THE CAKCHIQUELS AGAIN IN REVOLT.
1525-1526.
ALVARADO SETS FORTH TO HONDURAS TO JOIN CORTÉS—MUTINY AMONG
HIS MEN—GONZALO DE ALVARADO APPOINTED LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR—HIS
MEETING WITH MARIN AND HIS PARTY—THE SECOND REVOLT OF THE
CAKCHIQUELS—GONZALO THE CAUSE OF THE INSURRECTION—MASSACRE OF
THE SPANIARDS—ALVARADO RETURNS TO GUATEMALA—HE CAPTURES THE
PEÑOL OF XALPATLAHUA—HE MARCHES ON PATINAMIT—HIS RETURN TO
MEXICO—HIS MEETING WITH CORTÉS.
[Sidenote: AFFAIRS IN GUATEMALA.]
It will be remembered that of all the native tribes of Guatemala the
Cakchiquels offered the stoutest resistance to the forces of Pedro
de Alvarado. When the Spaniards took possession of Patinamit they
preferred to abandon their capital rather than submit to the domination
of the conqueror.[IV‑1] Sinacam, their chief, was still uncaptured,
having taken refuge in the mountain fastnesses of Comalapa, and it may
safely be concluded that he never ceased from his efforts to harass the
Spaniards. The unsettled condition of affairs at this period may be
inferred from the fact that there is no record of any session of the
cabildo from May 6, 1525, to October 4th of the same year.[IV‑2] The
numbers of the colonists were, however, being continually reënforced.
The trouble which occurred in Mexico during the absence of Cortés,
caused many of the settlers in Anáhuac to turn their faces toward
Guatemala, while those newly arrived from Spain or the West Indies also
joined the followers of Alvarado, who now considering that his hold upon
the country was secure, informed the municipality of Santiago that he
intended to depart at once for Mexico.
Reports had reached Guatemala of the death of Cortés in Honduras, and if
this were true he had lost a powerful patron and friend, and must needs
hasten back to protect his own interests. His purpose was to proceed
afterward to Spain and report his services to his sovereign from whom
he hoped to obtain recognition and reward.[IV‑3]
Moreover, his brother Jorge and many other Spaniards of the Cortés party
had secretly informed him of the usurpation by the factor Salazar of
the governorship of Mexico, urging him not to absent himself longer,
and promising to establish him as governor in place of the former,
until positive information should be received whether Cortés were
alive or dead. The chance that the mantle of his great master might
perhaps fall upon his own shoulders, made him anxious not to miss this
opportunity, and he lost no time in beginning the journey. But it was
already reported in Mexico that he would arrive there before long, and
he had proceeded but a short distance when he received an intimation
from the factor that he had better approach no further. If, however, he
preferred to revisit the capital, Salazar informed him that he would
gladly meet him on the way, and have the satisfaction of putting him
to death. He soon afterward learned that this was no idle threat, for
a force of fifty horse and seventy foot had already been despatched
against him, and he could not for a moment expect that the small band
of soldiers which the colonists had been able to spare him as an escort
should be able to compete with these troops. Venturesome as he was,
Alvarado was not the one to encounter almost certain death, and though
sorely mortified he was compelled to retrace his steps.
About the close of 1525 he was informed of the safety of Cortés, and
received from him despatches with instructions to join him in Honduras
with all his available forces. At that time, it will be remembered,
the latter proposed to return to Mexico by way of Guatemala, but
afterward resolved to make the journey by sea, landing at Vera Cruz
in May 1526.[IV‑4] Alvarado at once prepared to obey his orders, but
his purpose was resolutely opposed by the colonists. Municipal and
military officers, citizens and common soldiers all alike objected to
his entering upon a campaign which would strip the province of most of
its defenders. Even his own brothers endeavored to dissuade him. But
remonstrance was of no avail. The alcaldes and regidores he addressed
in intemperate and abusive language,[IV‑5] while to his brothers he
hotly exclaimed: "Offer me no advice; all I possess was given me by
Hernan Cortés, and with him will I die."[IV‑6] Discontent was, however,
widely spread, and Alvarado's personal safety appears to have been in
danger, for the cabildo requested him to enroll a body-guard for his own
protection, as the stability of the colonies would be endangered should
any harm happen to him.[IV‑7]
With great difficulty the adelantado levied troops for his expedition.
His men were discontented, and utterly averse to engage in an enterprise
which offered no prospect of gain, but was certain to be attended
with hardship and risk of life. When he was on the point of setting
forth, fifty or sixty of them mutinied, and setting fire to the city by
night[IV‑8] made their escape while the remainder of the soldiers were
engaged in preventing the conflagration from spreading. It was a godless
and ruffian band, that which issued forth from Patinamit under the veil
of night and shrouded by the smoke of the burning city. Before their
departure they stripped the chapel of all its ornaments and jewelry,
and forcibly compelled the priest to accompany them. Taking the road
to Soconusco they sacked the villages which lay on their route, and
on their arrival in that province, considering themselves safe from
pursuit, displayed their hatred of Alvarado by holding a mock trial and
hanging in effigy their commander and those who had remained faithful
to him. Then they passed on to Mexico plundering and destroying on their
way.
[Sidenote: ALVARADO IN HONDURAS.]
Notwithstanding this defection, the adelantado soon afterward set forth
to join Cortés,[IV‑9] leaving his brother Gonzalo to take command during
his absence. Of his journey, which was probably an uneventful one, few
incidents are narrated. He passed through the provinces of Cuzcatlan
and Chaparristic, and entered Choluteca in Honduras, where, at a place
called Choluteca Malalaca, as narrated by Bernal Diaz,[IV‑10] he heard
for the first time of the return of Cortés to Mexico.
It has already been mentioned that in 1525 the settlement of Natividad
de Nuestra Señora was abandoned on account of the unhealthiness of its
site and the refusal of the natives to furnish provisions, and that
Cortés granted permission to the Spaniards to remove to Naco.[IV‑11]
Captain Luis Marin, left in charge of the latter colony, after remaining
for some time in doubt as to the fate of his commander, despatched
thence a small band of horsemen to Trujillo to ascertain whether he
yet survived, and, if that were so, to gather information as to his
intended movements.[IV‑12] Bernal Diaz, who was one of the troop,
relates that on reaching the Olancho Valley they learned that Cortés had
already embarked from Trujillo, leaving Saavedra in command. Marin's
brief sojourn in Honduras had already made him impatient to return to
Mexico,[IV‑13] and he at once decided to return to that province by way
of Guatemala. Thus it chanced that at Choluteca Malalaca, his party met
with Alvarado, who expressed unbounded delight on hearing of the safety
of his old comrade in arms, and felt much inward satisfaction that now
his superior could not interfere with his own schemes of conquest and
aggrandizement.
The lieutenant-general then commenced his homeward march, accompanied by
Marin and about eighty of the colonists of Naco. Returning through the
territory at present known as the province of San Miguel, they arrived
at the Rio Lempa at a season of the year when the current was so greatly
swollen by the rains that to ford it was impossible. In this emergency
they felled a huge ceiba-tree, out of which, with infinite labor, they
fashioned an immense canoe,[IV‑14] and after toiling for five days,
drenched with rain and ravenous with hunger, thus made good their
crossing. They had now entered the province of Cuzcatlan,[IV‑15] where
Alvarado found that during his delay in Choluteca the whole country
had risen in rebellion. Several battles were fought, all resulting
favorably to the Spaniards, and on the 6th of August 1526, after a final
and desperate conflict, the Indians were routed with terrible carnage
and soon afterward tendered their submission.[IV‑16] The Spaniards then
continued their journey by forced marches and reached Guatemala without
further adventure. As they drew near to Jalpatagua[IV‑17] they were met
with the unwelcome tidings of the revolt of the Cakchiquels and other
native nations.[IV‑18]
* * * * *
[Sidenote: EVIL REIGN OF GONZALO DE ALVARADO.]
During the absence of Pedro de Alvarado in Honduras, his brother
Gonzalo, left in charge as his lieutenant, had made good use of the
opportunity to enrich himself, imposing excessive tribute and regarding
neither age nor condition in his inordinate craving for wealth. To him
must be attributed the great and general uprising of the natives which
occurred at this time.[IV‑19] His crowning act of oppression was to
compel a large number of Indian boys to work in certain gold-washings
near Patinamit,[IV‑20] requiring of them to procure daily a certain
quantity of the precious metal.[IV‑21] For a few weeks the amount was
punctually furnished, but on account of the tender age of the children,
who were but from nine to twelve years old, the measure fell short,
whereupon Gonzalo insisted that the deficiency should be made up by
contribution, and threatened the natives with death, exclaiming with
angry gesticulations: "Think not that I have come to this coast to dwell
among a pack of hounds for any other purpose than to gather gold to take
with me to Spain." This outrageous demand was also complied with, but
the bitter hate of their oppressors, which had long smouldered in the
hearts of the natives, was now about to break forth into a flame.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: GREAT UPRISING.]
Among the nations of Central America the name of the supreme being was
represented by a word that signifies 'deceiver,' or in the Cakchiquel
language 'demon.'[IV‑22] In time of need or peril this personage
appeared to them, as Oviedo and Vazquez would have us believe, and until
the Christian Spaniard made firm his footing in the land was consulted
and obeyed in all important matters. "Why wait you?" he exclaimed, as
he now bid his votaries strike once more for freedom. "Tonatiuh has
gone to Castile, and the strangers are few. What fear you? I am the
thunderbolt and will make them dust and ashes. Both them and you will I
destroy if you prove cowards. Live not as slaves, nor abandon the laws
of your forefathers; convoke the nation and terminate your woes." The
appeal was not in vain. From Chaparristic to Olintepec, a distance of
one hundred and thirty-nine leagues, the Indians rose in revolt.[IV‑23]
An army of thirty thousand warriors was quickly and secretly raised,
and the Spaniards now scattered among the different settlements were
taken completely by surprise. The confederated tribes divided their
forces into two divisions, one of which occupied the mountain passes
near Petapa for the purpose of holding Alvarado's band in check, while
the other fell on the unsuspecting colonists, slaughtering the greater
portion of them together with a number of their Indian allies. Those
who escaped fled to Quezaltenango and Olintepec.[IV‑24]
[Illustration: Alvarado's March.]
The Indians were now in possession of the country from its southern
boundary to the district of Quezaltenango, but a swift and terrible
vengeance was about to overtake them. Alvarado was already within their
borders. Having crushed the rebellion in Cuzcatlan he swept northward
with the fury of a tempest. Scattering like sheep the bands that first
offered him resistance, he met with no serious opposition till he
arrived at the peñol of Xalpatlahua, situated about three leagues from
the present village of Jalpatagua.
[Sidenote: SUCCESS OF THE SPANIARDS.]
At this point a huge rock, surrounded by a dry moat, formed an almost
impregnable fortress, commanding not only the high-road, but also the
pass through the mountain defiles, and here the natives had collected
in force. For three days the Spaniards were detained in forcing the
approaches and reducing the stronghold. Two furious assaults directed
against it before daylight in hope of carrying it by surprise were
repulsed, and it was only by stratagem that on the third day Alvarado
succeeded in his attempt. Dividing his men into two parties, he assailed
the peñol at two different points at the same moment. In the heat of
the contest the adelantado, feigning retreat, suddenly withdrew the
corps under his command; the others were ordered meanwhile to press
the assault more closely. The ruse was successful. The defenders all
collected at the point assailed, and Alvarado, rapidly wheeling round
his column, crossed the ditch and gained the height.[IV‑25] The Indians,
attacked in rear, were thrown into disorder, driven down the heights,
and closely pursued by the Spaniards. Only when night closed upon their
flying columns did pursuit and carnage cease.[IV‑26]
The army now continued its march unmolested, until it arrived at the
plains of Canales. Here another obstinate and bloody battle was fought
with a large body of natives collected from the surrounding districts.
The contest was long maintained with doubtful result, but was at last
decided by the arrival of the friendly cacique Cazhualan, who, although
a portion of his tribe had forsaken their allegiance,[IV‑27] fell on
his countrymen with such forces as he could collect and caused their
overthrow.
Alvarado now advanced rapidly toward Patinamit. Fighting his way
through numerous bodies of the enemy who sought to oppose his passage,
he arrived in a few days at the plain in front of the city. Here the
combined forces of the confederated kings and chiefs, mustering in all
about thirty thousand warriors, were drawn up to give him battle and
strike one more blow in defence of their native soil. In vain their
effort. These Spanish veterans were invincible, and the Indian hosts
were almost annihilated in sight of their capital.[IV‑28] The Spaniards
following up their victory at once forced their way along the narrow
causeway that formed the only means of approach to Patinamit, and
putting to the sword the few defenders left, took up their quarters
there for the night.[IV‑29]
[Sidenote: ALVARADO GOES TO MEXICO.]
On the following morning, however, they evacuated the city and occupied
a position on the plain, where building for themselves a number of
huts,[IV‑30] they remained for several days, during which Alvarado
vainly endeavored to induce the revolted caciques to return to their
allegiance.[IV‑31] Twice he sent proposals of peace; but no reply being
vouchsafed, he hastened onward to Olintepec, where he arrived toward
the end of August 1526. He was now at liberty to return to Mexico.
Although he had not succeeded in either killing or capturing Sinacam
and Sequechul, he considered that the late terrible punishments ensured
safety.
Official business was promptly despatched. New alcaldes and regidores
were elected, two of the former, named Hernan Carrillo and Pedro
Puertocarrero, being nominated as Alvarado's lieutenants during his
absence. A procurador, one Diego Becerra, was appointed by the cabildo
to represent the interests of the city in Mexico; and, his arrangements
being completed, he set forth on his journey accompanied by Marin, his
brother Gonzalo,[IV‑32] and more than eighty soldiers. He passed through
Soconusco and Tehuantepec, travelling with such breathless speed that
two of his men, enfeebled by the hardships of the recent campaign, died
on the march. As he drew near to the capital he was met by Cortés, whose
friendship was soon to be cast aside, and whose lofty pride was ere long
to be humbled by the very man whom that great conqueror now welcomed
with open arms and entertained with princely hospitality at his palace
in Mexico.[IV‑33]
And here, for a time, we must leave him to tell of his great
achievements; to gamble with old comrades, to cheat them and lie to
them, just as he had done three years before. Then he will bid farewell
to Cortés forever, as it will prove, and go on his voyage to Spain,
where we shall hear of his reaping honor and distinction. We shall hear
of him also, under the consciousness of broken faith and dishonorable
conduct, shrinking from and glad to avoid a meeting with his old comrade
to whom he owed all that he possessed on earth.[IV‑34]