Hernán Cortés

Hello! My name is Hernán Cortés, and I grew up in a small town in Spain a very, very long time ago. When I was a boy, I loved hearing stories about brave explorers like Christopher Columbus who sailed across the big, blue ocean to find new lands. My parents wanted me to be a lawyer, so I went to a special school to study. But I found myself daydreaming about adventures on the high seas instead of reading big law books. I knew in my heart that my destiny was not in a stuffy room full of books, but out in the wide, exciting world. I imagined myself on a giant ship, with the wind in my sails, discovering places no one from my home had ever seen before. I wanted to be a hero from one of the storybooks.

When I was 19 years old, I finally got my chance to chase my dream. I waved goodbye to my family and boarded a ship sailing to the Americas. The journey across the ocean was long and the waves were sometimes very big, but I wasn't scared. I was thrilled. After living on some islands for a while, I started hearing amazing tales from the local people. They spoke of a giant land to the west with cities made of gold and powerful leaders. In February of 1519, I decided I had to see it for myself. I gathered my own ships and brave sailors to go on a new expedition. I wanted to explore this new place for the King and Queen of Spain and see if the incredible stories were true.

After we landed, we walked for many days and met many different groups of people who lived in this new land. Finally, on November 8th, 1519, we saw it, and I could hardly believe my eyes. It was a city that seemed to float on water. It was called Tenochtitlan, the capital of the mighty Aztec people. It was bigger and more beautiful than any city I had ever seen, with tall temples that touched the clouds and amazing floating gardens full of flowers and vegetables. We met their leader, Moctezuma II, who was very powerful. He welcomed us into his incredible home. We were amazed by their art, their food, and their way of life, but we didn't always understand each other's ways. Our worlds were so different. Sadly, our differences led to a big, sad fight. The beautiful city was changed forever, and on its spot, a new city, called Mexico City, began to grow.

My journey connected two parts of the world that had never met before: Europe, where I was from, and the Americas. It was a time of great change for everyone on both sides of the ocean. New foods, like chocolate and tomatoes, traveled from the Americas to Europe. And new animals, like horses and cows, traveled from Europe to the Americas. It was not always easy, and many things were sad, but my adventures show that when different worlds meet, it can be complicated. My journey changed history forever, helping to create the new world we all live in today.