Testimony of Alonso de Benavides at Tepeaca, 1520

After Fernando Cortés and his army fled from Tenochtitlan during the Noche Triste, they encamped at Tepeaca, where Cortés drafted several documents to explain and justify his actions to the king of Spain. The first document, dated 4 September 1520, includes the testimony of nine witnesses who each answered 22 questions about the conquest. As was typical of legal documents of the era, the questions were drafted to lead the witnesses to a pre-determined conclusion—that Governor Velázquez and Pánfilo Narváez were to blame for the forced retreat from Tenochtitlan and the loss of a great deal of treasure and men.

The questions and testimony are transcribed in Spanish in José Luis Martínez’s Documentos Cortesianos, Vol. I. 1518-1528 (Mexico City: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 1990). Alonso de Benavides’ testimony appears on p. 140-142. I have translated the questions and testimony into English and placed them side-by-side in the table below so that it is easier for the reader to follow the narrative. I have altered the original spelling of some proper names to conform to modern spellings. For example, in old manuscripts, Tenochtitlan was written as, ‘Tenustitan’ and Moctezuma was written  as, ‘Motenzuma.’

A copy of the original manuscript of the testimony can be found at the Portal de Archivos Españoles here:

Archivo General de Indias

Patronato, 180, R. 2

Oficiales reales de México: armada de Pánfilo Narváez

https://pares.mcu.es/ParesBusquedas20/catalogo/description/124978?nm

Questions	Answers
I. First, let them be asked whether they know the said Alonso Dávila, treasurer, and Alonso de Grado, accountant, and Bernaldino Vázquez de Tapia, factor, and Rodrigo Álvarez Chico, inspector, officials of Their Highnesses in these parts of New Spain, and whether they know the said Diego Velázquez, alcalde and captain and distributor of the caciques and Indians of the island of Fernandina (Cuba), and whether they know Pánfilo de Narváez, resident of the town of San Salvador of the said island of Fernandina, and each of them, and for how long.	Witness. Alonso de Benavides, smelter (fundidor), received as a witness, having sworn according to law, said, in response to the first question, that he knows Alonso Dávila, treasurer, and Alonso de Grado, accountant, and Bernaldino Vázquez de Tapia, factor, and Rodrigo Álvarez Chico, inspector, officials of Their Highnesses, and that he knows Diego Velázquez, alcalde and captain and distributor of the Indians of the island of Fernandina, and Pánfilo de Narváez.
II. Item, whether they know or believe or saw or heard it said that about a year and a half ago, more or less, Fernando Cortés, captain general and chief justice of these said parts of New Spain on behalf of Their Highnesses, came to this land from the island of Cuba with certain ships, in which he brought many Spaniards to conquer, pacify, and settle this said land in service of Their Royal Majesties; and having arrived, he established a town on the coast, called Villa Rica de la Veracruz, with the counsel and advice of us, the aforementioned, and other Spaniards who came in his company; and he established it because it seemed to all that it was in service of Their Majesties to do so, given that the land is, as it is, large and very populated and very rich in various resources, according to what he had learned and what the said Indians, natives of the land, had informed him.	II. To the second question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for all of it, as he came in the company of the said captain general Fernando Cortés to these parts.
III. Item, whether they know, etc., that the said lord captain general Fernando Cortés, together with the said officials of Their Royal Highnesses and other Spaniards, agreed, after the said town had been settled and established, to go inland, because they had been informed that the land was very rich and had many cities and towns and settlements, which was undertaken seeing that it served the interest of Their Highnesses, and so that the said Indians, natives of the land, might come to the knowledge of our Holy Catholic Faith and submit themselves to royal jurisdiction, and recognize the dominion and lordship that they owed to Their Highnesses; and the said lord captain general, with the said Spaniards, conquered and pacified and subjugated many cities and towns and settlements very densely populated with people who were very warlike, doing so with great hardship and danger, putting himself at risk at every moment, in order to bring the said land and lordships under the imperial and royal Crown, as he did, making the said Indians come to the knowledge of the aforesaid, and give and contribute to Their Highnesses the gold and jewels they possessed, and whom he brought to peace, and they all served very well in everything that the lord captain general commanded them, in the name of Their Royal Highnesses.	III. To the third question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and went with the said lord captain in the conquest, pacification, and subjugation of the said land, and was present for all of it.
IV. Item, whether they know, etc., that the said lord captain general, with the said Spaniards who were with him, conquered and subjugated and brought to peace many cities and towns and settlements, among which he conquered and subjugated and pacified and brought under the dominion and lordship of Their Highnesses the great and marvelous city of Tenochtitlan, along with many others around it that were subject to it, founded upon water and near it, in which he remained many days peacefully, without any resistance, with the consent of the lord of that city and all the others, who was called Moctezuma; who, along with all the other lords, his vassals—lords of other lands and provinces—gave obedience to Their Royal Highnesses and to the captain general, in their name, and promised to give and contribute to Their Majesties all the tribute they were bound to give and did give to the said Moctezuma; and thus, all in agreement, they promised to do so and resolved to carry it out, and put it into effect; and let them say what they know regarding this.	IV. To the fourth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present with the said lord captain general at the time he entered the said city of Tenochtitlan, and subjugated and pacified it, and that everything else contained in this question took place as described.
V. Item, whether they know, etc., that the said Moctezuma, as did all his other vassals and those from other parts, regions, and provinces under his lordship, gave and contributed to Their Highnesses and to the lord captain general, in their name, much gold and silver and jewels of various kinds—shields and feather works and necklaces and many other items made of gold and precious stones—of which Their Highnesses received, as their entire royal fifth, 32,400 gold pesos and 85 silver marks.	V. To the fifth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for all of it, and that, as the smelter of the said gold, he saw everything—how the said Indians brought it and gave it to the said lord captain general in the name of Their Highnesses—and that he knows Their Highnesses received the said 32,400 smelted gold pesos, which was their share as the royal fifth.
VI. Item, whether they know, etc., that likewise Their Royal Highnesses received what the aforementioned had given to the said lord captain general, in the said name, many gold jewels of various kinds, and stones and necklaces and shields and feather works and other ornaments, and that the gold contained therein was worth more than 100,000 castellanos of gold.	VI. To the sixth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that this witness saw all the jewels and stones and feather works and other ornaments, and he knows that the gold contained in them could have been worth more than 100,000 gold pesos.
VII. Item, whether they know, etc., that because no ships were arriving by which the aforementioned gold and silver and jewels belonging to Their Highnesses could be sent, the said lord captain general and the officials of Their Highnesses delivered and entrusted all of it in the city of Tenochtitlan to Alonso de Escobar under account, and it was recorded in the books of Their Highnesses, so that the aforementioned might hold and safeguard it and take great care of it in a stronghold and very secure house which the said lord captain general gave and designated for that purpose; and that the said Alonso de Escobar had and received all of it, as has been said. And let them say whether they know that, seeing that the said ships were not arriving, the said captain general ordered one to be built to send the said gold and jewels—or the greater part thereof—to Their Highnesses in Spain, which was already underway and under construction when Pánfilo de Narváez arrived in these parts.	VII. To the seventh question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for it, and saw how, by order of the said lord captain, a ship was ordered to be built to send the said gold and jewels to Their Highnesses.
VIII. Item, whether they know, etc., that while all the land was peaceful and subjugated and placed under the dominion and lordship of Their Highnesses, and the Indians of this land were serving very well and willingly in all that was commanded of them in the name of Their Highnesses, and while the said lord captain general was in the said city of Tenochtitlan, attending to other matters in the service of Their Highnesses and the good settlement and pacification of this land, and wishing to go and explore many other lands of which he had knowledge, believed to be much richer—especially the silver mines which, according to the samples, are considered to be very rich, from which Their Highnesses would be greatly served and their royal crown increased—it came to his attention that a fleet of thirteen ships had arrived at the port of San Juan, called Chalchihuecán, with many foot soldiers and horsemen, and artillery and munitions.	VIII. To the eighth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for everything aforementioned and contained in this question, as he was, indeed, with the said lord captain general in the said city.
IX. Item, whether they know, etc., that the said fleet which thus came to the said port was sent and dispatched by Diego Velázquez with diabolical intent and malicious purpose, coming, as it did, in a warlike manner against the said captain general Fernando Cortés; and that serving as captain of the fleet, on behalf of the said Diego Velázquez, was Pánfilo de Narváez, so that through him Diego Velázquez’s wicked plan might be carried out. This fleet arrived in the month of April just past, of the present year; and the said Narváez ordered the disembarkation at the said port of the foot soldiers, horsemen, artillery, and munitions, and had them prepared in a state of war.	IX. To the ninth question, he said that this witness has heard it said by many persons who came in the said fleet that the said Diego Velázquez assembled the said fleet on the island of Fernandina, and that this witness knows that the said Pánfilo de Narváez came as its captain, and came to these parts with it, and disembarked at the said port of San Juan, and put all the foot soldiers and horsemen and artillery and munitions ashore, in a state of war, as he later saw in Cempoala, as has been said, all of which is public knowledge and well known.
X. Item, whether they know, etc., that as soon as the said Narváez disembarked, along with all the people he brought, many native lords of the land came to see him, to whom the said captain general Fernando Cortés had given orders that, if any ships were to arrive there, they should immediately provide food and whatever else was needed, and that they should inform him of what ships they were and who the people were that had come. And so, when they were seen by the said Narváez, the said Narváez then told them and made it known and understood that he had come to arrest captain general Fernando Cortés and those who were with him, and to release his lord Moctezuma, since he was being held prisoner, and that for this purpose he had brought all those foot soldiers and horsemen and artillery. And he ordered military displays to be made before them so that the said Indians could see them, and said that he had more people than the said captain general, and that he did not want nor had come for gold, but to do what was stated above, and then to leave the land immediately. All of this the said Narváez told the said Indians and lords of the land many times.	X. To the tenth question, he said that this witness heard everything contained in this question said by many Spaniards who came in the said fleet with the said Narváez, all of which is public knowledge and well known.
XI. Item, whether they know, etc., that at the time when the said Pánfilo de Narváez came to the said port with the said fleet, all the land was at peace and subjugated and pacified, to such a degree that there was no Indian who did not serve Their Highnesses with complete willingness, contributing all that they had to Their Highnesses and recognizing the lordship that was held over them—so much so that a Christian could travel safely throughout the land for one hundred leagues.	XI. To the eleventh question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for all of it.
XII. Item, whether they know, etc., that because the said Narváez had said and proclaimed and made the said Indians understand all that has been stated above, he caused them to change the willingness and intentions they had to serve Their Highnesses, and they conveyed this to Moctezuma on behalf of the said Narváez; with whom the said Narváez came to an agreement and sent word to him through the said vassal lords of Moctezuma that he had come to release him and to arrest the said captain general and his men, and to leave the land immediately, and that he did not want any gold whatsoever—so that the aforementioned lords rose up and rebelled, thinking it better to do as the said Narváez told them than to continue serving Their Highnesses as they had done before.	XII. To the twelfth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that while this witness was in the city of Tenochtitlan, the said Indians who went on the embassy to the said Moctezuma on behalf of the said Narváez told this witness about it, just as and how it had happened.
XIII. Item, whether they know, etc., that seeing and realizing that, because of what the said Narváez had told the said Indians, they had risen up and rebelled, and were no longer serving as before, nor contributing to Their Highnesses as they had been, the said captain general resolved to leave the said city of Tenochtitlan and to leave in the care of the said Alonso de Escobar and 150 Spaniards the said gold and jewels and Moctezuma himself and the city; and to learn what the will of the said Narváez was, he went out to meet with him, leaving, as he did, the gold of Their Highnesses in the said city with the greatest security he could, which was necessary to do because of the said uprising of the Indians.	XIII. To the thirteenth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and, as he has said, was constantly present for everything with the said lord captain general.
XIV. Item, whether they know, etc., that since the said Moctezuma and the other lords of the land, his vassals, had already been influenced and inclined toward the will of the said Narváez, wishing to withdraw from the service of Their Highnesses, they all together agreed that once the said captain general had departed from the said city, they would rise up against the Spaniards who had remained there with the said gold, and they waged such fierce war against them for two days and two nights that, if it had not been for Our Lady, who miraculously chose to protect them, none would have escaped—as such that they killed a number of Spaniards.	XIV. To the fourteenth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that, while this witness was with the said lord captain general, he saw a messenger who had been sent by the said Spaniards who remained in Tenochtitlan, with a letter in which was contained all that is stated in this question.
XV. Item, whether they know, etc., that while the said captain general was in the city of Cempoala, occupied with preparing certain ships to send to Spain to Their Highnesses with as much gold and jewels as he could gather, along with a full report of the land, he learned and it came to his attention that the said war had been waged by the said Indians and lords in the city of Tenochtitlan against the said Spaniards, who were in dire need; and upon learning this, he immediately set out for the said city of Tenochtitlan with as many foot soldiers and horsemen and artillery as he could, and entered the said city peacefully on the feast day of Saint John this past June.	XV. To the fifteenth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because of what he stated in the question prior to this one, and because he was present for everything else, and entered the said city peacefully with the said lord captain general on the feast day of Saint John this past June.
XVI. Item, whether they know, etc., that on the day following the said lord captain general’s entry into the said city, the said Indians and lords of the land and city of Tenochtitlan—having already had the words that the said Narváez had spoken to them and made them understand impressed upon their minds—raised the bridges of the said city in the morning, and having done so, laid siege to the said captain general and all the Spaniards who were with him, in such a way that the Indians who surrounded them were countless, and they began to launch such fierce attacks and warfare that they killed many Spaniards and wounded many horses; and this combat lasted six continuous days.	XVI. To the sixteenth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for all of it.
XVII. Item, whether they know, etc., that when the said lord captain general and the other Spaniards who were with him saw that, if they remained any longer in the said city of Tenochtitlán and did not leave it, not a single Spaniard would be left alive, and by our (the said officials of Their Highnesses) agreement and counsel, and that of other Spaniards, he resolved to leave for the mainland. And with the greatest care he could, he arranged for all the said gold and silver and stones and jewels of Their Highnesses to be removed and placed in the safest keeping possible, ordering certain Spaniards to look after it and go with it so that it might be preserved, and the said Alonso de Escobar was with all of it. And the said captain general and the said Spaniards departed the said city with it.	XVII. To the seventeenth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for all of it.
XVIII. Item, whether they know, etc., that upon leaving the city along the causeways and bridges, and by the water in canoes, such a great number of Indians appeared that they waged a much fiercer war than they had until then, due to the road along the said causeways being very bad and very narrow—in such a way that, because the said Indians were so numerous and most of the Spaniards were leaving wounded, exhausted, and worn out from what they had endured in the said city, many Spaniards were killed, as well as 56 horses and many native porters who were carrying clothing and baggage; and most of the remaining Spaniards were wounded. The Indians seized all the gold and silver and stones and jewels that were being taken out for Their Highnesses, and all the artillery, without it being possible to resist. And at the time the said Indians seized the said gold, they killed the said Alonso de Escobar, who was escorting it; and those who escaped and made it out of the said causeways to the mainland did so with great hardship and danger, and it was only because Our Lord miraculously chose to protect them.	XVIII. To the eighteenth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because this witness saw it and was present for all of it, and he fought with the said Indians on the said causeways.
XIX. Item, whether they know, etc., that the said Indians waged such fierce war against us throughout all that time and after we left the said city of Tenochtitlan, until we reached a province of Tlaxcala, which was at peace, and which—had it not been under the lordship of Their Highnesses—not a single Spaniard would have escaped, as all those mentioned were wounded, exhausted, and dying of hunger, and had no place where they might have been able to escape.	XIX. To the nineteenth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that it is because he saw it and was present for all that has been said, and he saw that, given how many Indians were pursuing the said Spaniards and seeing how nearly all of them were wounded and exhausted, had it not been that the said province of Tlaxcala was at peace, not a single Spaniard would have escaped, for there was nowhere to go.
XX. Item, whether they know, etc., that because the said Narváez told and made the said lords and native Indians of the land understand what he had said—that he came to release the said Moctezuma and to arrest the captain general and those who were with him, and that he did not want gold but intended to leave at once—the said Indians rose up and waged the said war, and that this was the cause of so many Spaniards, native porters, and horses being killed, and of the loss of the gold and silver and stones and jewels of Their Highnesses, and it gave rise to the loss of the entire land, cities, towns, and settlements that had been subjugated, pacified, and brought under the lordship of Their Highnesses.	XX. To the twentieth question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that this witness saw that before the said Narváez came, all the land was at peace and subjugated, and they served Their Highnesses and gave and contributed everything they had to the said lord captain general, in the name of Their Highnesses, and they themselves came to reveal and disclose other secrets of the land by which Their Highnesses might be better served and the royal Crown increased. And after the said Narváez came, with the words he told them, he caused them to rise up and rebel, and it was the cause of the said war and the deaths of men and the loss of all the cities, towns, and settlements that the said captain general had subjugated and conquered and brought under the imperial and royal lordship of Their Majesties.
XXI. Item, whether they know, etc., that the said smelted gold which Their Highnesses lost because of the said Narváez and the said Diego Velázquez amounted to 32,400 gold pesos, and likewise the silver and stones and jewels and shields and feather works and necklaces, the gold value of which exceeded 100,000 pesos, and that Their Highnesses likewise lost—and continue to lose—another 100,000 gold pesos which the said Indians would have given and contributed from the time the said Narváez came to this land until now, because the said captain general would have discovered and pacified many other lands, much richer, of which he had knowledge, and by which Their Highnesses would have been greatly served and the royal crown greatly enlarged, had it not been for the arrival of the said Narváez in a warlike manner and for the things he said to the said Indians.	XXI. To the twenty-first question, he said that he knows it just as it is stated therein. Asked how he knows it, he said that this witness saw the said smelted gold, as he has previously stated, and the said silver and stones and jewels and shields, and he knows that all of it could have amounted to  32,400 gold pesos. And likewise, this witness believes that Their Highnesses have lost and continue to lose more than another 100,000 gold pesos, because at the time the said Narváez arrived, the said captain general intended to send out expeditions to discover many very rich lands of which he had knowledge, by which Their Highnesses would have been greatly served and the royal crown much enriched and enlarged. And all of this was lost and never gained because of the said Narváez having come in a warlike manner, and for having said and made the said Indians understand all the other things he told them.
XXII. Item, whether they know, etc., that all the aforementioned, and each thing and part thereof, is public knowledge and well known among all the persons who are in these parts. And let any other questions be asked of them, as needed and as relevant to the case.	XXII. To the twenty-second question, he said that he affirms what he has already stated, which is public knowledge and well known among all the Spaniards who are in these parts, and that this is the truth according to the oath he swore, which he signed with his name.