There Is No Turning Back

Making committed decisions and burn your ships.

A preacher had talked about this great journey that Cortes set out for and reaching this new world found great challenges and difficulties many of the crew wanted to sail back home when Cortes ordered that the ships be burned. There was no turning back. Do or Die attitude!

Routes of Hernan Cortes

The Spaniard Hernán Cortés led an expedition to Mexico in 1519, sailing from Cuba to land on the eastern tip of the Yucatán Peninsula with a tiny fleet of 11 ships. From there he proceeded inland to Tenochtitlán, the capital city of the Aztec Empire. Montezuma, the Aztec emperor, initially welcomed Cortés, whom many thought was a god. Cortés soon imprisoned Montezuma, and by 1521 he had conquered the Aztecs. Finding a better harbor a little north of San Juan, the Spaniards moved there and established a town, La Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz (now Veracruz). Cortés organized an independent government, and renouncing the authority of Velázquez, acknowledged only the supreme authority of the Spanish crown. In order to prevent those of his small force who opposed this movement from deserting him and carrying the news to Cuba, Cortés destroyed his fleet.