The fall of the Aztec Empire came with the entry of the Spaniards. Hernando Cortes heard some rumors of a new city filled with riches. So he decided to go out and find it with his men. They had first seen the city in 1519. Cortes had made many near fatal attempts to defeat the Aztecs. Finally he had conquered them by using information from neighboring tribes, as well as siege tactics. A few months later with a shortage of fresh water and food and with the increasing spread of disease from one of the slaves who had gotten small pox while translating for the Spanish had killed nearly fifty percent of the Aztec population. The city of Tenochtitlan fell on August 13, 1521. Some Aztec life continues on, on a small scale within Mexico now.
The loss is expressed in a Nahua poem written in 1523:
Nothing remains
but flowers and sad songs
In Tlatelolco and Mexico
Where once there were
Warriors and wise men
The loss is expressed in a Nahua poem written in 1523:
Nothing remains
but flowers and sad songs
In Tlatelolco and Mexico
Where once there were
Warriors and wise men