174 UNIT 2 COLONIAL MESOAMERICA
Figure 4.8 The siege of Tenochtitlan. The Spaniards attack from their ships, while Mexica
soldiers fight back from canoes and from the city’s walls and rooftops. Florentine Codex,Book
12, 56r. Florence, The Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Sahagun, 1979. Reproduced withThe conquest of the island city, however, posed a greater challenge. In the nar-
row streets there was no space for Spanish fighters to close ranks. Horses had limited
footing. It was difficult to move cannon around, and equally difficult to find clear tar-
gets amid the tangle of streets, canals, and buildings. Mexica warriors could carry
out guerrilla-style attacks on isolated parties of Spaniards and their allies, then dis-
appear along the familiar alleyways (Figure 4.9). They also learned quickly how to
dodge cannon fire and how to kill horses with their obsidian-bladed swords. Cap-
tured Spaniards—and even horses—were sacrificed atop the great pyramid and their
heads displayed on a rack, to the distress of fellow Spaniards.permision of MiBACT. Further reproduction by any means is prohibited.