Fall of Tenochtitlán — Cuauhtémoc Captured, Empire Ends

After a 75-day siege, Cortés and his indigenous allies captured Tenochtitlán on August 13, 1521. Emperor Cuauhtémoc was captured attempting to escape by canoe. The once-magnificent city was largely destroyed — streets choked with bodies; canals filled with rubble. Cortés described smells from the dead as unbearable. The fall of Tenochtitlán marks the end of the Aztec Empire and the beginning of 300 years of colonial rule as Nueva España. Cuauhtémoc was later tortured (his feet burned in a failed search for Aztec gold) and executed in 1525.