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Show .. ' ' J12 ROOK TX. ~ H J S 1"' 0 R Y 0 · F M E X I C 0. · He left at his de.1th feveral Cons, of whom three peri!heJ that_ unlucky night of the defeat of the Spj_ni:1rds, either by the hands of the Spaniards themfdves, as the Mexicans affirm, or by th~ h:1nds of the: Mexicans, as the Spaniards report. Of thofe who furv1ved, the mofi: remarkable was Johualical\uat~in, or Don Pedro Motezuma, and of ·]1i 11 defcended the Co't.mtii Montezuma, and Tula. Montezuma lud this fon by Mi,11Hiaxochitl, . the daughter. of lxt.lilcucchah~lc, . h!rd of Tollan. By another wife,; he had Td:u1chpot~tn, a beaut1ful pnncefs, from whom defcended the two noble houfes of Cano Montezurna nnd Andreda Montezuma. The Cath.alic kings granted fingular privileges to the pofi:erity of Montezum~, on ac~ou~t ~f the un~are~lleled fcrvice rendered by that monarch 111 valuntanly mcorporanng a kingd~m fo great and rich as Mexico with the crown of Ca!l:ile. Neither the repeated importunities made to him by Cortes, nor the continual exhortations of Olmedo, particularly in the lafl: days of his life, were fufficient to prevail upon him to embrace Chrifiianity. As foon as the king died, Cortes communicated intelligence of his ·death to the prince Cuitlahuatzin, by means of two illuftrious perfoa:; who had been prefent at his death, and a little after he made the J·oyal corpfe be carried out by fix nobles, attended by feveral priefts, who had likewife been in prifon (m). The fight of it excited much mourning among the people; the laO: homage which they p,1y to their [overeign, extolling his virtues to the fi:ars, whom .a (hort time before they could find poffetfed of nothing but weaknefies and vice. The nobility, after !bedding abundance of tears on the cold body of their .unfortunate king, carried it to a place of the city called Copalco (n), ,where they burned it with the ufual ceremonies, and buried the afhcs ( •n) Torquemnda, and other authors, t:1y, that Montczuma~s dead body w~! thrown into the cr,·huajot"1 along with mhers; but from the accounts of Cones :md B. Diaz, it is certain that ~twas carried out of the quarters'·by the noble~. • · • (11) Hem~a conjcCl~cs that Monte?.uma'was buri.cd in Chapoltepec, bccnufe the Spaniard' Jleard a great mrJurning ~owarda that qua~tcr, Solie ntlirma pofitivcly, that it was bur:ed in ~happlt~pcc, nnd that the fepul~~rc of the kings was there; but this i& totally contrary to the ~ruth, becaufe Chapoltepec wna node($ thun three miles difi:mt from the SpaniOl quarters : it was therefore im.pollible that the Sjl:\tliards filO\Ild have overheard the mourning which was made there, efpecial)y when they were in 1h'c .center of n populous city, Jlnd 11t a tirne of fo much tumult and ~oifc. The kit1gs,, 'bcfides, hntl no fixed place of burial ; nnd it i~ nlfo ccr· cain, from the depofitions of the Mexicnns,· that Montezuma'a afhes were b1u·ied at en palco. of • H I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0. with the utmofi ref pea: and veneration, although fome low illiberal BOO~ JX. Mexicans treated the ceremony with ridicu.le and abufe. "" Upon this fame occafion, if there is any truth. in what hiftorians r~late, Cortes ordered the ·dead bodies of ltzquauhtzin lord of Tlate] olco, and other imprifoned lords, of whofe names there is no mention, to be thrown out of the quarters into a place called Tehuajoc, all of whom had been put to death, as they affirm, by order of Cortes, nl though none of them affign a reafon for fuch a conduct, which, even if it was jufi, can never be cleared from the charge of imprudence, as the fight of fuch flaughter muft nece!farily have exafperated the anger of the Mexicans, and induced them to fufpetl: that the fovcreign likewife had been facrificed by his command (o). However it was, the people of Tlatelolco carried ofF the dead body of their chief ·In a v~!fel, and celebrated his funeral rites with great lamentation and mournmg. In the mean time, the Mexicans continued their attacks with frill ·more ardour. Cortes, although he made great flaughter of them and ca~e off always conqueror, yet faw that the blood fpilt of his own fo(diers was a greater lofs than the advantages obtained by his vitl:ori~ compenfated; and that at laft the want of provifions and ammuniti0n, a~d the multitude of his enemies, wou]d prevail over the bravery of ~1s tro~ps and the fuperiority of his arms: believing, therefore, the munedmte departure of the Spaniards indifpenfibly neceffary, he called· a council of his captains, to deliberate upon the method and time for executing fuch refolution. Their opinions were different. Some of ~hem faid t.hat .they ought to depart by day, forcing their way by arms, 1f the Me~ncans oppofed them: other.s thought that they fhould de,.. part by night; this was the fuggeftion of a foldicr named Botello, who pretended fkiU in aftrology, to whom Cortes paid more deference than was proper, having been induced to do fo by having feen fome of his predictions accidentally verified. It was refolved, therefore, the vain <>bfervations of that wretched foldier being preferred to the dictates of (o) Concerni~g the death of thofe lords, no mention is m:~dc by Cortes, B. Dia1.1 Gornara, ~errern, ~nd Solis; but Sahagun, Torqucmeda, Betancourt, and the Mexican hifloriuns, report 1t ns cortam. In rcfpect tn the.lntter, nnd the fidelity due .to hi!lory we recite the etcnt though ono of great improbability, ' , VoL. II. mi]itary |