Examine the consequences of Cortés’s conquest of the Aztecs for Spanish exploration of Latin America.

The question requires that candidates consider the interrelationship between Cortés’s conquest of the Aztecs and Spanish exploration of Latin America. Consequences may extend beyond the timeframe but they must be clearly linked to the issue raised in the question. Candidates may address consequences by examining the ways in which the swiftness of the conquest of Mexico was interpreted by Spaniards as proof of their superiority and, thus, encouraged further explorations. Additionally, the wealth found in the Aztec Empire made the Spaniards eager for further exploration of Yucatan, Honduras and Guatemala. Cortés’s conquest encouraged further exploration of the Mexican Pacific coast to find a strait connecting the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. This led to the exploration of Baja California. Candidates may refer to the ambition of explorers and how it led to conflict. For example, Captain Cristobal de Olid, who explored West Mexico and Honduras by order of Cortés, defied him in 1524.

The question required candidates to consider the interrelationship between Cortez’s conquest of the Aztecs and Spanish exploration of Latin America. Responses were infrequent and the question was often misinterpreted in that candidates disregarded the demand to address consequences of Spanish exploration of Latin America.