a hostile population. In 1541–42 the first permanent Spanish town councils in the entire peninsula were founded at Campeche and [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]]. When the powerful lord of [[Tutul-Xiu|Tutul-Xiu Maya]] in [[Maní, Yucatán|Maní]] converted to the [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] religion, his submission to Spain and conversion to Christianity encouraged the lords of the western provinces to accept Spanish rule. In late 1546 an alliance of eastern provinces launched an unsuccessful uprising against the Spanish. The eastern Maya were defeated in a single battle, which marked the final conquest of the northern portion of the Yucatán Peninsula.

The polities of [[Petén Basin|Petén]] in the south remained independent and received many refugees fleeing from Spanish jurisdiction. In 1618 and in 1619 two unsuccessful [[Franciscans|Franciscan]] missions attempted the peaceful conversion of the still pagan [[Itza people|Itza]]. In 1622 the Itza slaughtered two Spanish parties trying to reach their capital [[Nojpetén]]. These events ended all Spanish attempts to contact the Itza until 1695. Over the course of 1695 and 1696 a number of Spanish expeditions attempted to reach Nojpetén from the mutually independent Spanish colonies in Yucatán and Guatemala. In early 1695 the Spanish began to build a road from Campeche south towards Petén and activity intensified, sometimes with significant losses on the part of the Spanish. [[Martín de Urzúa y Arizmendi]], governor of Yucatán, launched an assault upon Nojpetén in March 1697;  the city fell after a brief battle. With the defeat of the Itza, the last independent and unconquered native kingdom in the [[Americas]] fell to the Spanish.

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==Geography==
[[File:Gulf of Honduras.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Satellite view of the Yucatán Peninsula]]
The [[Yucatán Peninsula]] is bordered by the [[Caribbean Sea]] to the east and by the [[Gulf of Mexico]] to the north and west. It can be delimited by a line running from the [[Laguna de Términos]] on the Gulf coast through to the [[Gulf of Honduras]] on the Caribbean coast. It incorporates the modern [[states of Mexico|Mexican states]] of [[Yucatán (state)|Yucatán]], [[Quintana Roo]] and [[Campeche]], the eastern portion of the [[state of Tabasco]], most of the [[Departments of Guatemala|Guatemalan department]] of [[Petén Department|Petén]], and all of [[Belize]].<ref>Quezada 2011, p. 13.</ref> Most of the peninsula is formed by a vast plain with few hills or mountains and a generally low coastline. A {{convert|15|km|mi|adj=on}} stretch of high, rocky coast runs south from the city of [[Campeche City|Campeche]] on the Gulf Coast. A number of bays are situated along the east coast of the peninsula, from north to south they are Ascensión Bay, Espíritu Santo Bay, [[Chetumal Bay]] and [[Amatique Bay]].<ref name="Quezada11p14"/> The north coast features a wide, sandy [[littoral zone]].<ref name="Quezada11p14"/> The extreme north of the peninsula, roughly corresponding to [[Yucatán|Yucatán State]], has underlying bedrock consisting of flat [[Cenozoic]] limestone. To the south of this the limestone rises to form the low chain of [[Puuc hills|Puuc Hills]], with a steep initial scarp running {{convert|160|km|mi}} east from the Gulf coast near [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]], terminating some {{convert|50|km|mi}} from the Caribbean coast near the border of Quintana Roo.<ref>White and Hood 2004, p. 152.<br>Quezada 2011, p. 14.</ref> The hills reach a maximum altitude of {{convert|170|m|ft}}.<ref name="Quezada11p14">Quezada 2011, p. 14.</ref>

The northwestern and northern portions of the Yucatán Peninsula experience lower rainfall than the rest of the peninsula; these regions feature highly porous limestone bedrock resulting in less surface water.<ref name="Thompson66p25"/> This limestone geology results in most rainwater filtering directly through the bedrock to the [[phreatic zone]], from whence it slowly flows to the coasts to form large submarine springs. Various freshwater springs rise along the coast to form watering holes. The filtering of rainwater through the limestone has caused the formation of extensive cave systems. These cave roofs are subject to collapse forming deep [[sinkhole]]s; if the bottom of the cave is deeper than the [[groundwater]] level then a [[cenote]] is formed.<ref name="Quezada11p15"/>

In contrast, the northeastern portion of the peninsula is characterised by forested swamplands.<ref name="Thompson66p25">Thompson 1966, p. 25.</ref> The northern portion of the peninsula lacks rivers, except for the [[Champotón River]] – all other rivers are located in the south.<ref name="Quezada11p14"/> The [[Sibun River]] flows from west to east from south central [[Quintana Roo]] to [[Lake Bacalar]] on the Caribbean Coast; the [[Hondo River (Belize)|Río Hondo]] flows northwards from [[Belize]] to empty into the same lake.<ref>Quezada 2011, pp. 14–15.</ref> Bacalar Lake empties into [[Chetumal Bay]]. The [[New River (Belize)|Río Nuevo]] flows from Lamanai Lake in Belize northwards to Chetumal Bay. The [[Mopan River]] and the [[Macal River]] flow through Belize and join to form the [[Belize River]], which empties into the [[Caribbean Sea]]. In the southwest of the peninsula, the [[San Pedro River (Guatemala)|San Pedro]], Candelaría, and Mamantel Rivers, which all form a part of the [[Gulf of Mexico]] drainage.<ref name="Quezada11p15">Quezada 2011, p. 15.</ref>

The [[Petén Basin|Petén]] region consists of densely forested low-lying limestone plain featuring [[karstic]] topography.<ref>Lovell 2005, p. 17.</ref> The area is crossed by low east–west oriented ridges of Cenozoic limestone and is characterised by a variety of forest and soil types; water sources include generally small rivers and low-lying seasonal swamps known as ''bajos''.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p46">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 46.</ref> A chain of fourteen lakes runs across the central [[drainage basin]] of Petén; during the [[rainy season]] some of these lakes become interconnected. This [[drainage area]] measures approximately {{convert|100|km|mi}} east–west by {{convert|30|km|mi}} north–south.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 46–47.</ref> The largest lake is [[Lake Petén Itza]], near the centre of the drainage basin; it measures {{convert|32|by|5|km|mi}}. A broad [[savanna]]h extends south of the central lakes. To the north of the lakes region ''bajos'' become more frequent, interspersed with forest. In the far north of Petén the [[Mirador Basin]] forms another interior drainage region.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p47">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 47.</ref> To the south the plain gradually rises towards the [[Guatemalan Highlands]].<ref name="RiceRice09p5">Rice and Rice 2009, p. 5.</ref> The canopy height of the forest gradually decreases from Petén northwards, averaging from {{convert|25|to|35|m|ft}}.<ref name="Quezada11p16">Quezada 2011, p. 16.</ref> This dense forest covers northern Petén and [[Belize]], most of [[Quintana Roo]], southern [[Campeche]] and a portion of the south of [[Yucatán|Yucatán State]]. Further north, the vegetation turns to lower forest consisting of dense scrub.<ref name="Quezada11p17">Quezada 2011, p. 17.</ref>

===Climate===
The climate becomes progressively drier towards the north of the peninsula.<ref name="Quezada11p17"/> In the north, the annual mean temperature is {{convert|27|C|F}} in [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]]. Average temperature in the peninsula varies from {{convert|24|C|F}} in January to {{convert|29|C|F}} in July. The lowest temperature on record is {{convert|6|C|F}}. For the peninsula as a whole, the mean annual precipitation is {{convert|1100|mm|in}}. The rainy season lasts from June to September, while the dry season runs from October to May. During the dry season, rainfall averages {{convert|300|mm|in}}; in the wet season this increases to an average {{convert|800|to|900|mm|in}}. The prevailing winds are easterly and have created an east–west precipitation gradient with average rainfall in the east exceeding {{convert|1400|mm|in}} and the north and northwestern portions of the peninsula receiving a maximum of {{convert|800|mm|in}}. The southeastern portion of the peninsula has a tropical rainy climate with a short dry season in winter.<ref name="White&Hood04p152">White and Hood 2004, p. 152.</ref>

[[Petén Basin|Petén]] has a hot climate and receives the highest rainfall in all [[Mesoamerica]].<ref name="Quezada11p16"/> The climate is divided into [[Wet season|wet]] and [[dry season]]s, with the rainy season lasting from June to December,<ref name="Schwartz90p17"/> although these seasons are not clearly defined in the south;<ref name="Schwartz90p18"/>  with rain occurring through most of the year.<ref name="Quezada11p16"/> The climate of Petén varies from [[Tropical climate|tropical]] in the south to [[Subtropics|semitropical]] in the north; temperature varies between {{convert|12|and|40|C|F}}, although it does not usually drop beneath {{convert|18|C|F}}.<ref name="Schwartz90p17">Schwartz 1990, p. 17.</ref> Mean temperature varies from {{convert|24.3|C|F}} in the southeast to {{convert|26.9|C|F}} in the northeast. Highest temperatures are reached from April to June, while January is the coldest month; all Petén experiences a hot dry period in late August. Annual precipitation is high, varying from a mean of {{convert|1198|mm|in}} in the northeast to {{convert|2007|mm|in}} in central Petén.<ref name="Schwartz90p18">Schwartz 1990, p. 18.</ref>

==Yucatán before the conquest==
The first large [[Maya city|Maya cities]] developed in the [[Petén Basin]] in the far south of the [[Yucatán Peninsula]] as far back as the Middle Preclassic (c. 600–350 BC),<ref name="EstradaBelli11p52">Estrada-Belli 2011, p. 52.</ref> and Petén formed the heartland of the ancient Maya civilization during the [[Classic period]] (c. AD 250–900).<ref>Coe 1999, p. 31.<br>Webster 2002, p. 45.</ref> The 16th century Maya provinces of northern Yucatán are likely to have evolved out of polities of the [[Maya Classic Era|Maya Classic]] period. From the mid-13th century AD through to the mid-15th century, the [[League of Mayapan|League of Mayapán]] united several of the northern provinces; for a time they shared a joint form of government.<ref name="Andrew84p589"/> The great cities that dominated Petén had fallen into ruin by the beginning of the 10th century AD with the onset of the [[Classic Maya collapse]].<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 499–500.</ref> A significant Maya presence remained in Petén into the [[Postclassic period]] after the abandonment of the major Classic period cities; the population was particularly concentrated near permanent water sources.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 613, 616.</ref>

In the early 16th century, when the Spanish discovered the [[Yucatán Peninsula]], the region was still dominated by the [[Maya civilization]]. It was divided into a number of independent provinces referred to as ''[[kuchkabal]]'' (plural ''kuchkabaloob'') in the [[Yucatec Maya language]]. The various provinces shared a common culture but the internal sociopolitical organisation varied from one province to the next, as did access to important resources. These differences in political and economic makeup often led to hostilities between the provinces. The politically fragmented state of the Yucatán Peninsula at the time of conquest hindered the Spanish invasion, since there was no central political authority to be overthrown. However, the Spanish were also able to exploit this fragmentation by taking advantage of pre-existing rivalries between polities. Estimates of the number of ''kuchkabal'' in the northern Yucatán vary from sixteen to twenty-four.<ref name="Andrew84p589">Andrews 1984, p. 589.</ref> The boundaries between polities were not stable, being subject to the effects of alliances and wars; those ''kuchkabaloob'' with more centralised forms of government were likely to have had more stable boundaries than those of loose confederations of provinces.<ref name="Andrew84p590">Andrews 1984, p. 590.</ref> When the Spanish discovered Yucatán, the provinces of [[Maní, Yucatán|Maní]] and [[Sotuta]] were two of the most important polities in the region. They were mutually hostile; the [[Tutul-Xiu|Xiu Maya]] of Maní allied themselves with the Spanish, while the [[Cocom|Cocom Maya]] of Sotuta became the implacable enemies of the European colonisers.<ref name="CasoBarrera02p17">Caso Barrera 2002, p. 17.</ref>

At the time of conquest, polities in the north included [[Maní, Yucatán|Maní]], [[Chakan (Maya province)|Chakan]], and [[Cehpech]].<ref name="Andrew84p589" /> Chakan was largely landlocked with a small stretch of coast on the north of the peninsula. Cehpech was a coastal province to its east; further east along the north coast were [[Ah Kin Chel]], [[Cupul]], and [[Chikinchel]].<ref name="Andrew84p591" /> The modern city of [[Valladolid, Yucatán|Valladolid]] is situated upon the site of the former capital of Cupul.<ref name="Andrew84p593">Andrews 1984, p. 593.</ref> Cupul and Chinkinchel are known to have been mutually hostile, and to have engaged in wars to control the salt beds of the north coast.<ref name="Andrew84p592">Andrews 1984, p. 592.</ref> [[Tases|Tazes]] was a small landlocked province south of Chikinchel. [[Ekab|Ecab]] was a large province in the east. [[Uaymil]] was in the southeast, and [[Chetumal Province|Chetumal]] was to the south of it; all three bordered on the [[Caribbean Sea]]. [[Cochuah]] was also in the eastern half of the peninsula; it was southwest of Ecab and northwest of Uaymil. Its borders are poorly understood and it may have been landlocked, or have extended to occupy a portion of the Caribbean coast between the latter two ''kuchkabaloob''. The capital of Cochuah was [[Tihosuco]]. [[Hocabá-Homún|Hocabá]] and [[Sotuta]] were landlocked provinces north of Maní and southwest of Ah Kin Chel and Cupul. [[Ah Canul]] was the northernmost province on the [[Gulf of Mexico]] coast of the peninsula. [[Can Pech|Canpech]] (modern [[Campeche]]) was to the south of it, followed by [[Champotón, Campeche|Chanputun]] (modern [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]]). South of Chanputun, and extending west along the Gulf coast was [[Acalan]].<ref name="Andrew84p591">Andrews 1984, p. 591.</ref> This [[Chontal Maya language|Chontal Maya]]-speaking province extended east of the [[Usumacinta River]] in [[Tabasco]],<ref name="SharerTraxler06p761762"/> as far as what is now the southern portion of [[Campeche|Campeche state]], where their capital was located.<ref name="Jones00p353"/> In the southern portion of the peninsula, a number of polities occupied the [[Petén Basin]].<ref name="EstradaBelli11p52"/> The [[Kejache]] occupied a territory to the north of the [[Itza people|Itza]] and east of Acalan, between the Petén lakes and what is now Campeche,<ref name="Jones00p353" /> and to the west of [[Chetumal Province|Chetumal]].<ref name="Andrew84p591" /> The [[Chʼolan languages|Cholan Maya]]-speaking [[Lakandon Chʼol|Lakandon]] (not to be confused with the modern inhabitants of [[Chiapas]] by that name) controlled territory along the tributaries of the Usumacinta River spanning southwestern Petén in [[Guatemala]] and eastern Chiapas.<ref name="Jones00p353"/> The Lakandon had a fierce reputation amongst the Spanish.<ref name="Houwald84p257">Houwald 1984, p. 257.</ref>

Although there is insufficient data to accurately estimate population sizes at the time of contact with the Spanish, early Spanish reports suggest that sizeable [[Maya peoples|Maya]] populations existed in [[Petén Basin|Petén]], particularly around the central lakes and along the rivers.<ref>Jones 2000, p. 351.</ref> Before their defeat in 1697 the [[Itza people|Itza]] controlled or influenced much of Petén and parts of [[Belize]]. The Itza were warlike, and their martial prowess impressed both neighbouring Maya kingdoms and their Spanish enemies. Their capital was [[Nojpetén]], an island city upon [[Lake Petén Itzá]]; it has developed into the modern town of [[Flores, Petén|Flores]], which is the capital of the [[Petén Department|Petén department]] of [[Guatemala]].<ref name="Jones00p353">Jones 2000, p. 353.</ref> The Itza spoke a variety of [[Yucatecan languages|Yucatecan Maya]].<ref name="Jones00p352">Jones 2000, p. 352.</ref> The [[Kowoj]] were the second in importance; they were hostile towards their Itza neighbours. The Kowoj were located to the east of the Itza, around the eastern Petén lakes: Lake Salpetén, Lake Macanché, [[Laguna Yaxhá|Lake Yaxhá]] and Lake Sacnab.<ref name="RiceRice09p10Rice09p17">Rice and Rice 2009, p. 10.<br>Rice 2009, p. 17.</ref> The [[Yalain]] appear to have been one of the three dominant polities in [[PostClassic|Postclassic]] central Petén, alongside the Itza and the Kowoj. The Yalain territory had its maximum extension from the east shore of Lake Petén Itzá eastwards to [[Tipu, Belize|Tipuj]] in Belize.<ref name="Cecil99p788">Cecil et al. 1999, p. 788.</ref> In the 17th century the Yalain capital was located at the site of that name on the north shore of Lake Macanché.<ref name="SharerTraxler2006p617">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 617.</ref> At the time of Spanish contact the Yalain were allied with the Itza, an alliance cemented by intermarriage between the elites of both groups.<ref name="Cecil99p788"/> In the late 17th century, Spanish colonial records document hostilities between Maya groups in the lakes region, with the incursion of the Kowoj into former Yalain sites including [[Zacpeten]] on Lake Macanché and [[Ixlu]] on Lake Salpetén.<ref name="RiceRice05p149">Rice and Rice 2005, p. 149.</ref> Other groups in Petén are less well known, and their precise territorial extent and political makeup remains obscure; among them were the [[Chinamita]], the Icaiche, the [[Kejache]], the [[Chʼol people|Lakandon Chʼol]], the [[Manche Chʼol]], and the [[Mopan Territory|Mopan]].<ref name="Rice09p17Feldman00pxxi">Rice 2009, p. 17.<br>Feldman 2000, p. xxi.</ref>

==Impact of Old World diseases==
[[File:Wax model of smallpox lesions on the face of a 15 year old boy.jpg|thumb|right|upright|European-introduced smallpox devastated the indigenous populations of the Americas]]
A soldier arriving in [[Mexico]] in 1520 was carrying [[smallpox]] and caused the plagues that swept through the native populations of the [[Americas]].<ref>Smith 2003, p. 279.</ref> The European diseases that ravaged the indigenous inhabitants of the Americas also severely affected the various [[Maya peoples|Maya]] groups of the entire [[Yucatán Peninsula]]. Modern estimates of native population decline vary from 75% to 90% mortality. The terrible plagues that swept the peninsula were recorded in [[Yucatec Maya language|Yucatec Maya]] written histories, which combined with those of neighbouring Maya peoples in the [[Guatemalan Highlands]], suggest that smallpox was rapidly transmitted throughout the Maya area the same year that it arrived in central Mexico with the forces under the command of [[Pánfilo de Narváez|Pánfilo Narváez]]. [[Old World]] diseases are often mentioned only briefly in indigenous accounts, making it difficult to identify the culprit. Among the most deadly were smallpox, influenza, measles and a number of pulmonary diseases, including tuberculosis; the latter disease was attributed to the arrival of the Spanish by the Maya inhabitants of Yucatán.<ref name="Thompson66p24"/>

These diseases swept through Yucatán in the 1520s and 1530s, with periodic recurrences throughout the 16th century. By the late 16th century, the reports of high fevers suggest the arrival of [[malaria]] in the region and [[yellow fever]] was first reported in the mid-17th century, with a terse mention in the ''[[Chilam Balam|Chilam Balam of Chumayel]]'' for 1648. That particular outbreak was traced back to the island of [[Guadeloupe]] in the [[Caribbean]], from whence it was introduced to the port city of [[Campeche City|Campeche]], and from there was transmitted to [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]]. Mortality was high, with approximately 50% of the population of some [[Yucatec Maya language|Yucatec Maya]] settlements being wiped out. Sixteen [[Franciscans|Franciscan]] friars are reported to have died in Mérida, probably the majority of the {{Not a typo|Franciscans}} based there and who had probably numbered not much more than twenty before the outbreak.<ref name="Thompson66p24">Thompson 1966, p. 24.</ref> Those areas of the peninsula that experience damper conditions, particularly those possessing swamplands, became rapidly depopulated after the conquest with the introduction of malaria and other waterborne parasites. An example was the one-time well-populated province of Ecab occupying the northeastern portion of the peninsula. In 1528, when [[Francisco de Montejo]] occupied the town of Conil for two months, the Spanish recorded approximately 5,000 houses in the town; the adult male population at the time has been conservatively estimated as 3,000. By 1549, Spanish records show that only 80 tributaries were registered to be taxed, indicating a population drop in Conil of more than 90% in 21 years.<ref name="Thompson66p25"/> The native population of the northeastern portion of the peninsula was almost eliminated within fifty years of the conquest.<ref name="Thompson66p26"/>

In the south, conditions conducive to the spread of malaria existed throughout [[Petén Basin|Petén]] and [[Belize]].<ref name="Thompson66p26">Thompson 1966, p. 26.</ref> At the time of the fall of [[Nojpetén]] in 1697, there are estimated to have been 60,000 [[Maya peoples|Maya]] living around [[Lake Petén Itzá]], including a large number of refugees from other areas. It is estimated that 88% of them died during the first ten years of colonial rule owing to a combination of disease and war.<ref>Jones 2000, p. 364.</ref> In [[Tabasco]] the population of approximately 30,000 was reduced by an estimated 90%, with measles, smallpox, catarrhs, dysentery and fevers being the main culprits.<ref name="Thompson66p26"/>

==Weaponry, strategies and tactics==
The [[Spanish Empire|Spanish]] engaged in a strategy of concentrating native populations in new colonial towns, or ''[[Indian Reductions|reducciones]]'' (also known as ''congregaciones'').<ref>Rice 2009, p. 83.</ref> Native resistance to the new nucleated settlements took the form of the flight of the indigenous inhabitants into inaccessible regions such as the forest or joining neighbouring [[Maya peoples|Maya]] groups that had not yet submitted to the Spanish.<ref>Pugh 2009, p. 191.<br>Houwald 1984, p. 256.</ref> Those that remained behind in the ''reducciones'' often fell victim to contagious diseases.<ref name="Houwald84p256">Houwald 1984, p. 256.</ref> An example of the effect on populations of this strategy is the province of [[Acalan]], which occupied an area spanning southern [[Campeche]] and eastern [[Tabasco]]. When [[Hernán Cortés]] passed through Acalan in 1525 he estimated the population size as at least 10,000. In 1553 the population was recorded at around 4,000. In 1557 the population was forcibly moved to Tixchel on the [[Gulf of Mexico]] coast, so as to be more easily accessible to the Spanish authorities. In 1561 the Spanish recorded only 250 tribute-paying inhabitants of Tixchel, which probably had a total population of about 1,100. This indicates a 90% drop in population over a 36-year span. Some of the inhabitants had fled Tixchel for the forest, while others had succumbed to disease, malnutrition and inadequate housing in the Spanish ''reducción''. Coastal ''reducciones'', while convenient for Spanish administration, were vulnerable to pirate attacks; in the case of Tixchel, pirate attacks and contagious European diseases led to the eradication of the ''reducción'' town and the extinction of the [[Chontal Maya]] of Campeche.<ref name="Thompson66p26"/> Among the Maya, ambush was a favoured tactic.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p7"/>

===Spanish weaponry and armour===
The 16th-century Spanish conquistadors were armed with broadswords, rapiers, crossbows, matchlocks and light artillery. Mounted conquistadors were armed with a {{convert|12|ft|m|order=flip|adj=on}} lance, that also served as a pike for infantrymen. A variety of halberds and [[Bill (weapon)|bills]] were also employed. As well as the one-handed broadsword, a {{convert|5.5|ft|m|order=flip|adj=on}} long two-handed version was also used. Crossbows had {{convert|2|ft|m|order=flip|adj=on}} arms stiffened with hardwoods, horn, bone and cane, and supplied with a stirrup to facilitate drawing the string with a crank and pulley. Crossbows were easier to maintain than matchlocks, especially in the humid tropical climate of the [[Caribbean|Caribbean region]] that included much of the [[Yucatán Peninsula]].<ref>Pohl and Hook 2008, pp. 26–27.</ref>

===Native weaponry and armour===
[[Maya peoples|Maya]] warriors entered battle against the [[Spanish Empire|Spanish]] with flint-tipped spears, bows and arrows and stones. They wore [[Ichcahuipilli|padded cotton armour]] to protect themselves.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p7"/> Members of the Maya aristocracy wore quilted cotton armour, and some warriors of lesser rank wore twisted rolls of cotton wrapped around their bodies. Warriors bore wooden or animal hide shields decorated with feathers and animal skins.<ref>Wise and McBride 2008, pp. 33–34.</ref>

== First encounters: 1502 and 1511 ==
[[File:Bartholomew Columbus.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Bartholomew Columbus]] came across a [[Yucatec Maya language|Yucatec Maya]] canoe in the [[Gulf of Honduras]]]]
On 30 July 1502, during [[Fourth voyage of Columbus|his fourth voyage]], [[Christopher Columbus]] arrived at [[Guanaja]], one of the [[Bay Islands Department|Bay Islands]] off the coast of [[Honduras]]. He sent his brother [[Bartholomew Columbus|Bartholomew]] to scout the island. As Bartholomew explored the island with two boats, a large canoe approached from the west, apparently en route to the island. The canoe was carved from one large tree trunk and was powered by twenty-five naked rowers.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, p. 3.</ref> Curious as to the visitors, Bartholomew Columbus seized and boarded it. He found it was a [[Maya peoples|Maya]] trading canoe from [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]], carrying well-dressed Maya and a rich cargo that included [[Maya ceramics|ceramics]], [[Maya textiles|cotton textiles]], yellow stone axes, flint-studded war clubs, [[Metallurgy in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica|copper]] axes and bells, and [[cocoa bean|cacao]].<ref>Perramon 1986, p. 242.<br>Clendinnen 2003, p. 3.</ref> Also among the cargo were a small number of women and children, probably destined to be sold as slaves, as were a number of the rowers. The Europeans looted whatever took their interest from amongst the cargo and seized the elderly Maya captain to serve as an interpreter; the canoe was then allowed to continue on its way.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 3–4.</ref> This was the first recorded contact between Europeans and the Maya.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 758.</ref> It is likely that news of the piratical strangers in the [[Caribbean]] passed along the [[Trade in Maya civilization|Maya trade routes]] – the first prophecies of bearded invaders sent by [[Kukulkan]], the northern Maya [[Feathered Serpent (deity)|feathered serpent god]], were probably recorded around this time, and in due course passed into the books of [[Chilam Balam]].<ref>Clendinnen 2003, p. 4.</ref>

In 1511, the Spanish caravel ''Santa María de la Barca'' set sail along the [[Central America]]n coast under the command of Pedro de Valdivia.<ref name="deDíosGonzález08p25GómezMartínJune13p56">de Díos González 2008, p. 25.<br>Gómez Martín June 2013, p. 56.</ref> The ship was sailing to [[Santo Domingo]] from [[Darién Province|Darién]] to inform the colonial authorities there of ongoing conflict between conquistadors [[Diego de Nicuesa]] and [[Vasco Nuñez de Balboa]] in Darién.<ref name="GomezMartinJune2013p56">Gómez Martín June 2013, p. 56.</ref> The ship foundered upon a reef known as Las Víboras ("The Vipers") or, alternatively, Los Alacranes ("The Scorpions"), somewhere off [[Jamaica]].<ref name="deDíosGonzález08p25GómezMartínJune13p56"/> There were just twenty survivors from the wreck, including Captain Valdivia, [[Gerónimo de Aguilar]] and [[Gonzalo Guerrero]].<ref>de Díos González 2008, pp. 25–26.</ref> They set themselves adrift in one of the ship's boats, with bad oars and no sail; after thirteen days during which half of the survivors died, they made landfall upon the coast of [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]].<ref name="deDíosGonzález08p25GómezMartínJune13p56"/> There they were seized by [[Halach Uinik]], a [[Maya peoples|Maya]] lord. Captain Valdivia was [[Human sacrifice in Maya culture|sacrificed]] with four of his companions, and their flesh was served at a feast. Aguilar and Guerrero were held prisoner and [[Cannibalism in the Americas#Caribbean|fattened for killing]], together with five or six of their shipmates. Aguilar and Guerrero managed to escape their captors and fled to a neighbouring lord who was an enemy of Halach Uinik; he took them prisoner and kept them as slaves. After a time, Gonzalo Guerrero was passed as a slave to the lord Nachan Can of [[Chetumal Province|Chetumal]]. Guerrero became completely Mayanised and served his new lord with such loyalty that he was married to one of Nachan Chan's daughters, Zazil Ha, by whom he had three children. By 1514, Guerrero had achieved the rank of ''nacom'', a war leader who served against Nachan Chan's enemies.<ref>de Díos González 2008, p. 26.</ref>

==Francisco Hernández de Córdoba, 1517==
{{main|Hernández de Córdoba expedition}}
[[File:Francisco Hernández de Córdoba.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Francisco Hernández de Córdoba]]
In 1517, [[Francisco Hernández de Córdoba (Yucatán conquistador)|Francisco Hernández de Córdoba]] set sail from [[Cuba]] with a small fleet,<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p4-4"/> consisting of two [[caravel]]s and a [[brigantine]],<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p6"/> with the dual intention of exploration and of rounding up slaves.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p4-4">Clendinnen 2003, pp. 4–5.</ref> The experienced [[Antón de Alaminos]] served as pilot; he had previously served as pilot under [[Christopher Columbus]] on his final voyage. Also among the approximately 100-strong expedition members was [[Bernal Díaz del Castillo]].<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p5">Clendinnen 2003, pp. 5.</ref> The expedition sailed west from Cuba for three weeks, and weathered a two-day storm a week before sighting the coast of the northeastern tip of the [[Yucatán Peninsula]]. The ships could not put in close to the shore due to the shallowness of the coastal waters. However, they could see a [[Maya peoples|Maya]] city some two [[League (unit)|leagues]] inland, upon a low hill. The Spanish called it Gran Cairo (literally "Great Cairo") due to its size and its [[Mesoamerican pyramids|pyramids]].<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p6">Clendinnen 2003, pp. 6.</ref> Although the location is not now known with certainty, it is believed that this first sighting of Yucatán was at [[Isla Mujeres]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p759"/>

The following morning, the Spanish sent the two ships with a shallower [[draught (hull)|draught]] to find a safe approach through the shallows.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p6"/> The caravels anchored about one league from the shore.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p7"/> Ten large canoes powered by both sails and oars rowed out to meet the Spanish ships. Over thirty Maya boarded the vessels and mixed freely with the Spaniards. The Maya visitors accepted gifts of beads, and the leader indicated with signs that they would return to take the Spanish ashore the following day.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p6"/>

The Maya leader returned the following day with twelve canoes, as promised. The Spanish could see from afar that the shore was packed with natives. The conquistadors put ashore in the brigantine and the ships' boats; a few of the more daring Spaniards boarded the native canoes. The Spanish named the headland [[Cabo Catoche|Cape Catoche]], after some words spoken by the Maya leader, which sounded to the Spanish like ''cones catoche''. Once ashore, the Spaniards clustered loosely together and advanced towards the city along a path among low, scrub-covered hillocks. At this point the Maya leader gave a shout and the Spanish party was ambushed by Maya warriors armed with spears, bows and arrows, and stones. Thirteen Spaniards were injured by arrows in the first assault, but the conquistadors regrouped and repulsed the Maya attack. They advanced to a small plaza bordered by temples upon the outskirts of the city.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p7">Clendinnen 2003, p. 7.</ref> When the Spaniards ransacked the temples they found a number of low-grade gold items, which filled them with enthusiasm. The expedition captured two Mayas to be used as interpreters and retreated to the ships. Over the following days the Spanish discovered that although the Maya arrows had struck with little force, the flint arrowheads tended to shatter on impact, causing infected wounds and a slow death; two of the wounded Spaniards died from the arrow-wounds inflicted in the ambush.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p8">Clendinnen 2003, p. 8.</ref>

[[File:Karavelle.png|thumb|left|Early 16th century European caravel]]
Over the next fifteen days the fleet slowly followed the coastline west, and then south.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p8"/> The casks brought from [[Cuba]] were leaking and the expedition was now running dangerously low on fresh water; the hunt for more became an overriding priority as the expedition advanced, and shore parties searching for water were left dangerously exposed because the ships could not pull close to the shore due to the shallows.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 8–9.</ref> On 23 February 1517,<ref name="SharerTraxler06p759"/> the day of Saint Lazarus, another city was spotted and named San Lázaro by the Spanish – it is now known by its original Maya name, [[Campeche City|Campeche]]. A large contingent put ashore in the brigantine and the ships' boats to fill their water casks in a freshwater pool. They were approached by about fifty finely dressed and unarmed Indians while the water was being loaded into the boats; they questioned the Spaniards as to their purpose by means of signs. The Spanish party then accepted an invitation to enter the city.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p9">Clendinnen 2003, p. 9.</ref> They were led amongst large buildings until they stood before a blood-caked altar, where many of the city's inhabitants crowded around. The Indians piled reeds before the visitors; this act was followed by a procession of armed Maya warriors in full war paint, followed by ten Maya priests. The Maya set fire to the reeds and indicated that the Spanish would be killed if they were not gone by the time the reeds had been consumed. The Spanish party withdrew in defensive formation to the shore and rapidly boarded their boats to retreat to the safety of the ships.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 9–10.</ref>

The small fleet continued for six more days in fine weather, followed by four stormy days.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p10">Clendinnen 2003, p. 10.</ref> By this time water was once again dangerously short.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 10–11.</ref> The ships spotted an inlet close to another city,<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p11"/> [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]],<ref name="SharerTraxler06p759">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 759.</ref> and a landing party discovered fresh water. Armed Maya warriors approached from the city while the water casks were being filled. Communication was once again attempted with signs. Night fell by the time the water casks had been filled and the attempts at communication concluded. In the darkness the Spaniards could hear the movements of large numbers of Maya warriors. They decided that a night-time retreat would be too risky; instead, they posted guards and waited for dawn. At sunrise, the Spanish saw that they had been surrounded by a sizeable army. The massed Maya warriors launched an assault with missiles, including arrows, darts and stones; they then charged into hand-to-hand combat with spears and clubs. Eighty of the defenders were wounded in the initial barrage of missiles, and two Spaniards were captured in the frantic mêlée that followed. All of the Spanish party received wounds, including [[Francisco Hernández de Córdoba (Yucatán conquistador)|Hernández de Córdoba]]. The Spanish regrouped in a defensive formation and forced passage to the shore, where their discipline collapsed and a frantic scramble for the boats ensued, leaving the Spanish vulnerable to the pursuing Maya warriors who waded into the sea behind them.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p11"/> Most of the precious water casks were abandoned on the beach.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p12">Clendinnen 2003, p. 12.</ref> When the surviving Spanish reached the safety of the ships, they realised that they had lost over fifty men, more than half their number.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p11">Clendinnen 2003, p. 11.</ref> Five men died from their wounds in the following days.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 11–12.</ref> The battle had lasted only an hour,<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p12"/> and the Spanish named the locale as the Coast of the Disastrous Battle. They were now far from help and low on supplies; too many men had been lost and injured to sail all three ships back to [[Cuba]]. They decided to abandon their smallest ship, the brigantine, although it was purchased on credit from [[Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar|Governor Velásquez]] of Cuba.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p12"/>

[[File:DiegoVelazquezCuellar.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Governor Diego Velázquez de Cuellar claimed the discovery of wealthy cities and gold in Yucatán]]
The few men who had not been wounded because they were manning the ships during the battle were reinforced with three men who had suffered relatively minor wounds; they put ashore at a remote beach to dig for water. They found some and brought it back to the ships, although it sickened those who drank it.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 12–13.</ref> The two ships sailed through a storm for two days and nights; Alaminos, the pilot, then steered a course for [[Florida]], where they found good drinking water, although they lost one man to the local Indians and another drank so much water that he died. The ships finally made port in [[Cuba]], where [[Francisco Hernández de Córdoba (Yucatán conquistador)|Hernández de Cordóba]] wrote a report to Governor [[Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar|Velázquez]] describing the voyage, the cities, the plantations, and, most importantly, the discovery of gold. Hernández died soon after from his wounds.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p13">Clendinnen 2003, p. 13.</ref> The two captured [[Maya peoples|Maya]] survived the voyage to Cuba and were interrogated; they swore that there was abundant gold in [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]].<ref name="Clendinned87,03p14">Clendinnen 2003, p. 14.</ref>

Based upon Hernández de Córdoba's report and the testimony of the interrogated Indian prisoners, Governor Velázquez wrote to the [[Council of the Indies]] notifying it of "his" discovery.<ref name="Clendinned87,03p14"/>

==Juan de Grijalva, 1518==
[[Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar]], the governor of [[Cuba]], was enthused by [[Francisco Hernández de Córdoba (Yucatán conquistador)|Hernández de Córdoba's]] report of gold in [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p759"/> He organised a new expedition consisting of four ships and 240 men.<ref name="Clendinned87,03p14"/> He placed his nephew [[Juan de Grijalva]] in command. [[Francisco de Montejo]], who would eventually conquer much of the peninsula, was captain of one of the ships;<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 759. Recinos 1986, p. 18.</ref> [[Pedro de Alvarado]] and Alonso d'Avila captained the other ships.<ref>Recinos 1986, p. 18.</ref> [[Bernal Díaz del Castillo]] served on the crew; he was able to secure a place on the expedition as a favour from the governor, who was his kinsman.<ref name="Clendinned87,03p15">Clendinnen 2003, p. 15.</ref> [[Antón de Alaminos]] once again served as pilot.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 760.</ref> Governor Velázquez provided all four ships, in an attempt to protect his claim over the peninsula.<ref name="Clendinned87,03p14"/> The small fleet was stocked with crossbows, muskets, barter goods, salted pork and [[cassava bread]].<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 14–15.</ref> Grijalva also took one of the captured Indians from the Hernández expedition.<ref name="Clendinned87,03p15"/>

{{multiple image
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| caption2 = The coast of Cozumel was Grijalva's first sight of Yucatán.
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The fleet left Cuba in April 1518,<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760"/> and made its first landfall upon the island of [[Cozumel]],<ref name="Clendinned87,03p15"/> off the east coast of Yucatán.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760"/> The [[Maya peoples|Maya]] inhabitants of Cozumel fled the Spanish and would not respond to Grijalva's friendly overtures. The fleet sailed south from Cozumel, along the east coast of the peninsula.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760Clendinner87,03p15">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 760.<br>Clendinnen 2003, p. 15.</ref> The Spanish spotted three large Maya cities along the coast, one of which was probably [[Tulum]]. On [[Feast of the Ascension|Ascension Thursday]] the fleet discovered a large bay, which the Spanish named Bahía de la Ascensión.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760"/> Grijalva did not land at any of these cities and turned back north from Ascensión Bay. He looped around the north of the [[Yucatán Peninsula]] to sail down the west coast.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760Clendinner87,03p15"/> At [[Campeche City|Campeche]] the Spanish tried to barter for water but the Maya refused, so Grijalva opened fire against the city with small cannon; the inhabitants fled, allowing the Spanish to take the abandoned city. Messages were sent with a few Maya who had been too slow to escape but the Maya remained hidden in the forest. The Spanish boarded their ships and continued along the coast.<ref name="Clendinned87,03p15"/>

At [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]], where the inhabitants had routed Hernández and his men, the fleet was approached by a small number of large war canoes, but the ships' cannon soon put them to flight.<ref name="Clendinned87,03p15"/> At the mouth of the [[Tabasco River]] the Spanish sighted massed warriors and canoes but the natives did not approach.<ref>Clendinnen 2003, pp. 15–16.</ref> By means of interpreters, Grijalva indicated that he wished to trade and bartered wine and beads in exchange for food and other supplies. From the natives they received a few gold trinkets and news of the riches of the [[Aztec Empire]] to the west. The expedition continued far enough to confirm the reality of the gold-rich empire,<ref name="Clendinned87,03p16">Clendinnen 2003, p. 16.</ref> sailing as far north as [[Pánuco River]]. As the fleet returned to [[Cuba]], the Spanish attacked Champotón to avenge the previous year's defeat of the Spanish expedition led by Hernández. One Spaniard was killed and fifty were wounded in the ensuing battle, including Grijalva. Grijalva put into the port of [[Havana]] five months after he had left.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760"/>

==Hernán Cortés, 1519==
[[File:Hernán Cortés anónimo.jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Hernán Cortés]] followed the [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] coast on his way to conquer the [[Aztecs]].|alt=Old painting of a bearded young man facing slightly to the right. He is wearing a dark jacket with a high collar topped by a white ruff, with ornate buttons down the front. The painting is dark and set in an oval with the letters "HERNAN CORTES" in a rectangle underneath]]
[[Juan de Grijalva|Juan de Grijalva's]] return aroused great interest in [[Cuba]], and [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] was believed to be a land of riches waiting to be plundered. A new expedition was organised, with a fleet of eleven ships carrying 500 men and some horses. [[Hernán Cortés]] was placed in command, and his crew included officers that would become famous conquistadors, including [[Pedro de Alvarado]], [[Cristóbal de Olid]], [[Gonzalo de Sandoval]] and [[Diego de Ordaz]]. Also aboard were [[Francisco de Montejo]] and [[Bernal Díaz del Castillo]], veterans of the Grijalva expedition.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760"/>

The fleet made its first landfall at [[Cozumel]], and Cortés remained there for several days. [[Maya peoples|Maya]] temples were cast down and a Christian cross was put up on one of them.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p760"/> At Cozumel, Cortés heard rumours of bearded men on the Yucatán mainland, who he presumed were Europeans.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 760–761.</ref> Cortés sent out messengers to them and was able to rescue the shipwrecked [[Gerónimo de Aguilar]], who had been enslaved by a Maya lord. Aguilar had learnt the [[Yucatec Maya language]] and became Cortés' interpreter.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 758–759, 760–761.</ref>

From Cozumel, the fleet looped around the north of the Yucatán Peninsula and followed the coast to the [[Tabasco River]], which Cortés renamed as the Grijalva River in honour of the Spanish captain who had discovered it.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p761"/> In Tabasco, Cortés anchored his ships at [[Potonchán]],<ref name="Townsend92,95p16">Townsend 1995, p. 16.</ref> a [[Chontal Maya]] town.<ref>Hernández et al. 2010, p. 26.</ref> The Maya prepared for [[Potonchán#Battle of Centla|battle]] but the Spanish horses and firearms quickly decided the outcome.<ref name="Townsend92,95p16"/> The defeated Chontal Maya lords offered gold, food, clothing and a group of young women in tribute to the victors.<ref name="Townsend92,95p16"/> Among these women was a young Maya noblewoman called [[La Malinche|Malintzin]],<ref name="Townsend92,95p16"/> who was given the Spanish name Marina. She spoke [[Mayan languages|Maya]] and [[Nahuatl]] and became the means by which Cortés was able to communicate with the [[Aztecs]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p761">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 761.</ref> Marina became Cortés' consort and eventually bore him a son.<ref name="Townsend92,95p16"/> From [[Tabasco (former state)|Tabasco]], Cortés continued to [[Cempoala]] in [[Veracruz]], a subject city of the [[Aztec Empire]],<ref name="Townsend92,95p16"/> and from there on to conquer the Aztecs.<ref>Townsend 1995, pp. 16ff.</ref>

In 1519, Cortés sent the veteran [[Francisco de Montejo]] back to [[Spain]] with treasure for the king. While he was in Spain, Montejo pleaded Cortés' cause against the supporters of [[Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar|Diego de Velásquez]]. Montejo remained in Spain for seven years, and eventually succeeded in acquiring the hereditary military title of ''adelantado''.<ref name="Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 766">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 766.</ref>

==Hernán Cortés in the Maya lowlands, 1524–25==
In 1524,<ref name="SharerTraxler06p761"/> after the [[Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire]], [[Hernán Cortés]] led an expedition to [[Honduras]] over land, cutting across [[Acalan]] in southern [[Campeche]] and the [[Itza people|Itza]] kingdom in what is now the northern [[Petén Department]] of [[Guatemala]].<ref name="Jones00p358">Jones 2000, p. 358.</ref> His aim was to subdue the rebellious [[Cristóbal de Olid]], whom he had sent to conquer Honduras; Olid had, however, set himself up independently on his arrival in that territory.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p761"/> Cortés left [[Tenochtitlan]] on 12 October 1524 with 140 Spanish soldiers, 93 of them mounted, 3,000 Mexican warriors, 150 horses, a herd of pigs, artillery, munitions and other supplies. He also had with him the captured Aztec emperor [[Cuauhtemoc]],  and [[Coanacoch|Cohuanacox]] and [[Tetlepanquetzal]], the captive Aztec lords of [[Texcoco (altepetl)|Texcoco]] and [[Tlacopan]]. Cortés marched into [[Maya peoples|Maya]] territory in [[Tabasco]]; the army crossed the [[Usumacinta River]] near [[Tenosique]] and crossed into the [[Chontal Maya]] province of Acalan, where he recruited 600 [[Chontal Maya people|Chontal Maya]] carriers. In Acalan, Cortés believed that the captive Aztec lords were plotting against him and he ordered Cuauhtemoc and Tetlepanquetzal to be hanged. Cortés and his army left Acalan on 5 March 1525.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p761762"/>

The expedition passed onwards through [[Kejache]] territory and reported that the Kejache towns were situated in easily defensible locations and were often fortified.<ref>Rice and Rice 2009, p. 12.</ref> One of these was built on a rocky outcrop near a lake and a river that fed into it. The town was fortified with a wooden palisade and was surrounded by a moat. Cortés reported that the town of Tiac was even larger and was fortified with walls, watchtowers and earthworks; the town itself was divided into three individually fortified districts. Tiac was said to have been at war with the unnamed smaller town.<ref>Rice et al. 2009, p. 127.</ref> The Kejache claimed that their towns were fortified against the attacks of their aggressive [[Itza people|Itza]] neighbours.<ref>Rice and Rice 2005, p. 152.</ref>

They arrived at the north shore of [[Lake Petén Itzá]] on 13 March 1525.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p761762">Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 761–762.</ref> The [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] priests accompanying the expedition celebrated mass in the presence of [[Kan Ekʼ|Aj Kan Ekʼ]], the king of the [[Itza people|Itza]], who was said to be so impressed that he pledged to worship the cross and to destroy his idols.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p762">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 762.</ref> Cortés accepted an invitation from Kan Ekʼ to visit [[Nojpetén]] (also known as Tayasal), and crossed to the [[Maya peoples|Maya]] city with 20 Spanish soldiers while the rest of his army continued around the lake to meet him on the south shore.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 762.<br>Jones 2000, p. 358.</ref> On his departure from Nojpetén, Cortés left behind a cross and a lame horse that the Itza treated as a deity, attempting to feed it poultry, meat and flowers, but the animal soon died.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 773.<br>Jones 2000, p. 358.</ref> The Spanish did not officially contact the Itza again until the arrival of [[Franciscan]] priests in 1618, when Cortés' cross was said to still be standing at Nojpetén.<ref name="Jones00p358" />

From the lake, Cortés continued south along the western slopes of the [[Maya Mountains]], a particularly arduous journey that took 12 days to cover {{convert|32|km|mi}}, during which he lost more than two-thirds of his horses. When he came to a river swollen with the constant torrential rains that had been falling during the expedition, Cortés turned upstream to the [[Gracias a Dios Department|Gracias a Dios]] rapids, which took two days to cross and cost him more horses.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p762"/>

On 15 April 1525 the expedition arrived at the Maya village of Tenciz. With local guides they headed into the hills north of [[Lake Izabal]], where their guides abandoned them to their fate. The expedition became lost in the hills and came close to starvation before they captured a Maya boy who led them to safety.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p762" /> [[Hernán Cortés|Cortés]] found a village on the shore of [[Lake Izabal]], perhaps Xocolo. He crossed the [[Dulce River (Guatemala)|Dulce River]] to the settlement of Nito, somewhere on the [[Amatique Bay]],<ref name="Feldman98p6">Feldman 1998, p. 6.</ref> with about a dozen companions, and waited there for the rest of his army to regroup over the next week.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p762" /> By this time the remnants of the expedition had been reduced to a few hundred; Cortés succeeded in contacting the Spaniards he was searching for, only to find that [[Cristóbal de Olid|Cristóbal de Olid's]] own officers had already put down his rebellion. Cortés then returned to [[Mexico]] by sea.<ref>Webster 2002, p. 83.</ref>

== Francisco de Montejo, 1527–1528 ==
[[File:Monumento a los Montejo.jpg|thumb|upright|Monument in [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] to [[Francisco de Montejo|Montejo the Elder]] and his son, [[Francisco de Montejo the Younger|Montejo the Younger]]]]
The richer lands of [[Mexico]] engaged the main attention of the conquistadors for some years, then in 1526 [[Francisco de Montejo]] (a veteran of the [[Juan de Grijalva|Grijalva]] and [[Hernán Cortés|Cortés]] expeditions)<ref name="Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 766"/> successfully petitioned the King of Spain for the right to conquer [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]]. On 8 December of that year he was issued with the hereditary military title of ''[[adelantado]]'' and permission to colonise the Yucatán Peninsula.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 766–767.</ref> In 1527, he left Spain with 400 men in four ships, with horses, small arms, cannon and provisions.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 767. Clendinnen 2003, p. 20.</ref> He set sail for [[Santo Domingo]], where more supplies and horses were collected,<ref name="SharerTraxler06p767"/> allowing Montejo to increase his cavalry to fifty.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p20">Clendinnen 2003, p. 20.</ref> One of the ships was left at Santo Domingo as a supply ship to provide later support; the other ships set sail and reached [[Cozumel]] in the second half of September 1527. Montejo was received in peace by the lord of Cozumel, Aj Naum Pat, but the ships only stopped briefly before making for the Yucatán coast. The expedition made landfall somewhere near [[Xelha]] in the [[Maya peoples|Maya]] province of [[Ekab]],<ref name="SharerTraxler06p767">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 767.</ref> in what is now Mexico's [[Quintana Roo]] state.<ref name="ITMB2000">ITMB 2000.</ref>

Montejo garrisoned Xelha with 40 soldiers under his second-in-command, Alonso d'Avila, and posted 20 more at nearby Pole.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p767"/> Xelha was renamed [[Salamanca de Xelha]] and became the first Spanish settlement on the peninsula. The provisions were soon exhausted and additional food was seized from the local Maya villagers; this too was soon consumed. Many local Maya fled into the forest and Spanish raiding parties scoured the surrounding area for food, finding little.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p21">Clendinnen 2003, p. 21.</ref> With discontent growing among his men, Montejo took the drastic step of burning his ships; this strengthened the resolve of his troops, who gradually acclimatised to the harsh conditions of Yucatán.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 767. Clendinnen 1989, 2003, p. 21.</ref> Montejo was able to get more food from the still-friendly Aj Nuam Pat, when the latter made a visit to the mainland.<ref name="Clendinnen87,03p21"/> Montejo took 125 men and set out on an expedition to explore the north-eastern portion of the Yucatán peninsula. His expedition passed through the towns of Xamanha, Mochis and Belma, none of which survives today.{{refn|group=nb|Belma has been tentatively identified with the modern settlement and Maya archaeological site of El Meco.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 767.<br>INAH 2010.</ref>}} At Belma, Montejo gathered the leaders of the nearby Maya towns and ordered them to swear loyalty to the Spanish Crown. After this, Montejo led his men to Conil, a town in [[Ekab]] that was described as having 5,000 houses, where the Spanish party halted for two months.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p767"/>

In the spring of 1528, Montejo left Conil for the city of Chauaca, which was abandoned by its [[Maya peoples|Maya]] inhabitants under cover of darkness. The following morning, the inhabitants attacked the Spanish party but were defeated. The Spanish then continued to [[Ake]], some {{convert|16|km|mi}} north of [[Tizimín]], where they engaged in a major battle against the Maya, killing more than 1,200 of them. After this Spanish victory, the neighbouring Maya leaders all surrendered. Montejo's party then continued to Sisia and Loche before heading back to [[Xelha]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p767"/> Montejo arrived at Xelha with only 60 of his party, and found that only 12 of his 40-man garrison survived, while the garrison at Pole had been entirely wiped out.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 767–768.</ref>

The support ship eventually arrived from [[Santo Domingo]], and Montejo used it to sail south along the coast, while he sent Ávila over land. Montejo discovered the thriving port city of Chaktumal (capital of the [[Chetumal Province]]).<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 768. Clendinnen 2003, p. 21.</ref> At Chaktumal, Montejo learnt that shipwrecked Spanish sailor [[Gonzalo Guerrero]] was in the region, and Montejo sent messages to him, inviting him to return to join his compatriots, but the Mayanised Guerrero declined.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p768">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 768.</ref>

The Maya at Chaktumal fed false information to the Spanish, and Montejo was unable to find Ávila and link up with him. Ávila returned overland to [[Xelha]], and transferred the fledgling Spanish colony to nearby Xamanha,<ref name="SharerTraxler06p768"/> modern [[Playa del Carmen]], which Montejo considered to be a better port.<ref name="Quezada11p37"/> After waiting for Ávila without result, Montejo sailed south as far as the [[Ulúa River]] in [[Honduras]] before turning around and heading back up the coast to finally meet up with his lieutenant at Xamanha. Late in 1528, Montejo left Ávila to oversee Xamanha and sailed north to loop around the [[Yucatán Peninsula]] and head for the Spanish colony of [[New Spain]] in central [[Mexico]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p768"/>

== Francisco de Montejo and Alonso d' Ávila, 1531–1535 ==
[[Francisco de Montejo|Montejo]] was appointed ''[[Corregidor (position)|alcalde mayor]]'' (a local colonial governor) of [[Tabasco]] in 1529, and pacified that province with the aid of his son, also named [[Francisco de Montejo the Younger|Francisco de Montejo]]. Alonso d' Ávila was sent from eastern [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] to conquer [[Acalan]], which extended southeast of the [[Laguna de Terminos]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p768"/> Montejo the Younger founded Salamanca de Xicalango as a base of operations. In 1530 Ávila established Salamanca de Acalan as a base from which to launch new attempts to conquer Yucatán.<ref name="Quezada11p37">Quezada 2011, p. 37.</ref> Salamanca de Acalan proved a disappointment, with no gold for the taking and with lower levels of population than had been hoped. Ávila soon abandoned the new settlement and set off across the lands of the [[Kejache]] to [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]], arriving there towards the end of 1530.<ref>Quezada 2011, pp. 37–38.</ref> During a colonial power struggle in Tabasco, the elder Montejo was imprisoned for a time. Upon his release, he met up with his son in Xicalango, Tabasco, and they then both rejoined Ávila at Champotón.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p768"/>

In 1531, Montejo moved his base of operations to [[Campeche (Campeche)|Campeche]].<ref>Clendinnen 2003, p. 23.<br>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 768.</ref> Alonso d' Ávila was sent overland to Chauaca in the east of the peninsula, passing through [[Maní, Yucatán|Maní]], where he was well received by the [[Tutul-Xiu|Xiu Maya]]. Ávila continued southeast to [[Chetumal Province|Chetumal]] where he founded the Spanish town of Villa Real ("Royal Town"). The local [[Maya peoples|Maya]] fiercely resisted the placement of the new Spanish colony and Ávila and his men were forced to abandon Villa Real and make for [[Honduras]] in canoes.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p768"/>

At [[Campeche]], the Maya amassed a strong force and attacked the city; the Spanish were able to fight them off, a battle in which the elder Montejo was almost killed.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 768–769.</ref> Aj Canul, the lord of the attacking Maya, surrendered to the Spanish. After this battle, the younger Francisco de Montejo was despatched to the northern [[Cupul]] province, where the lord Naabon Cupul reluctantly allowed him to found the Spanish town of Ciudad Real at [[Chichen Itza|Chichén Itzá]]. Montejo carved up the province amongst his soldiers and gave each of his men two to three thousand Maya in ''[[encomienda]]''. After six months of Spanish rule, Cupul dissatisfaction could no longer be contained and Naabon Cupul was killed during a failed attempt to kill Montejo the Younger. The death of their lord only served to inflame Cupul anger and, in mid 1533, they laid siege to the small Spanish garrison at Chichén Itzá. Montejo the Younger abandoned Ciudad Real by night after arranging a distraction for their attackers, and he and his men fled west, where the [[Cheles (chiefdom)|Chel]], [[Ceh Pech|Pech]] and Xiu provinces remained obedient to Spanish rule. Montejo the Younger was received in friendship by Namux Chel, the lord of the Chel province, at Dzilam. In the spring of 1534 he rejoined his father in the [[Chakán Putum|Chakan]] province at Dzikabal, near Tʼho (the modern city of [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]]).<ref name="SharerTraxler06p769">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 769.</ref>

While his son had been attempting to consolidate the Spanish control of [[Cupul]], [[Francisco de Montejo|Francisco de Montejo the Elder]] had met the Xiu ruler at [[Maní, Yucatán|Maní]]. The Xiu Maya maintained their friendship with the Spanish throughout the conquest and Spanish authority was eventually established over [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] in large part due to Xiu support. The Montejos, after reuniting at Dzikabal, founded a new Spanish town at Dzilam, although the Spanish suffered hardships there.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p769"/> Montejo the Elder returned to [[Campeche City|Campeche]], where he was received with friendship by the local Maya. He was accompanied by the friendly [[Cheles (chiefdom)|Chel]] lord Namux Chel, who travelled on horseback, and two of the lord's cousins, who were taken in chains.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 769–770.</ref> [[Francisco de Montejo the Younger]] remained behind in Dzilam to continue his attempts at conquest of the region but, finding the situation too difficult, he soon retreated to Campeche to rejoin his father and Alonso d' Ávila, who had returned to Campeche shortly before Montejo the Younger. Around this time, the news began to arrive of [[Francisco Pizarro]]'s conquests in [[Peru]] and the rich plunder that his soldiers were taking there, undermining the morale of Montejo's already disenchanted band of followers. Montejo's soldiers began to abandon him to seek their fortune elsewhere; in seven years of attempted conquest in the northern provinces of the Yucatán Peninsula, very little gold had been found. Towards the end of 1534 or the beginning of the next year, Montejo the Elder and his son retreated from [[Campeche City|Campeche]] to [[Veracruz (city)|Veracruz]], taking their remaining soldiers with them.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p770">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 770.</ref>

Montejo the Elder became embroiled in colonial infighting over the right to rule [[Honduras]], a claim that put him in conflict with [[Pedro de Alvarado]], captain general of [[Guatemala]], who also claimed Honduras as part of his jurisdiction. Alvarado's claim ultimately turned out successful. In Montejo the Elder's absence, first in central [[Mexico]], and then in Honduras, Montejo the Younger acted as lieutenant governor and captain general in [[Tabasco]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p770"/>

=== Conflict at Champotón ===
The Franciscan [[friar]] [[Jacobo de Testera]] arrived in [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]] in 1535 to attempt the peaceful incorporation of [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] into the [[Spanish Empire]]. Testera had been assured by the Spanish authorities that no military activity would be undertaken in Yucatán, while he was attempting its conversion to the Roman Catholic faith, and that no soldiers would be permitted to enter the peninsula. His initial efforts were proving successful when Captain Lorenzo de Godoy arrived in Champotón at the command of soldiers despatched there by [[Francisco de Montejo the Younger|Montejo the Younger]]. Godoy and Testera were soon in conflict and the friar was forced to abandon Champotón and return to central Mexico.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p770"/>

Godoy's attempt to subdue the [[Maya peoples|Maya]] around [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]] was unsuccessful and the local [[Kowoj|Kowoj Maya]] resisted his attempts to assert Spanish dominance of the region.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 770–771.</ref> This resistance was sufficiently tenacious that Montejo the Younger sent his cousin from [[Tabasco]] to Champotón to take command. His diplomatic overtures to the Champotón Kowoj were successful and they submitted to Spanish rule. Champotón was the last Spanish outpost in the [[Yucatán Peninsula]]; it was increasingly isolated and the situation there became difficult.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p771">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 771.</ref>

== Conquest and settlement in northern Yucatán, 1540–1546 ==
{{see also|1543–1544 Pachecos entrada}}
[[File:Dzibilchaltún - Spanish Church - P1110771.JPG|thumb|Ruins of a mission church built by the Spanish in [[Dzibilchaltún]] ca. 1590–1600 from the stone taken from the nearby Maya temples]]
[[File:Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Yucatan.svg|thumb|150px|Colonial coat of arms of Yucatán]]
In 1540, [[Francisco de Montejo|Francisco de Montejo the Elder]], who was now in his late 60s, turned his royal rights to colonise [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] over to his son, [[Francisco de Montejo the Younger]]. In early 1541, Montejo the Younger joined his cousin in [[Champotón, Campeche|Champoton]]; he did not remain there long, and quickly moved his forces to [[Campeche City|Campeche]]. Once there, Montejo the Younger, commanding between 300 and 400 Spanish soldiers, established the first permanent Spanish town council in the Yucatán Peninsula. Shortly after establishing the Spanish presence in Campeche, Montejo the Younger summoned the local [[Maya peoples|Maya]] lords and commanded them to submit to the Spanish Crown. A number of lords submitted peacefully, including the ruler of the Xiu Maya. The lord of the [[Ah Canul|Canul Maya]] refused to submit and Montejo the Younger sent his cousin against them; Montejo himself remained in Campeche awaiting reinforcements.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p771"/>

Montejo the Younger's cousin met the Canul Maya at [[Chakán Putum|Chakan]], not far from Tʼho. On 6 January 1542, he founded the second permanent town council, calling the new colonial town [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]]. On 23 January, [[Tutul-Xiu]], the lord of [[Maní, Yucatán|Maní]], approached the Spanish encampment at Mérida in peace, bearing sorely needed food supplies. He expressed interest in the Spanish religion and witnessed a Roman Catholic mass celebrated for his benefit. Tutul-Xiu was greatly impressed and converted to the new religion; he was baptised as Melchor and stayed with the Spanish at Mérida for two months, receiving instruction in the Catholic faith. Tutul-Xiu was the ruler of the most powerful province of northern Yucatán and his submission to Spain and conversion to Christianity had repercussions throughout the peninsula, and encouraged the lords of the western provinces of the peninsula to accept Spanish rule.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p771"/> The eastern provinces continued to resist Spanish overtures.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p772">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 772.</ref>
[[File:Merida-cathedral.jpg|thumb|[[Cathedral of Mérida, Yucatán|Cathedral of Mérida]], built between 1561 and 1598.]]
Montejo the Younger next sent his cousin to Chauaca where most of the eastern lords greeted him in peace. The [[Cochuah|Cochua Maya]] resisted fiercely but were soon defeated by the Spanish. The [[Cupul|Cupul Maya]] also rose up against the newly imposed Spanish domination, and also their opposition was quickly put down. Montejo continued to the eastern [[Ekab|Ekab province]], reaching the east coast at Pole. Stormy weather prevented the Spanish from crossing to [[Cozumel]], and nine Spaniards drowned in the attempted crossing. Another Spanish conquistador was killed by hostile Maya. Rumours of this setback grew in the telling and both the Cupul and Cochua provinces once again rose up against their would-be European overlords. The Spanish hold on the eastern portion of the peninsula remained tenuous and a number of Maya polities remained independent, including [[Chetumal Province|Chetumal]], [[Cochuah|Cochua]], [[Cupul]], [[Sotuta]] and the Tazes.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p772"/>

On 8 November 1546, an alliance of eastern provinces launched a coordinated uprising against the Spanish.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p772"/> The provinces of [[Cupul]], [[Cochuah|Cochua]], [[Sotuta]], [[Tases|Tazes]], [[Uaymil]], [[Chetumal Province|Chetumal]] and [[Chikinchel]] united in a concerted effort to drive the invaders from the peninsula; the uprising lasted four months.<ref>Caso Barrera 2002, pp. 17, 19.</ref> Eighteen Spaniards were surprised in the eastern towns, and were [[human sacrifice|sacrificed]]. A contemporary account described the slaughter of over 400 allied Maya, as well as livestock. [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] and [[Campeche City|Campeche]] were forewarned of the impending attack; Montejo the Younger and his cousin were in Campeche. Montejo the Elder arrived in Mérida from [[Chiapas]] in December 1546, with reinforcements gathered from [[Champotón, Campeche|Champotón]] and Campeche. The rebellious eastern Maya were finally defeated in a single battle, in which twenty Spaniards and several hundred allied Maya were killed. This battle marked the final conquest of the northern portion of the [[Yucatán Peninsula]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p772"/> As a result of the uprising and the Spanish response, many of the Maya inhabitants of the eastern and southern territories fled to the still unconquered [[Petén Basin]], in the extreme south of the peninsula. The Spanish only achieved dominance in the north and the polities of Petén remained independent and continued to receive many refugees from the north.<ref>Caso Barrera 2002, p. 19.</ref>

==Petén Basin, 1618–1697==
{{Main|Spanish conquest of Petén}}
The [[Petén Basin]] covers an area that is now part of [[Guatemala]]; in colonial times it originally fell under the jurisdiction of the Governor of [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]], before being transferred to the jurisdiction of the [[Audiencia Real]] of Guatemala in 1703.<ref>Fialko Coxemans 2003, pp. 72–73.</ref> The [[Itzá Kingdom (1194–1697)|Itza kingdom]] centred upon [[Lake Petén Itzá]] had been visited by [[Hernán Cortés]] on his march to [[Honduras]] in 1525.<ref name="Jones00p358"/>

===Early 17th century===
[[File:17th century Spanish routes to Petén flat.gif|thumb|left|alt=Map of the Yucatán Peninsula, jutting northwards from an isthmus running northwest to southeast. The Captaincy General of Yucatán was located in the extreme north of the peninsula. {{lang|es|Mérida}} is to the north, {{lang|es|Campeche}} on the west coast, {{lang|es|Bacalar}} to the east and {{lang|es|Salamanca de Bacalar}} to the southeast, near the east coast. Routes from {{lang|es|Mérida}} and {{lang|es|Campeche}} joined to head southwards towards {{lang|es|Petén}}, at the base of the peninsula. Another route left {{lang|es|Mérida}} to curve towards the east coast and approach {{lang|es|Petén}} from the northeast. The Captaincy General of Guatemala was to the south with its capital at {{lang|es|Santiago de los Caballeros de Guatemala}}. A number of colonial towns roughly followed a mountain range running east–west, including {{lang|es|Ocosingo}}, {{lang|es|Ciudad Real}}, {{lang|es|Comitán}}, {{lang|es|Ystapalapán}}, {{lang|es|Huehuetenango}}, {{lang|es|Cobán}} and {{lang|es|Cahabón}}. A route left {{lang|es|Cahabón}} eastwards and turned north to {{lang|es|Petén}}. {{lang|es|Petén}} and the surrounding area contained a number of native settlements. Nojpetén was situated on a lake near the centre; a number of settlements were scattered to the south and southwest, including {{lang|es|Dolores del Lacandón}}, Yaxché, {{lang|es|Mopán}}, Ixtanché, Xocolo and Nito. Tipuj was to the east. Chuntuki, Chunpich and Tzuktokʼ were to the north. Sakalum was to the northeast. Battles took place at Sakalum in 1624 and {{lang|es|Nojpetén}} in 1697.|17th century entry routes to Petén]]
Following [[Hernán Cortés|Cortés]]' visit, no Spanish attempted to visit the warlike [[Itza people|Itza]] inhabitants of [[Nojpetén]] for almost a hundred years. In 1618 two [[Franciscans|Franciscan]] friars set out from [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] on a mission to attempt the peaceful conversion of the still-pagan Itza in central [[Petén Basin|Petén]]. Bartolomé de Fuensalida and Juan de Orbita were accompanied by some Christianised Maya.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p773"/> After an arduous six-month journey the travellers were well received at Nojpetén by the current [[Kan Ekʼ]]. They stayed for some days in an attempt to evangelise the Itza, but the Aj Kan Ekʼ refused to renounce his [[Maya religion]], although he showed interest in the masses held by the Catholic missionaries. Attempts to convert the Itza failed, and the friars left Nojpetén on friendly terms with Kan Ekʼ.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p773">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 773.</ref> The friars returned in October 1619, and again Kan Ekʼ welcomed them in a friendly manner, but this time the [[Maya priesthood]] were hostile and the missionaries were expelled without food or water, but survived the journey back to Mérida.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p774">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 774.</ref>

In March 1622, the governor of Yucatán, Diego de Cárdenas, ordered Captain Francisco de Mirones y Lezcano to launch an assault upon the [[Itza people|Itza]]; he set out from [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] with 20 Spanish soldiers and 80 Mayas from Yucatán.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 774.<br>Jones 1998, p. 46.<br>Chuchiak IV 2005, p. 131.</ref> His expedition was later joined by Franciscan friar Diego Delgado.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p774"/> In May the expedition advanced to [[Sacalum Municipality|Sakalum]], southwest of [[Bacalar]], where there was a lengthy delay while they waited for reinforcements.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 42, 47.</ref> En route to [[Nojpetén]], Delgado believed that the soldiers' treatment of the Maya was excessively cruel, and he left the expedition to make his own way to Nojpetén with eighty Christianised Maya from [[Tipu, Belize|Tipuj]] in [[Belize]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p774"/> In the meantime the Itza had learnt of the approaching military expedition and had become hardened against further Spanish missionary attempts.<ref>Chuchiak IV 2005, p. 132.</ref> When Mirones learnt of Delgado's departure, he sent 13 soldiers to persuade him to return or continue as his escort should he refuse. The soldiers caught up with him just before Tipuj, but he was determined to reach Nojpetén.<ref>Means 1917, p. 79.</ref> From Tipuj, Delgado sent a messenger to Kan Ekʼ, asking permission to travel to Nojpetén; the Itza king replied with a promise of safe passage for the missionary and his companions. The party was initially received in peace at the Itza capital,<ref>Means 1917, p. 80.</ref> but as soon as the Spanish soldiers let their guard down, the Itza seized and bound the new arrivals.<ref name="Means1917p81">Means 1917, p. 81.</ref> The soldiers were [[Sacrifice in Maya culture|sacrificed]] to the [[List of Maya gods and supernatural beings|Maya gods]].<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 774.<br>Means 1917, p. 81.</ref> After their sacrifice, the Itza took Delgado, cut his heart out and dismembered him; they displayed his head on a stake with the others.<ref>Means 1917, p. 81.<br>Jones 1998, pp. 47–48.</ref> The fortune of the leader of Delgado's Maya companions was no better. With no word from Delgado's escort, Mirones sent two Spanish soldiers with a Maya scout to learn their fate. When they arrived upon the shore of [[Lake Petén Itzá]], the Itza took them across to their island capital and imprisoned them. Bernardino Ek, the scout, escaped and returned to Mirones with the news.<ref name="Means1917p81"/> Soon afterwards, on 27 January 1624, an Itza war party led by AjKʼin Pʼol caught Mirones and his soldiers off guard and unarmed in the church at Sakalum,<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 774.<br>Jones 1998, p. 48.</ref> and killed them all.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p774"/> Spanish reinforcements arrived too late. A number of local Maya men and women were killed by Spanish attackers, who also burned the town.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 48.</ref>

Following these killings, Spanish garrisons were stationed in several towns in southern Yucatán, and rewards were offered for the whereabouts of AjKʼin Pʼol. The Maya governor of [[Oxkutzcab Municipality|Oxkutzcab]], Fernando Kamal, set out with 150 Maya archers to track the warleader down; they succeeded in capturing the [[Itza people|Itza]] captain and his followers, together with silverware from the looted [[Sacalum Municipality|Sakalum]] church and items belonging to Mirones. The prisoners were taken back to the Spanish Captain Antonio Méndez de Canzo, interrogated under torture, tried, and condemned to be [[hanged, drawn and quartered]]. They were decapitated, and the heads were displayed in the plazas of towns throughout the colonial ''Partido de la Sierra'' in what is now Mexico's [[Yucatán|Yucatán state]].<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 48–49.</ref> These events ended all Spanish attempts to contact the Itza until 1695.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p774"/> In the 1640s internal strife in Spain distracted the government from attempts to conquer unknown lands; the Spanish Crown lacked the time, money or interest in such colonial adventures for the next four decades.<ref>Feldman 2000, p. 151.</ref>

===Late 17th century===
{{History of New Spain}}
In 1692 [[Basque people|Basque]] nobleman [[Martín de Ursúa y Arizmendi]] proposed to the Spanish king the construction of a road from [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] southwards to link with the [[Guatemala]]n colony, in the process "reducing" any independent native populations into colonial ''congregaciones''; this was part of a greater plan to subjugate the [[Lakandon Chʼol]] and [[Manche Chʼol]] of southern [[Petén Basin|Petén]] and the upper reaches of the [[Usumacinta River]]. The original plan was for the province of [[Yucatán Peninsula|Yucatán]] to build the northern section and for Guatemala to build the southern portion, with both meeting somewhere in [[Chʼol people|Chʼol]] territory; the plan was later modified to pass further east, through the [[Itzá Kingdom (1194–1697)|kingdom of the Itza]].<ref name="Jones1998p111">Jones 1998, pp. 111, 132–133, 145.</ref>

As governor of Yucatán (1695-1696) now, [[Martín de Ursúa y Arizmendi]], began to build the road from [[Campeche City|Campeche]] south towards [[Petén Basin|Petén]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p774"/> At the beginning of March 1695, Captain Alonso García de Paredes led a group of 50 Spanish soldiers, accompanied by native guides, muleteers and labourers.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 129–130.<br>ITMB 2000.</ref> The expedition advanced south into [[Kejache]] territory, which began at Chunpich, about {{convert|5|km|mi}} north of the modern border between [[Mexico]] and [[Guatemala]].<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 130–131.<br>ITMB 2000.</ref> He rounded up some natives to be moved into colonial settlements, but met with armed Kejache resistance. García de Paredes decided to retreat around the middle of April.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 131.</ref>

In March 1695, Captain Juan Díaz de Velasco set out from [[Cahabón]] in [[Alta Verapaz]], [[Guatemala]], with 70 Spanish soldiers, accompanied by a large number of Maya archers from [[Verapaz, Guatemala|Verapaz]], native muleteers, and four [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] friars.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 132, 134.<br>Means 1917, p. 97.</ref> The Spanish pressed ahead to [[Lake Petén Itzá]] and engaged in a series of fierce skirmishes with [[Itza people|Itza]] hunting parties.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 135–136, 139–140.</ref> At the lakeshore, within sight of [[Nojpetén]], the Spanish encountered such a large force of Itzas that they retreated south, back to their main camp.<ref name="Jones1999p141">Jones 1998, p. 141.</ref> Interrogation of an Itza prisoner revealed that the [[Peten Itza kingdom|Itza kingdom]] was in a state of high alert to repel the Spanish;<ref name="Jones1998p140">Jones 1998, p. 140.</ref> the expedition almost immediately withdrew back to [[Cahabón]].<ref name="Jones1998p142">Jones 1998, p. 142.</ref>

In mid-May 1695 García de Paredes again marched southwards from [[Campeche City|Campeche]],<ref name="Jones1998p142"/>  with 115 Spanish soldiers and 150 Maya musketeers, plus Maya labourers and muleteers; the final tally was more than 400 people, which was regarded as a considerable army in the impoverished Yucatán province.<ref name="Jones1998p143">Jones 1998, p. 143.</ref> Ursúa also ordered two companies of Maya musketeers from [[Tekax|Tekʼax]] and [[Oxkutzcab Municipality|Oxkʼutzkabʼ]] to join the expedition at Bʼolonchʼen Kawich, some {{convert|60|km|mi}} southeast of the city of Campeche.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 130, 144.</ref> At the end of May three friars were assigned to join the Spanish force, accompanied by a lay brother. A second group of [[Franciscans]] would continue onwards independently to [[Nojpetén]] to make contact with the [[Itza people|Itzas]]; it was led by friar Andrés de Avendaño, who was accompanied by another [[friar]] and a [[lay brother]].<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 148–149.</ref> García de Paredes ordered the construction of a fort at Chuntuki, some 25 leagues (approximately 65 miles or 105&nbsp;km) north of [[Lake Petén Itzá]], which would serve as the main military base for the ''Camino Real'' ("Royal Road") project.<ref name="Jones1998p147">Jones 1998, p. 147.</ref>

A company of native musketeers from the town of Sajkabʼchen (or Sahcabchén) in [[Campeche]], pushed ahead with the road builders from Tzuktzokʼ to the first [[Kejache]] town at Chunpich, which the Kejache had fled. The company's officers sent for reinforcements from García de Paredes at Tzuktokʼ but before any could arrive some 25 Kejache returned to Chunpich with baskets to collect their abandoned food. The nervous Sajkabʼchen sentries feared that the residents were returning en masse and discharged their muskets at them, with both groups then retreating. The musketeer company then arrived to reinforce their sentries and charged into battle against approaching Kejache archers. Several musketeers were injured in the ensuing skirmish and the Kejache retreated along a forest path without injury. The Sajkabʼchen company followed the path and found two more deserted settlements with large amounts of abandoned food. They seized the food and retreated back along the path.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 154.<br>Means 1917, pp. 117–118.</ref>
 
Around 3 August García de Paredes moved his entire army forward to Chunpich,<ref name="Jones1998p154">Jones 1998, p. 154.</ref> and by October Spanish soldiers had established themselves near the source of the [[San Pedro River (Guatemala)|San Pedro River]].<ref name="Jones98p163">Jones 1998, p. 163.</ref> By November Tzuktokʼ was garrisoned with 86 soldiers and more at Chuntuki. In December 1695 the main force was reinforced with 250 soldiers, of which 150 were Spanish and pardo (descendants of [[White Latin Americans|Southern Europeans]], [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Amerindians]], and [[Afro-Latin Americans|West Africans]]) and 100 were Maya, together with labourers and muleteers.<ref name="Jones 1998, p. 162">Jones 1998, p. 162.</ref>

====Avendaño's expedition, June 1695====
In May 1695, friar Antonio de Silva, the provincial superior of the [[Franciscans|Franciscan Order]] in Yucatán, had appointed two groups of [[Franciscans]] to head for [[Petén Basin|Petén]]; the first group was to join up with García de Parede's military expedition. The second group was to head for [[Lake Petén Itzá|Lake Petén Itza]] independently. This second group was headed by friar Andrés de Avendaño. Avendaño was accompanied by another friar, a lay brother, and six Christian Maya.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 148, 150.</ref> This latter group left [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] on 2 June 1695.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 130, 151–152.</ref> Avendaño continued south along the course of the new road, finding increasing evidence of Spanish military activity. The Franciscans overtook García de Paredes at Bʼukʼte, about {{convert|12|km|mi}} before Tzuktokʼ.<ref name="Jones1998p152">Jones 1998, p. 152.</ref> On 3 August García de Paredes advanced to Chunpich but tried to persuade Avendaño to stay behind to minister to the prisoners from Bʼukʼte. Avendaño instead split his group and left in secret with just four Christian Maya companions,<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 150, 154.</ref> seeking the Chunpich [[Kejache]] that had attacked one of García de Parede's advance companies and had now retreated into the forest.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 154–155.</ref> He was unable to find the Kejache but did manage to get information regarding a path that led southwards to the [[Itzá Kingdom (1194–1697)|Itza kingdom]]. Avendaño returned to Tzuktokʼ and reconsidered his plans; the [[Franciscans]] were short of supplies, and the forcefully congregated Maya that they were charged with converting were disappearing back into the forest daily.<ref>Jones 1998, p.  155.</ref> Antonio de Silva ordered Avendaño to return to Mérida, and he arrived there on 17 September 1695.<ref>Jones 1998, p.  156.</ref> Meanwhile, the other group of Franciscans, led by Juan de San Buenaventura Chávez, continued following the roadbuilders into Kejache territory, through IxBʼam, Bʼatkabʼ and Chuntuki (modern Chuntunqui near [[Carmelita, Petén]]).<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 148, 157.<br>Quezada 2011, p. 23.<br>ITMB 1998.</ref>

====San Buenaventura among the Kejache, September – November 1695====
Juan de San Buenaventura's small group of [[Franciscans]] arrived in Chuntuki on 30 August 1695, and found that the army had opened the road southwards for another seventeen leagues (approximately 44.2 miles or 71.1&nbsp;km), almost {{not a typo|half way}} to [[Lake Petén Itzá]], but returned to Chuntuki due to the seasonal rains.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 157.</ref> San Buenaventura was accompanied by two friars and a lay brother.<ref name="Jones 1998 148">Jones 1998, p. 148.</ref> With Avendaño's return to [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]], provincial superior Antonio de Silva despatched two additional friars to join San Buenaventura's group. One of these was to convert the [[Kejache]] in Tzuktokʼ, and the other was to do the same at Chuntuki.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 158.</ref> On 24 October San Buenaventura wrote to the provincial superior reporting that the warlike Kejache were now pacified and that they had told him that the Itza were ready to receive the Spanish in friendship.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 158–159.</ref> On that day 62 Kejache men had voluntarily come to Chuntuki from Pakʼekʼem, where another 300 Kejache resided.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 159–160.</ref> In early November 1695, friar Tomás de Alcoser and brother Lucas de San Francisco were sent to establish a mission at Pakʼekʼem, where they were well received by the ''[[cacique]]'' (native chief) and his pagan priest. Pakʼekʼem was sufficiently far from the new Spanish road that it was free from military interference, and the friars oversaw the building of a church in what was the largest mission town in Kejache territory. A second church was built at Bʼatkabʼ to attend to over 100 Kejache refugees who had been gathered there under the stewardship of a Spanish friar;<ref>Jones 1998, p. 160.</ref> a further church was established at Tzuktokʼ, overseen by another friar.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 160–161.</ref>

====Avendaño's expedition, December 1695 – January 1696====
[[Franciscans|Franciscan]] friar Andrés de Avendaño left [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] on 13 December 1695, and arrived in [[Nojpetén]] around 14 January 1696, accompanied by four companions.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 187, 189.</ref> From Chuntuki they followed an Indian trail that led them past the source of the [[San Pedro River (Guatemala)|San Pedro River]] and across steep karst hills to a watering hole by some ruins.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 189–190.<br>Means 1917, p. 128.</ref> From there they followed the small Acté River to a Chakʼan Itza town called Saklemakal.<ref name="Jones98p190">Jones 1998, p. 190.</ref> They arrived at the western end of [[Lake Petén Itzá]] to an enthusiastic welcome by the local [[Itza people|Itza]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p775"/> The following day, the current [[Kan Ekʼ|Aj Kan Ekʼ]] travelled across the lake with 80 canoes to greet the visitors at the Chakʼan Itza (a subgroup of the [[Itza people|Itza]]) port town of [[Nixtun Chʼichʼ|Chʼichʼ]], on the west shore of Lake Petén Itza.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 775.<br>Jones 1998, p. 192.</ref> The Franciscans returned to Nojpetén with Kan Ekʼ and baptised over 300 Itza children over the following four days. Avendaño tried to convince Kan Ekʼ to convert to Christianity and surrender to the Spanish Crown, without success.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p775"/> The king of the Itza, cited Itza prophecy and said the time was not yet right.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p775">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 775.</ref>
 
On 19 January AjKowoj, the king of the [[Kowoj]], arrived at [[Nojpetén]] and spoke with Avendaño,<ref>Jones 1998, p. 205.</ref> arguing against the acceptance of Christianity and Spanish rule.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 207.</ref> The discussions between Avendaño, Kan Ekʼ and AjKowoj exposed deep divisions among the Itza.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 209–210.</ref> Kan Ekʼ learnt of a plot by the Kowoj and their allies to ambush and kill the Franciscans, and the Itza king advised them to return to [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] via [[Tipu, Belize|Tipuj]].<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 775.<br>Jones 1998, pp. 214–215.</ref> The Spanish friars became lost and suffered great hardships, including the death of one of Avendaño's companions,<ref>Vayhinger-Scheer 2011, p. 383.</ref> but after a month wandering in the forest found their way back to Chuntuki, and from there returned to Mérida.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 775–776.<br>Jones 1998, pp. 218–219.</ref>

====Battle at Chʼichʼ, 2 February 1696====
By mid-January, Captain García de Paredes had arrived at the advance portion of the ''Camino Real'' at Chuntuki.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 189, 226.</ref> By now he only had 90 soldiers plus labourers and porters.<ref name="Jones98p226">Jones 1998, p. 226.</ref> Captain [[Pedro de Zubiaur]], García's senior officer, arrived at [[Lake Petén Itzá|Lake Petén Itza]] with 60 musketeers, two [[Franciscans]], and allied [[Yucatec Maya language|Yucatec Maya]] warriors.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 227.<br>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 776.</ref> They were also accompanied by about 40 [[Maya peoples|Maya]] porters.<ref name="Jones98p227">Jones 1998, p. 227.</ref> They were approached by about 300 canoes carrying approximately 2,000 [[Itza people|Itza]] warriors.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 228.<br>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 776.</ref> The warriors began to mingle freely with the Spanish party and a scuffle then broke out; a dozen of the Spanish party were forced into canoes, and three of them were killed. At this point the Spanish soldiers opened fire with their muskets, and the Itza retreated across the lake with their prisoners, who included the two Franciscans.<ref name="Jones98p228">Jones 1998, p. 228.</ref> The Spanish party retreated from the lake shore and regrouped on open ground where they were surrounded by thousands of Itza warriors. Zubiaur ordered his men to fire a volley that killed between 30 and 40 Itzas. Realising that they were hopelessly outnumbered, the Spanish retreated towards Chuntuki, abandoning their captured companions to their fate.<ref name="Jones98p229">Jones 1998, p. 229.</ref>
 
[[Martín de Ursúa]] was now convinced that [[Kan Ekʼ]] would not surrender peacefully, and he began to organise an all-out assault on [[Nojpetén]].<ref name="SharerTraxler06p776">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 776.</ref> Work on the road was redoubled and about a month after the battle at [[Nixtun Chʼichʼ|Chʼichʼ]] the Spanish arrived at the lakeshore, now supported by artillery. Again a large number of canoes gathered, and the nervous Spanish soldiers opened fire with cannons and muskets; no casualties were reported among the [[Itza people|Itza]], who retreated and raised a white flag from a safe distance.<ref name="Jones98p229"/>

====Expedition from Verapaz, February – March 1696====
''[[Oidor]]'' Bartolomé de Amésqueta led the next Guatemalan expedition against the [[Itza people|Itza]]. He marched his men from [[Cahabón]] to [[Mopan people|Mopán]], arriving on 25 February 1696.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 232–233.</ref> On 7 March, Captain Díaz de Velasco led a party ahead to the lake; he was accompanied by two [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] friars and by AjKʼixaw, an Itza nobleman who had been taken prisoner on Díaz's previous expedition.<ref name="Jones 1998, p. 233">Jones 1998, p. 233.</ref> When they drew close to the shore of [[Lake Petén Itzá]], AjKʼixaw was sent ahead as an emissary to [[Nojpetén]].<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 233–234.</ref> Díaz's party was lured into an Itza trap and the expedition members were killed to a man. The two friars were captured and sacrificed. The Itza killed a total of 87 expedition members, including 50 soldiers, two Dominicans and about 35 Maya helpers.<ref name="Jones 1998, p479n59.">Jones 1998, p. 479n59.</ref>
 
Amésqueta left Mopán three days after Díaz and followed Díaz's trail to the lakeshore. He arrived at the lake over a week later with 36 men. As they scouted along the south shore near Nojpetén they were shadowed by about 30 Itza canoes and more Itzas approached by land but kept a safe distance.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 234-235.</ref> Amésqueta was extremely suspicious of the small canoes being offered by the Itza to transport his party across to Nojpetén; as nightfall approached Amésqueta retreated from the lakeshore and his men took up positions on a small hill nearby.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 237–238.</ref> In the early hours of the morning he ordered a retreat by moonlight.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 238–239.</ref> At San Pedro Mártir he received news of an Itza embassy to [[Mérida, Yucatán|Mérida]] in December 1695, and an apparent formal surrender of the Itza to Spanish authority.<ref name="Jones98p240">Jones 1998, p. 240.</ref> Unable to reconcile the news with the loss of his men, and with appalling conditions in San Pedro Mártir, Amésqueta abandoned his unfinished fort and retreated to [[Guatemala]].<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 241–242.</ref>

====Assault on Nojpetén====
The [[Itza people|Itzas]]' continued resistance had become a major embarrassment for the Spanish colonial authorities, and soldiers were despatched from [[Campeche City|Campeche]] to take [[Nojpetén]] once and for all.<ref name="Jones00p362">Jones 2000, p. 362.</ref> [[Martín de Ursúa y Arizmendi]] arrived on the western shore of [[Lake Petén Itzá]] with his soldiers on 26 February 1697, and once there built the heavily armed ''[[Galiot|galeota]]'' attack boat.<ref>Jones 2009, p. 59.<br>Jones 1998, pp. 253, 265–266.</ref> The ''galeota'' carried 114 men and at least five artillery pieces.<ref name="Jones  1998 268 269">Jones 1998, pp. 268–269.</ref> The ''piragua'' longboat used to cross the [[San Pedro River (Guatemala)|San Pedro River]] was also transported to the lake to be used in the attack on the Itza capital.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 252, 268.</ref>
[[File:Murales Rivera - Ausbeutung durch die Spanier 1.jpg|thumb|Exploitation of the indigenous people by the [[Spanish conquistadors]]" mural by [[Diego Rivera]] (1886-1957)]]
On 10 March a number of [[Itza people|Itza]] and [[Yalain]] emissaries arrived at [[Nixtun Chʼichʼ|Chʼichʼ]] to negotiate with Ursúa.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 269–270.</ref> [[Kan Ekʼ]] then sent a canoe with a white flag raised bearing emissaries, who offered peaceful surrender. Ursúa received the embassy in peace and invited Kan Ekʼ to visit his encampment three days later. On the appointed day Kan Ekʼ failed to arrive; instead Maya warriors amassed both along the shore and in canoes upon the lake.<ref name="SharerTraxler06p777">Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 777.</ref>

A waterbourne assault was launched upon Kan Ek's capital on the morning of 13 March.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 777.<br>Jones 1998, p. 295.</ref> Ursúa boarded the ''galeota'' with 108 soldiers, two secular priests, five personal servants, the baptised Itza emissary AjChan and his brother-in-law and an Itza prisoner from [[Nojpetén]]. The attack boat was rowed east towards the Itza capital; {{not a typo|half way}} across the lake it encountered a large fleet of canoes spread in an arc across the approach to Nojpetén – Ursúa simply gave the order to row through them. A large number of defenders had gathered along the shore of Nojpetén and on the roofs of the city.<ref name="Jones98p297">Jones 1998, p. 297.</ref> Itza archers began to shoot at the invaders from the canoes. Ursúa ordered his men not to return fire but arrows wounded a number of his soldiers; one of the wounded soldiers discharged his musket and at that point the officers lost control of their men. The defending Itza soon fled from the withering Spanish gunfire.<ref>Jones 1998, pp. 298–299.</ref>

The city fell after a brief but bloody battle in which many Itza warriors died; the Spanish suffered only minor casualties. The Spanish bombardment caused heavy loss of life on the island;<ref name="Jones09p59" /> the surviving Itza abandoned their capital and swam across to the mainland with many dying in the water.<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, pp. 777–778.</ref> After the battle the surviving defenders melted away into the forests, leaving the Spanish to occupy an abandoned Maya town.<ref name="Jones00p362" /> Martín de Ursúa planted his standard upon the highest point of the island and renamed Nojpetén as ''Nuestra Señora de los Remedios y San Pablo, Laguna del Itza'' ("Our Lady of Remedy and Saint Paul, Lake of the Itza").<ref>Sharer and Traxler 2006, p. 778.<br>Jones 2009, p. 59.</ref> The Itza nobility fled, dispersing to Maya settlements throughout [[Petén Basin|Petén]]; in response the Spanish scoured the region with search parties.<ref>Jones 1998, p. 295.</ref> [[Kan Ekʼ]] was soon captured with help from the [[Yalain|Yalain Maya]] ruler Chamach Xulu;<ref name="Jones 1998, p. 306">Jones 1998, p. 306.</ref> The [[Kowoj]] king (Aj Kowoj) was also soon captured, together with other Maya nobles and their families.<ref name="Jones09p59">Jones 2009, p. 59.</ref> With the defeat of the [[Itza people|Itza]], the last independent and unconquered native kingdom in the Americas fell to the European colonisers.<ref name="Jones98pxix">Jones 1998, p. xix.</ref>

==See also==
*[[Index of Mexico-related articles]]
*[[Yucatan]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group="nb"}}

==Citations==
{{reflist|25em}}

==References==
{{wikisource|History of the Spanish Conquest of Yucatan and of the Itzas}}
{{refbegin|indent=yes}}
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*{{cite journal |author=Fialko Coxemans, Vilma |title=Domingo Fajardo: vicario y defensor de indios en Petén. 1795–1828. |trans-title=Domingo Fajardo: Vicar and Defender of Indians in Petén |journal=Mayab |issue=16 |year=2003 |pages=72–78 |issn=1130-6157 |oclc=14209890 |location=Madrid, Spain |publisher=Sociedad Española de Estudios Mayas |url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/dcfichero_articulo?codigo=2775037 |format=PDF |access-date=2012-12-06 |language=es }}
*{{cite journal |url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/4502253.pdf |access-date=2013-12-17 |author=Gómez Martín, Jorge Angel |title=El Descubrimiento del Yucatán |journal=Revista de Estudios Colombinos |issue=9 |date=June 2013 |pages=53–60 |issn=1699-3926 |oclc=436472699 |publisher=Seminario Iberoamericano de Descubrimientos y Cartografía |location=Tordesillas, Valladolid, Spain |language=es }}
*{{cite book |author=Hernández, Christine |author2=Anthony P. Andrews |author3=Gabrielle Vail |year=2010 |title=Astronomers, Scribes, and Priests: Intellectual Interchange Between the Northern Maya Lowlands and Highland Mexico in the Late Postclassic Period |chapter=Introduction |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I0SkqcbLubAC |editor=Gabrielle Vail |editor2=Christine L. Hernández |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |location=Washington, D.C. |oclc=845573515 |isbn=9780884023463 |series=Dumbarton Oaks Pre-Columbian symposia and colloquia |pages=17–36 }}
*{{cite journal |author=Houwald, Götz von |author-link=Götz von Houwald |year=1984 |title=Mapa y Descripción de la Montaña del Petén e Ytzá. Interpretación de un documento de los años un poco después de la conquista de Tayasal |trans-title=Map and Description of the Jungle of Petén and Itza. Interpretation of a Document from the Years Soon After the Conquest of Tayasal |journal=Indiana |issue=9 |url=http://www.iai.spk-berlin.de/fileadmin/dokumentenbibliothek/Indiana/Indiana_9/IND_09_von_Houwald.pdf |publisher=[[Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut]] |location=Berlin, Germany |access-date=2012-12-03 |oclc=2452883 |issn=0341-8642 |language=es }}
*{{cite web |year=2010 |title=Zona Arqueológica El Meco |url=http://www.inah.gob.mx/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5487 |author=INAH |author-link=Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia |publisher=Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) and Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes (CONACULTA) |access-date=2013-12-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130823103747/http://www.inah.gob.mx/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5487 |location=Mexico City, Mexico |archive-date=2013-08-23 |language=es }}
*{{cite map|publisher=ITMB Publishing |title=Guatemala |edition=3rd |year=1998 |scale=1:500000 |series=International Travel Maps |isbn=0-921463-64-2 |oclc=421536238 |location=Richmond, British Columbia, Canada}}
*{{cite map|publisher=ITMB Publishing |title=México South East |edition=2nd |year=2000 |scale=1:1000000 |series=International Travel Maps |isbn=0-921463-22-7 |oclc=46660694 |location=Richmond, British Columbia, Canada}}
*{{cite book |author=Jones, Grant D. |year=1998 |title=The Conquest of the Last Maya Kingdom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PeOWl54Mt7UC&pg=RA2-PT82 |publisher=[[Stanford University Press]] |location=Stanford, California, US |isbn=978-0-8047-3522-3 }}
*{{cite book |author=Jones, Grant D.   |year=2000 |chapter=The Lowland Maya, from the Conquest to the Present |editor=Richard E.W. Adams |editor2=Murdo J. Macleod |title=The Cambridge History of the Native Peoples of the Americas, Vol. II: Mesoamerica, part 2 |location=Cambridge, UK |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=346–391|isbn=0-521-65204-9 |oclc=33359444}}
*{{cite book |author=Jones, Grant D. |year=2009 |chapter=The Kowoj in Ethnohistorical Perspective |editor=Prudence M. Rice |editor2=Don S. Rice |title=The Kowoj: Identity, Migration, and Geopolitics in Late Postclassic Petén, Guatemala |url=https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice |url-access=limited |location=Boulder, Colorado, US |publisher=University Press of Colorado |pages=[https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice/page/n77 55]–69 |isbn=978-0-87081-930-8 |oclc=225875268 }}
*{{cite book |author=Lovell, W. George |year=2005 |title=Conquest and Survival in Colonial Guatemala: A Historical Geography of the Cuchumatán Highlands, 1500–1821 |publisher=[[McGill-Queen's University Press]] |location=Montreal, Canada |edition=3rd |isbn=0-7735-2741-9 |oclc=58051691 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=05wSqQiu52MC }}
*{{cite book |author=Means, Philip Ainsworth   |author-link=Philip Ainsworth Means |year=1917 |title=History of the Spanish Conquest of Yucatan and of the Itzas |series=Papers of the Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University |volume=VII |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts, US |publisher=[[Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology]] |oclc=681599|title-link=Wikisource:History of the Spanish Conquest of Yucatan and of the Itzas }}
*{{cite book |author=Perramon, Francesc Ligorred |chapter=Los primeros contactos lingüísticos de los españoles en Yucatán |title=Los mayas de los tiempos tardíos |publisher=Sociedad Española de Estudios Mayas |location=Madrid, Spain |year=1986 |chapter-url=http://dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/2775333.pdf |pages=241–252 |oclc=16268597 |isbn=9788439871200 |editor=Miguel Rivera |editor2=Andrés Ciudad |language=es }}
*{{cite book |author=Pohl, John   |author2=Hook, Adam |title=The Conquistador 1492–1550 |series=Warrior |volume=40 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-84176-175-6 |oclc=47726663 |location=Oxford, UK and New York, US |orig-year=2001 |year=2008}}
*{{cite book |author=Pugh, Timothy W. |year=2009 |chapter=Residential and Domestic Contexts at Zacpetén |editor=Prudence M. Rice |editor2=Don S. Rice |title=The Kowoj: Identity, Migration, and Geopolitics in Late Postclassic Petén, Guatemala |url=https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice |url-access=limited |location=Boulder, Colorado, US |publisher=University Press of Colorado |pages=[https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice/page/n163 141]–191 |isbn=978-0-87081-930-8 |oclc=225875268 }}
*{{cite book |author=Quezada, Sergio |year=2011 |title=La colonización de los mayas peninsulares |trans-title=The Colonisation of the Peninsula Maya |url=http://www.bibliotecabasica.yucatan.gob.mx/archivos_modulos/biblioteca/pdf_201106170236.pdf |isbn=978-607-7824-27-5 |oclc=796677890 |access-date=2013-01-20 |series=Biblioteca Básica de Yucatán |location=Merida, Yucatan, Mexico |publisher=Secretaría de Educación del Gobierno del Estado de Yucatán |volume=18 |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104200933/http://www.bibliotecabasica.yucatan.gob.mx/archivos_modulos/biblioteca/pdf_201106170236.pdf |archive-date=2013-11-04 }}
*{{cite book |author=Rice, Prudence M.   |author2=Don S. Rice |title=The Postclassic to Spanish-Era Transition in Mesoamerica: Archaeological Perspectives |chapter=[https://books.google.com/books?id=Sc8wQYn4LrAC&pg=PA152 Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century Maya Political Geography] |year=2005 |editor=Susan Kepecs |editor2=Rani T. Alexander |publisher=University of New Mexico Press |location=Albuquerque, New Mexico, US |oclc=60550555 |isbn=9780826337399}}
*{{cite book |author=Rice, Prudence M. |year=2009 |chapter=The Archaeology of the Kowoj: Settlement and Architecture at Zacpetén |editor=Prudence M. Rice |editor2=Don S. Rice |title=The Kowoj: Identity, Migration, and Geopolitics in Late Postclassic Petén, Guatemala |url=https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice |url-access=limited |location=Boulder, Colorado, US |publisher=University Press of Colorado |pages=[https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice/page/n103 81]–83 |isbn=978-0-87081-930-8 |oclc=225875268 }}
*{{cite book |author=Rice, Prudence M. |author2=Don S. Rice |year=2009 |chapter=Introduction to the Kowoj and their Petén Neighbors |editor=Prudence M. Rice |editor2=Don S. Rice |title=The Kowoj: Identity, Migration, and Geopolitics in Late Postclassic Petén, Guatemala |url=https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice |url-access=limited |location=Boulder, Colorado, US |publisher=University Press of Colorado |pages=[https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice/page/n25 3]–15 |isbn=978-0-87081-930-8 |oclc=225875268 }}
*{{cite book |author=Rice, Prudence M. |year=2009 |chapter=Who were the Kowoj? |editor=Prudence M. Rice |editor2=Don S. Rice |title=The Kowoj: Identity, Migration, and Geopolitics in Late Postclassic Petén, Guatemala |url=https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice |url-access=limited |location=Boulder, Colorado, US |publisher=University Press of Colorado |pages=[https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice/page/n39 17]–19 |isbn=978-0-87081-930-8 |oclc=225875268 }}
*{{cite book |author=Rice, Prudence M. |author2=Don S. Rice |author3=Timothy W. Pugh |author4=Rómulo Sánchez Polo |year=2009 |chapter=Defensive architecture and the context of warfare at Zacpetén |editor=Prudence M. Rice |editor2=Don S. Rice |title=The Kowoj: identity, migration, and geopolitics in late postclassic Petén, Guatemala |url=https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice |url-access=limited |location=Boulder, Colorado, US |publisher=[[University Press of Colorado]] |pages=[https://archive.org/details/kowojidentitymig00rice/page/n145 123]–140 |isbn=978-0-87081-930-8 |oclc=225875268 }}
*{{cite journal |author=Romero, Rolando J. |year=1992 |title=Texts, Pre-Texts, Con-Texts: Gonzalo Guerrero in the Chronicles of Indies |url=http://www4.uwm.edu/clacs/resources/pubs/pdf/romero87.pdf |access-date=2006-07-26 |journal= |archive-date=6 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090306000114/http://www4.uwm.edu/clacs/resources/pubs/pdf/romero87.pdf |url-status=dead }}
*{{cite book|author=Rugeley, Terry L.   |year=1996 |title=Yucatan's Maya Peasantry and the Origins of the Caste War |publisher=[[University of Texas Press]] |location=Austin|isbn=0-292-77078-2}}
*{{Cite book |author=Sharer, Robert J. |author-link=Robert Sharer |author2=Loa P. Traxler |year=2006 |title=The Ancient Maya |edition=6th (fully revised) |location=Stanford, California, US |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=0-8047-4817-9 |oclc=57577446 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/ancientmaya0006shar }}
*{{cite book |author=Smith, Michael E.   |title=The Aztecs |edition=2nd |orig-year=1996 |year=2003 |publisher=[[Blackwell Publishing]] |location=Malden, Massachusetts, US and Oxford, UK |isbn=978-0-631-23016-8 |oclc=59452395}}
*{{cite journal |author=Thompson, J. Eric S.   |author-link=J. Eric S. Thompson |year=1966 |title=The Maya Central Area at the Spanish Conquest and Later: A Problem in Demography |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland |issue=1966 |pages=23–37 |publisher=Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland |jstor=3031712 |doi=10.2307/3031712 }} {{subscription required}}
*{{cite book |author=Townsend, Richard F.   |orig-year=1992 |year=1995 |title=The Aztecs |publisher=Thames and Hudson |isbn=0-500-27720-6 |oclc= 27825022| location=London, UK}}
*{{cite book |author=Vayhinger-Scheer, Temis   |orig-year=2006 |year=2011 |chapter=Kanekʼ: El Último Rey Maya Itzaj |trans-chapter= Kanekʼ: The Last Itza Maya King |pages=382–383 |publisher=[[Tandem Verlag]] |location=Potsdam, Germany |isbn=978-3-8331-6293-0 |oclc=828120761 |title=Los Mayas: Una Civilización Milenaria |trans-title=The Maya: An Ancient Civilization  |editor=Nikolai Grube  |editor-link=Nikolai Grube  |language=es}}
*{{cite book |author=Webster, David L. |year=2002 |title=The Fall of the Ancient Maya: Solving the Mystery of the Maya Collapse |location=London, UK |publisher=Thames & Hudson |isbn=0-500-05113-5 |oclc=48753878 |url=https://archive.org/details/fallofancientmay0000webs }}
*{{cite journal |author=White, D. A.   |author2=C. S. Hood |title=Vegetation Patterns and Environmental Gradients in Tropical Dry Forests of the Northern Yucatan Peninsula |journal=Journal of Vegetation Science |volume=15 |issue=2 |date=April 2004 |pages=151–160 |publisher=Opulus Press |location=Uppsala, Sweden |jstor=3236749 |issn=1654-1103 |oclc=50781866 |doi=10.1111/j.1654-1103.2004.tb02250.x}} {{subscription required}}
*{{cite book |author=Wise, Terence   |author2=McBride, Angus |title=The Conquistadores |series=Men-at-Arms |volume=101 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-0-85045-357-7 |oclc=12782941 |location=Oxford, UK and New York, US |orig-year=1980 |year=2008}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|indent=yes}}
*{{cite journal |author=Graham, Elizabeth   |author2=David M. Pendergast |author3=Grant D. Jones  |date=8 December 1989 |title=On the Fringes of Conquest: Maya-Spanish Contact in Colonial Belize |journal=Science |series=New Series |volume=246 |issue=4935 |pages=1254–1259 |publisher=American Association for the Advancement of Science |jstor=1704619 |doi=10.1126/science.246.4935.1254 |pmid=17832220|bibcode=1989Sci...246.1254G |s2cid=8476626 }} {{subscription required}}
*{{cite journal |author= Roukema, E.  |title=A Discovery of Yucatan Prior to 1503 |journal=Imago Mundi |volume=13 |year=1956 |pages=30–38 |publisher=Imago Mundi, Ltd. |jstor=1150238 |issn=0308-5694 |oclc=4651172881 |doi=10.1080/03085695608592123}} {{subscription required}}
{{refend}}

{{Spanish colonization of the Americas|footer=yes}}
{{Maya}}
{{Spanish Empire}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spanish Conquest Of Yucatan}}
[[Category:Maya warfare]]
[[Category:Colonial Mexico]]
[[Category:History of the Yucatán Peninsula|+]]
[[Category:History of Mesoamerica]]
[[Category:16th century in Belize]]
[[Category:Maya Contact Period]]
[[Category:16th century in the Maya civilization]]
[[Category:16th century in New Spain]]
[[Category:16th century in Guatemala]]
[[Category:16th-century conflicts]]
[[Category:History of Yucatán]]
[[Category:History of Campeche]]
[[Category:1510s in Mexico]]
[[Category:1520s in Mexico]]
[[Category:1530s in Mexico]]
[[Category:1540s in Mexico]]
[[Category:1520s conflicts]]
[[Category:1530s conflicts]]
[[Category:1540s conflicts]]
[[Category:1520s in New Spain]]
[[Category:1530s in New Spain]]
[[Category:1540s in New Spain]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1546]]
[[Category:1546 in New Spain]]
[[Category:Spanish conquest of Central America|Yucatán]]
[[Category:History of Tabasco]]
[[Category:History of Quintana Roo]]