Spanish Conquest

Mexico

The conquest of central Mexico sparked further Spanish conquests, following the pattern of conquered and consolidated regions being the launching point for further expeditions. These were often led by secondary leaders, such as Pedro de Alvarado. Later conquests in Mexico were protracted campaigns with less immediate results than the conquest of the Aztec Empire. The Spanish conquest of Yucatán, the Spanish conquest of Guatemala, the conquest of the Purépecha of Michoacan, the war of Mexico's west, and the Chichimeca War in northern Mexico expanded Spanish control over territory and indigenous populations stretching thousands of miles. Not until the conquest of the Incan Empire, which used similar tactics and began in 1532, was the conquest of the Aztecs matched in scale of either territory or treasure.