Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro (1485 - December 2, 1547) was a Spanish Conquistador who part of the generation of Spanish colonizers that began the first phase of the Spanish colonization of the Americas. He was born at Medellin into minor nobility, an
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro (1485 - December 2, 1547) was a Spanish Conquistador who part of the generation of Spanish colonizers that began the first phase of the Spanish colonization of the Americas. He was born at Medellin into minor nobility, and after studying at Salamanca chose to look for his fortune in Hispaniola and later Cuba. In 1519, against the orders of the Governor, he led an expedition to the mainland that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the rule of the King of Castile. He used a native woman, Doña Marina, as an interpreter; she would later bear him a son. When the Governor of Cuba sent emissaries to arrest Cortés, he fought them and won. He wrote letters directly to the king asking to be acknowledged for his successes instead of punished for mutiny. After he overthrew the Aztec Empire, Cortés was awarded the title of Marqués del Valle de Oaxaca, while the more prestigious title of Viceroy was given to a high-ranking nobleman, Antonio de Mendoza. In 1541 Cortés returned to Spain, where he died, in 1547, an embittered 61 year old man.
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