_The order of our march against Narvaez; the speech Cortes made to
us; and our reply to it._
After we had arrived at the above-mentioned brook, about four miles from
Sempoalla, we halted in a beautiful meadow by which it was skirted, and
posted our sentinels, consisting entirely of men on whom we could place
implicit reliance. Cortes, seated on horseback, ordered all the officers
and men to assemble around him; he then craved a few moments' silence,
and addressed us in a speech replete with flattering expressions and
vast promises.
He began with our departure from Cuba, mentioned all the fatigues we had
undergone up to that moment, and then continued: "You are perfectly
aware, gentlemen, that the governor of Cuba did appoint me
captain-general of the armament, though many cavaliers among you were
equally deserving of it; you must also remember that you left Cuba with
the supposition you were going to found a colony in this country. It was
under this pretence that the public were invited to join the expedition,
and yet it afterwards appeared that the armament was merely fitted out
for commercial speculation. I was preparing to act up to the
instructions I had received, and was ready to return to Cuba, in order
to render Diego Velasquez a full account of all our proceedings, when
you desired me,--yes, you compelled me, to form a settlement here in the
name of our emperor, in which we, with God's assistance, have indeed so
far succeeded. You then elected me captain-general and chief justice of
New Spain, to continue vested with such power until we should know his
majesty's pleasure on that head. Once, subsequently, there indeed again
arose a dispute respecting the necessity of returning to Cuba; but this
I need not mention, as it is still fresh in every one's memory; however,
it became afterwards our universal conviction, that the determination we
had come to, to remain in this country, had met with grace in the sight
of God, and he has blessed all our endeavours in his holy cause, and
granted us success in our undertakings in the emperor's service. Above
all, however, I must put you in mind of the promise we made the emperor
when we forwarded him a full account of our great deeds, with a
description of the country. We begged his majesty not to confer the
government of this country on any one before our agents had obtained a
hearing, as we had all reason to fear that the powerful bishop of Burgos
would strive to obtain that appointment for Diego Velasquez, or for one
of his friends or relatives. We assured his majesty that this country
was of such vast extent as to merit being governed by an infante or
grandee of his empire, and that we were only awaiting his most gracious
commands which we should obey with the deepest veneration, and would not
acknowledge any appointment unless it came from his majesty himself.
With this account we sent our monarch all the gold, silver, jewels, and
other valuable things we had collected. These had been, up to that time,
our only remuneration for the many fatigues we had undergone; and how
often had not death stood before our eyes in the battles we had fought!
what various kinds of hardships we have suffered! we have slept on the
bare ground both in the rain and snow, and never lay our arms aside.
When we reflect on all these hardships, it really sends a thrill through
the heart. In the several battles we have fought, we have lost above
fifty of our men, and we are all covered with wounds, and many a one
still suffers severely from them. First we had to brave all the dangers
of the sea; then followed the battles of Tabasco, Almeria, Cingapacinga,
with the ambushes which were laid for us in the mountains, defiles, and
the villages. How nigh we were being totally worsted in the battles of
Tlascalla! We had scarcely time allowed us to take breath, when the
affair at Cholulla awaited us, where the pots stood ready in which our
flesh was to be cooked for the inhabitants to feast on! None of us can
ever forget our march through the mountain passes, where Motecusuma had
posted the whole of his troops, and blocked up the road by a heavy fall
of trees, intending that none of us should escape death! Notwithstanding
all this, we march into Mexico, and quarter ourselves in the very heart
of that city; but how oft there again has death not stood before our
eyes! Really no human being could have imagined such a series of
dangers! And yet there are many among us who have even experienced
additional fatigues, those I mean who have twice before visited these
coasts, under Cordoba and Grijalva. In these voyages of discovery they
suffered hardships of various natures, lost numbers of their companions,
were themselves covered with wounds, and lost everything they possessed.
But it would be impossible to enumerate all the miseries that have been
suffered; nor have I any time, if I could, for night is fast
approaching; and now, after we have undergone all this, Pamfilo Narvaez
comes tearing along, like a mad dog, to destroy us all; calls us
villains and traitors, and makes disclosures to Motecusuma, not like a
prudent general, but with the spirit of a rebel; he has even presumed to
throw one of the emperor's auditors into chains--of itself a criminal
act; and to sum up, has declared a war of extermination against us, just
as if we had been a troop of Moors."
Upon this Cortes launched out in praise of the courage we had shown in
every battle: "Up to this moment," he continued, "we have fought to
defend our lives, but now we shall have to fight valiantly for our lives
and our honour. Our enemies have nothing less in contemplation than to
take us all prisoners, and rob us of our property. No one could tell
whether Narvaez was commissioned by the emperor himself; all this was
merely done at the instigation of our most deadly enemy, the bishop of
Burgos. If we were subdued by Narvaez, which God forbid, all the
services we had rendered to the Almighty and our emperor would be
construed into as many crimes. An investigation would be set on foot
against us, and we should be accused of murder, of rapine, and of having
revolutionised the country, though the real guilty person would be
Narvaez; and the things which would be considered meritorious in him
would be construed as criminal in us. As all this must be evident to
you," said Cortes, in conclusion, "and we, as honest cavaliers, are
bound to defend the honour of his imperial majesty, as well as our own,
and all our property, I have marched out from Mexico, reposing my trust
in God and your assistance, to bid defiance to such injustice."
Several of our officers and soldiers then answered, in the name of the
rest, that he might rely upon our determination either to conquer or to
die.
Cortes was excessively rejoiced at our reply, and said he had not
expected less. We should find no cause for regret, as wealth and honour
would be the reward of our courage and our valour. He then once more
begged our attention, and reminded us that, in battle and time of war,
prudence and experience accomplished more than the utmost bravery. He
was well aware of our great courage, and how every man among us strove
who should be the first to dash among the enemy's ranks. At present the
first object must be to capture the eighteen pieces of ordnance which
Narvaez had arranged in front of his camp. For this purpose he selected
sixty of our youngest men, of which number I also was, and placed them
under the command of Pizarro, who at that time was a daring young
fellow, but in those days as little known to the world as Peru itself.
As soon as we should have captured these cannon, we were to storm
Narvaez's quarters, which were on the summit of a very high temple.
Sandoval, with other sixty men, was ordered to seize Narvaez's person,
and his commands were exactly as follow: "Gonzalo de Sandoval,
alguacil-major of New Spain, I hereby command you to seize the person of
Pamfilo Narvaez, and to kill him in case he will not surrender. This we
are called upon to do as faithful servants of God and the emperor, and
in revenge for the ill-treatment he, the said Narvaez, presumed to
exercise against one of his majesty's auditors. Given at our
head-quarters. Signed, Hernando Cortes; and countersigned, Pedro
Hernandez, secretary."
Cortes at the same time promised a reward of 3000 pesos to the first man
who should lay hands on Narvaez, 2000 to the second, and 1000 to the
third.
Leon likewise received the command of sixty men, with instructions to
seize the person of Diego Velasquez, with whom he had had such high
words. Cortes himself retained twenty men around his person, to render
assistance wherever it might be most required; his principal object,
however, was to get the persons of Narvaez and Salvatierra into his
power.
After Cortes had issued these commands in writing to his principal
officers, he said: "I am fully aware that Narvaez has four times the men
we have; but most of them are not accustomed to arms. A great number are
adverse to their general, many are sick, and we shall fall upon them
unawares. All opposition on their part will be fruitless, and I am fully
confident the Almighty will grant us the victory. Narvaez's men also
know they will lose nothing by the change, and would fare better in
every respect by being with us than with him. Thus, gentlemen, after
God, our lives and honour entirely depend upon the valour of our arms.
The praise of future generations lies in our hands, and it is more
honorable to die on the field of battle than to lead a life of
dishonour." With this Cortes ended, as it was beginning to rain and
getting late.
I have often subsequently, when thinking of this speech of Cortes,
wondered that he did not mention a single word of the secret
understanding he had with some of Narvaez's officers, but merely
impressed upon our minds the necessity of employing our utmost courage.
By degrees, however, it became obvious to me that by that very
circumstance he had shown the prudence of a great general, for by making
us believe that our only hope was in God and our own bravery, he
compelled us to exercise the utmost of our power.
The most dangerous part of the work was assigned to us, who were to
capture the cannon, under the command of Pizarro: we had to commence the
attack and storm up against the cannons' mouths. Pizarro, therefore,
gave us very strict commands, and showed us how we were to push forward
with our lances lowered, and fight on boldly until we had taken the
cannon, when the artillerymen, Mesa and Amenga, were immediately to load
the guns with the balls at hand, and fire away at Salvatierra's
quarters.
We were altogether in want of defensive armour, and on that night many
of us would have given all we possessed for a cuirass, helmet, or steel
gorget.
Our watch-word was: _Espiritu Santo! Espiritu Santo!_ for such words in
time of war are given to soldiers in secret, in order that the men may
recognize each other. That of Narvaez's men was: _Santa Maria! Santa
Maria!_
As I stood in great favour with Sandoval, he begged of me, when we had
captured the cannon, should my life be spared, instantly to repair to
him and not leave his side; which I promised and fulfilled, as will be
seen.
We remained in our camp during the first part of the night, and spent
our time in making preparations, and thinking on the arduous task which
awaited us; for it was useless to think of any supper, as we had not a
morsel of food with us. We sent out the pickets and posted our
sentinels, of which I happened to be one. I had not stood long when one
of our outposts came up and asked me whether I had not heard a noise? To
which I answered no, and immediately after one of our corporals
approached and told me that Galleguillo, who had deserted from Narvaez
to us, was nowhere to be found, and that he must have been a spy; and as
it was certain he had by this time betrayed our approach to the enemy,
Cortes had given orders for our immediate advance upon Sempoalla. An
instant after I heard the drum and pipe, and we all marched forward.
Galleguillo, however, was found a few minutes after fast asleep under
some cloaks he had thrown over him, as damp and cold were two things to
which the poor devil was wholly unaccustomed.
Cortes now ordered the drum and pipe to be silenced, and we marched
steadily forward, until we arrived at the river where, as I have above
mentioned, Carrasco and Hurtado were posted with a detachment of the
enemy. This, our sudden visit, was the last thing they could have
thought of, and we succeeded in capturing the former, but the other
escaped and ran to give the alarm.
I shall never forget our crossing this river, how it was swoln by the
rain, and the difficulty we experienced in passing over the stones which
had become loosened and were very slippery; while, at the same time, we
were greatly incommoded by our weapons which we had slung to our backs.
I well remember Carrasco, when he was taken prisoner, crying out aloud:
"Mind what you are about Senor Cortes, for Narvaez has marched out with
all his troops to receive you." As Hurtado had already ran off to give
the alarm, it mattered very little whether Carrasco thus strove to
inform his general of our approach by his loud cries. Cortes gave him in
charge of his secretary Hernandez, and commanded us to the attack. We
immediately lowered the points of our lances and made so violent a rush
at the cannon, that the artillerymen had scarcely sufficient time to
fire off four pieces, every ball of which passed over our heads,
excepting one, which killed three of our men. At the same moment our
respective officers, with their men, forced their way up under the sound
of our drum and pipe. Several of Narvaez's cavalry certainly offered
some resistance, but for a short time only, while six or seven of their
number lay stretched on the field of battle. We, under Pizarro, had the
good fortune to capture all the cannon, but durst not leave them in
charge of our artillerymen alone, as Narvaez continued to shower down
arrows and musket-balls upon us from the top of the temple. Sandoval now
likewise came up with his detachment, and though Narvaez bid a powerful
resistance, he nevertheless continued advancing up the steps of the
building, and broke through the pikes and lances of his opponents.
Seeing this, and that the enemy had given up all attempts to recover the
cannon, we gave them in charge of our artillerymen, and flew under the
command of Pizarro to Sandoval's assistance. We just arrived at the
moment when Narvaez had beaten him back down five or six of the steps;
our arrival turned the scale against the enemy, and Sandoval now pushed
forward again with renewed vigour. Indeed we had some hard work to do
with our long lances before we could clear our way through the enemy's
ranks; all at once I heard some one, and it must have been Narvaez, cry
out in a loud voice:--"Assist me, oh blessed Virgin! I am a dead man!
One of my eyes has been thrust out!" At the same moment we all cried
out, "_Victory! Victory!_ for those of the watch-word _Espiritu Santo!
Narvaez is fallen!_" Yet we were unable for some time to gain entire
possession of the temple, not until Martin Lopez, who built the
brigantines, hit upon the thought of setting fire to the straw that lay
on the top of the temple, which he immediately set about with his gaunt
figure. Narvaez's men now came rolling down the steps one after the
other, and he himself was taken prisoner. A certain Pedro Sanchez Farsan
was the first to lay hold of him, and I mentioned this to Sandoval and
several of Narvaez's officers, who were standing by at the time. In an
instant a thousand voices filled the air with cries of: "_Long live the
emperor and general Cortes, in his imperial name!_ Victory, victory!
Narvaez is dead!"
The battle, however, was still continued at various points, as several
of Narvaez's officers maintained their positions on the tops of other
temples. Cortes, however, with his accustomed forethought, sent round a
herald to summons Narvaez's men, under pain of death, immediately to
join the imperial standard. This, with the firing of the cannon, our
hurrahing, and the belief that Narvaez was dead, had the desired effect,
and only the troops of young Diego Velasquez and of Salvatierra, who had
taken up a position with the troops under their command, on the summit
of a very high temple, where it was difficult to get at them, refused to
submit. Sandoval, however, was not to be deterred by their advantageous
position. He took the half of his men with him, while the rest remained
below, and we attacked them so vigorously with our swords, that at last
they surrendered, and we took Salvatierra and Diego Velasquez prisoners.
In the hurry of the moment we had merely fastened fetters around
Narvaez's legs; but Sandoval now, ordered him to be better secured.
Cortes happened to come up at the time, when Leon, with Ordas, brought
in Salvatierra, Diego Velasquez, and other chief officers prisoners; he
was still in full armour, and had heated himself to such a degree by
riding up and down, the weather besides being very hot, that the
perspiration literally dropped from him, and he could scarcely breathe
from over-exertion; he twice said to Sandoval, who was unable to catch
his words at first, "Where is Narvaez? Where is Narvaez?" "Here he is!
here he is!" cried Sandoval, "and quite safe." "That is all right, my
son Sandoval," said Cortes in a voice still somewhat feeble; "do not
leave this spot for the present, nor suffer any of your men to stir
away, and keep a strong guard over the officers you have taken prisoners;
I will see now how the battle is going on at the other points."
With these words Cortes rode off, and as he still found Narvaez's men
offered resistance, he again sent round a herald to summon them to
surrender, and to deliver up their arms to the alguacil.
All this took place during night-time, and it rained at intervals. When
we first forced our way into the town it was as dark as pitch, and it
rained heavily, the moon did not rise until some time after; but even
the darkness itself favoured us, for in the midst of darkness numbers
of shining beetles[82] kept continually flying about, which Narvaez's
men mistook for the lighted matches of our firearms,[83] and this gave
them a vast idea of the number of our matchlocks.
Narvaez having lost an eye and being otherwise dangerously wounded, he
begged of Sandoval to allow the surgeon he had brought with him to dress
his and the other officers' wounds. This the latter unhesitatingly
complied with, and while the surgeon was dressing Narvaez's wounds,
Cortes stepped up, as he imagined unknown, to see what was going
forward. Some one, however, remarked to Narvaez that Cortes was standing
near; when the former turned round and said: "Indeed, general, you have
reason to be proud of this victory, and of my being taken prisoner!"
"I am," replied Cortes, "every way thankful to God for it, and likewise
for the brave companions he has given me; but I can assure you that this
victory is the least brilliant we have yet gained in New Spain."
With this Cortes broke off the conversation, and again cautioned
Sandoval to guard the prisoners well. As I have above remarked, we had
merely thrown fetters about Narvaez's legs, but we now secured him
better, and placed a strong guard over him. I was among the latter, and
Sandoval gave me secret orders not to allow any of his men to see him
until next morning, when Cortes would make further arrangements
respecting his person. We did not feel quite safe yet; for the reader
will remember that Narvaez had detached forty of his cavalry to oppose
our crossing the river. This body was still hovering about, and we
feared would fall upon us unawares and release both Narvaez and the
other officers again. We therefore kept a sharp look out, while Cortes
despatched Oli and Ordas to persuade them, by enticing promises, to
surrender quietly. For this purpose these officers were obliged to take
a couple of horses of Narvaez's troops, as ours had been left at the
back of a rising ground near Sempoalla.
When Oli and Ordas came up with them, they said so many fine things, and
made such vast promises in Cortes' name, that they speedily came to
terms, and surrendered themselves.[84]
Daylight in the meantime had broken forth, when this detachment reached
our camp again; and the drummers and pipers of Narvaez's corps, without
instructions from Cortes or from any one else, suddenly sounded their
instruments, and cried out, "Long live these brave Romans, who, though
small in numbers, have gained the victory over Narvaez and his troops!"
And another merry-making fellow, called Guidela, a negro, cried out at
the top of his voice, "Hark ye! the Romans themselves could never boast
of so brilliant a victory as this!" Whatever we might say, we were
unable to stop their hurrahing or their instruments, until Cortes had
ordered one of the drummers, named Tepia, who was half mad, to be
seized.
At this moment Oli and Diego de Ordas made their appearance with the
detachment of cavalry, accompanied by Duero, Bermudez, and several other
friends of our general. These now all came in a body to pay their
respects to Cortes, who had taken off his armour, and was seated in an
arm-chair, dressed in a wide orange-coloured surtout. It was really a
most interesting sight to behold the serenity and joy which sat upon his
countenance as he welcomed each, and amusing to hear the fine things he
told them. He had indeed every reason to be proud of the power and the
greatness he had so suddenly acquired!
After these officers had thus paid their respects to him, they repaired
to their respective quarters. And now we must look over the list of the
dead and wounded on both sides. Among the former was Narvaez's
standard-bearer, named Fuentes, of a noble family of Seville; and three
of his chief officers, one of whom was named Rojas, a native of Old
Castile. One of the three soldiers, named Carretero, who deserted to the
enemy, was likewise killed; and the number of their wounded was very
great.
On our side we lost four killed, and had several wounded; the fat
cazique himself being of this number; who, when he heard that we were in
the vicinity of Sempoalla, had fled to Narvaez's quarters, and was
wounded there. Cortes ordered his wound to be dressed, then sent him
home, and desired that no one should molest him.
Cervantes and Escalona, who had deserted to Narvaez, derived very little
benefit from their treachery; the latter had been dangerously wounded,
and the other Cortes ordered to be well whipped.
Here I must also not forget the braggadocio Salvatierra, whose cowardice
his own men declared was beyond all belief. They all swore never in the
course of their lives to have witnessed such extreme fear as he evinced
when he first heard the clashing of our arms at a distance; and when he
heard the cry of _Victory! Victory! Narvaez is fallen!_ he became quite
ill, and threw down his arms.
Diego Velasquez had almost escaped my memory! He was also wounded, and,
as had been previously settled, was taken prisoner by Leon, with whom he
had quarrelled at Narvaez's dinner table. The victor, however, acted
magnanimously; he took him to his own quarters, had his wounds dressed,
and treated him with great respect.
Such is the history of our battle with Narvaez, and now we must see what
further took place.
[82] The clater nocturnus. (p. 327.)
[83] It need scarcely be remarked that the Spanish guns at that time
were fired by means of matches, which were made of hempen tow, boiled in
the lees of old wine, and when dry and once lighted they burn on until
consumed. (p. 327.)
[84] Bernal Diaz has forgotten some circumstances relative to this
battle. Three hundred of Narvaez's troops defended themselves bravely
for a length of time on one of the temples, nor did they surrender until
all their powder was spent. (p. 327.)