Full translation is "500 years ago today a group of Spanish troops led by Hernan Cortes and native allies achieved the surrender of Tenochtitlan in Mexico. Spain successfully liberated millions of people from the terror of the bloody Aztec regime. We are proud of our history."
Wtf Vox.
The Aztec ruling class were not good people and they killed their competitors with cruel efficiency, but they did nothing close to the genocidal, colonial violence that the Spaniards did, let alone the impacts of their rule since.
Yeah, if the nations that allied with Cortes, even the ones that got special privileges under the colonial government knew what was coming they would have merced him in his sleep.
Or they could've surrounded and killed them all like they totally could have like so many fucking times :angery:
These shitty second fiddle petty kingdoms that sided with conquistadors are the colonial equivalent of the social democrats :spain-cool:
In their defense, it must be hard to imagine what utter cruelty European colonialism is capable of if you've never seen it before.
Im aware, I'm reading 1491 right now so I'm just extra bitter. Nobody could have anticipated how badly disease would ravage their societies.