MARCH 14, 1518

MAYA RULER TABSCOOB LEADS MAYA AGAINST SPANISH IN BATTLE OF CINTLA

On March 13, 1519, Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés took over the Chontal Maya capital city of Potonchán (in the current Mexican state of Tabasco). On March 14, the forces of Chief Tabscoob, estimated to be 40,000 men, fought on the Plains of Cintla against the Spaniards led by Cortés. The Battle of Cintla would be the first major battle of the Spanish conquistadors in what later became New Spain. The power of the Spaniards’ firearms and the surprise and fear caused by the appearance of the cavalry (the natives, who had never seen horses, thought that animal and rider were one being) eventually gave victory to the Spanish army of over 410 soldiers. While Tabscoob surrendered 2 days later, it would take 45 years of struggles and intense military campaigns, before the Spanish conquistadors could break the fighting spirit of the Indigenous people of Tabasco.

Source:

Daniel G. Brinton, The Battle and the Ruins of Cintla (Chicago, 1896).  Retrieved 11/5/2022, The Battle and the Ruins of Cintla (um.edu.mo)

Wikipedia

Photo:  Alfonsobouchot, 9/12/2008.  Public Domain.