The conquest of Mexico: some history is inevitable

Not much in history is inevitable, but the conquest of the Americas was. It might have been done by the Chinese or the Muslims rather than by the Europeans, but whichever of the older Eurasian civilizations reached the Americas first was bound to supplant the local, younger civilizations.

An artistic depiction of an Inca army. French writer Laurent Binet’s book, Civilisations, offers an alternate history in which the Incas and Aztecs conquered Europe. It’s fiction, of course, but it makes you think, writes Gwynne Dyer.Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Opinion

BY GWYNNE DYER

August 9, 2021

LONDON, U.K.—Friday, Aug. 13, is the 500th anniversary of the Spanish conquest of Mexico. The capital of the Aztec empire, Tenochtitlan, fell to the invaders after a long siege, and became Mexico City instead. It was a major historical event, still mourned by million...

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