Hernán Cortés was a Spanish conquistador (conqueror). He is famous for conquering the Aztec
Empire in Mexico in 1519-1521. After this victory, the Spanish began to settle in Mexico. The Spanish
stayed in Mexico for the next three hundred years.
Cortés was born in Spain in 1485. As a young man, he heard stories of the expeditions of
Christopher Columbus and the riches that were to be found in the Indies. When Cortés was 19, he
sailed to the New World, where he got a job as a clerk. He learned how colonies were run. (A colony
is a foreign area controlled by a country and contributing to its wealth.) He also made many contacts
with Spanish explorers. After Cuba was conquered, Cortés was made mayor of one of the towns.
In 1518, Cortés was told to take a group of ships to Mexico. He was ordered to conquer the
powerful Aztec. He landed in Mexico in 1519 with eleven ships, five hundred soldiers, and one
hundred sailors. Cortés was worried that some of his men would be frightened by the Aztec. To make
sure that no one tried to go back to Cuba, Cortés had all the ships burned. Success or death were the
only options.
Cortés trained his men for several months. He made friends with nearby Indians who did not like
the Aztec. By the time he marched to the Aztec capital city of Tenochtitlan, he had over 1,500 fighters.
Over 1,000 were native people who wanted to fight the Aztec.
The ruler of the Aztec was Montezuma II. For unknown reasons, he welcomed Cortés into the
city. Cortés and his men took Montezuma captive. Cortés believed that he could control the Aztec by
keeping their leader hostage. Cortés was able to rule the lands of central Mexico for some months
before problems began.
A fight started between Cortés’s men and the Aztec while Cortés was away. When Cortés
returned, battles had to be fought to win back Tenochtitlan. In 1521, Cortés led a military victory over
the Aztec. From this time forward, the Spanish sent more troops and settlers to Mexico. They tore
down the buildings of the Aztec and destroyed Tenochtitlan. In its place, they built Mexico City. For the
next three hundred years, Mexico was under Spanish control.
____ 210. Cortés is most famous for which deed?
A.conquering the Aztec empire
B. becoming mayor of a Cuban town
C. starting construction of Mexico City
D. becoming friends with native people
____ 211. What did Montezuma do to Cortés and his men as they approached
Tenochtitlan?
A.killed them all
B. welcomed them
C. captured them for human sacrifice
D. took the Spanish troops as hostages
____ 212. Which was a result of the defeat of the Aztec?
A.Mexico City was burned.
B. Tenochtitlan was destroyed.
C. Aztec artwork was collected.
D. The Spanish left Mexico and did not return.
88
Copyright © Clairmont Press, Inc. DO NOT DUPLICATE. 1-800-874-8638
LATIN AMERICA
AND CANADA
HERNÁN CORTÉS
____ 213. What did Cortés do to Montezuma after the two met?
A.killed him
B. took him hostage
C. invited him to visit Cuba
D. offered a sacrifice to the Aztec gods
____ 214. About how long was Spanish rule in Mexico after Cortés conquered the Aztec?
A.3 years
B. 30 years
C. 3 months
D. 300 years
Copyright © Clairmont Press, Inc. DO NOT DUPLICATE. 1-800-874-8638
Montezuma II was an Aztec ruler from about 1500 to 1520. He is most famous for ruling the
Aztec when their land was invaded by the Spanish conquistador, Hernán Cortés.
Montezuma had spread the Aztec empire over a large part of central and southern Mexico.
The Native Americans conquered by Montezuma had to pay him high taxes. They also had to send
humans for sacrifice in the temples of the Aztec. Because of the taxes and sacrifices, Montezuma was
unpopular with those he conquered. Montezuma was popular with his own people, however, and was
considered a great ruler.
When Cortés and his army came to Tenochtitlan, Montezuma was alerted. Some people believed
that Cortés was a god-like being. Montezuma ordered that Cortés and his men be welcomed into the
city. They were given grand gifts of gold. Some believe that Montezuma acted this way in the hope
that Cortés would take the gifts and leave. Instead, Cortés took Montezuma hostage and ruled for
some time while Montezuma was a prisoner in his own palace.
In 1520, a fight broke out between Spanish troops and Aztec warriors. The battle grew, and
somehow Montezuma was killed. Both Aztec and Spanish mourned the loss of the great leader of the
Aztec.
____ 215. Who was the ruler of the Aztec when Cortés arrived in Mexico?
A.Cortés
B.Pizarro
C.Atahualpa
D. Montezuma
____ 216. What did Montezuma give Cortés when they met?
A.gifts of gold
B. a human sacrifice
C. a pyramid in Tenochtitlan
D. an area of land to rule in the south
____ 217. What had Montezuma done before the arrival of Cortés that made him a great
leader in the eyes of his people?
A.started irrigation for farms
B. expanded the territory of the Aztec
C. built new pyramids in Tenochtitlan
D. offered sacrifices to the Aztec gods
89
LATIN AMERICA
AND CANADA
MONTEZUMA II
____ 218. What did Montezuma get from people he conquered?
A.gifts to give to the Spanish
B. taxes and irrigation for farms
C. taxes and humans for sacrifice
D. gold for the temple of the Aztec gods
The Inca lived along the western coast of South America. Their lands stretched over 2,000 miles
from present-day Colombia south to Chile. Their empire was centered at their capital in Cusco, Peru.
They also controlled lands in present-day Argentina, Bolivia, and Ecuador.
The Inca were known for many great achievements. They made beautiful gold, silver, and bronze
pieces. Their leader even had rooms of gold and silver in his palace. They were known for skillfully
made textiles. The Inca built a network of roads to quickly move around their empire. Terraces built on
the mountainsides helped the Inca farm on difficult lands. Although it is not totally understood today,
they had a system of mathematics and accounting. These achievements helped the Inca become the
wealthiest of the native peoples in the New World.
Historians believe that the Inca Empire began in the early 1400s. They were in a time of expansion
when the Spanish arrived. The Inca leader was killed, and, without a clear leader, the Inca people were
unable to push back the Spanish.
The Spanish settlers wiped out much of the Inca culture and ruled for nearly three hundred years.
Today, however, there is still evidence of the Inca. Their language, Quechua, is still spoken, and their
terraces are still used for farming. Textiles made today are similar to those made five hundred years
ago.
____ 219. About how far was it from the northern tip to the southern tip of the
Inca Empire?
A.500 miles
B. 1,400 miles
C. 1,532 miles
D. 2,000 miles
____ 220. What evidence is there today of the Inca Empire in Peru?
A.The Quechua language is still spoken.
B. There are still rooms of gold and silver.
C. There is an Inca emperor in charge of Peru.
D. The Inca system of accounting and mathematics is still in use.
____ 221. Where was the capital of the Inca Empire?
A.Cusco
B.Bolivia
C.Cajamarca
D. Machu Picchu
90
Copyright © Clairmont Press, Inc. DO NOT DUPLICATE. 1-800-874-8638
LATIN AMERICA
AND CANADA
INCA CIVILIZATION
Use the following map to answer questions 222-224.
COLOMBIA
Quito
ECUADOR
PERU
BRAZIL
LATIN AMERICA
AND CANADA
Pachacamac
Ollantaytambo
Machu Picchu
Sacsayhuaman
Cusco
BOLIVIA
PACIFIC OCEAN
SOUTH AMERICA
CHILE
INCA
EMPIRE
Copyright © Clairmont Press, Inc. DO NOT DUPLICATE. 1-800-874-8638
ARGENTINA
____ 222. Which modern country includes land that was part of the Inca Empire?
h_INCA EMPIRE PG84.ai
A.Peru
B.Brazil
C.Panama
D.Venezuela
____ 223. Which was the northernmost city of the Inca Empire?
A.Cusco
B. Quito
C.Cajamarca
D. Machu Picchu
____ 224. Which question can be answered using the map?
A.Which ocean bordered the Inca Empire?
B. Who was the ruler of the Inca Empire in 1530?
C. Which native tribes lived near the Inca Empire?
D. What languages were spoken in the Inca Empire?
91