On the 22nd of May 1520, Conquistador Pedro de Alvarado orchestrated a massacre at an Aztec festival.

This event marked the beginning of the brutal war between the Spanish and Aztecs.

This is the Massacre at the Great Temple 🧵(Thread) The Conquistadors led by Hernán Cortés had entered Tenochtitlan the previous November, initially as guests, before they audaciously took emperor Moctezuma hostage.

Tensions were already high when Cortés was forced to march out to meet a Spanish force calling for his arrest led by Pánfilo de Narváez.

In his absence, Cortés left Captain Pedro De Alvarado in charge.

Percy Fawcett was a British war hero, cartographer and explorer.

Whilst exploring and charting the Amazon he believed he had stumbled upon an ancient and lost civilisation which he dubbed "Z".

And then in 1925, he disappeared.

Let's explore his legendary tale 🧵 (thread) Percy Harrison Fawcett was born on the 18th of August 1857, in Devon.

His family stock was of old landed gentry who had made their fortune in the East Indies.

The family had connections, for example Fawcett's father was a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

In the late 16th century England was taking it's first steps to colonise the New World.

These initial attemps tended to end in disaster, most famously with the Lost Colony of Roanoke.

Let's explore one of history's great mysteries 🧵

(You may want to bookmark this one.) For some context Spain was the dominate power in the Americas with an empire running from Mexico City to Cusco.

England wanted in, but Spain had a long headstart.

Therefore, Queen Elizabeth tasked Walter Raleigh with the founding of a permanent settlement/Privateers base.

In 1871, an expedition led by Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden set out to explore and survey the Yellowstone Region.

Hayden brought along painter Thomas Moran.

Moran's paintings of the region helped to secure the status of Yellowstone as a protected national park.

Let's explore 🧵 The most famous and influential of his works during the expedition was 'The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.'

It's not hard to see why, this is an incredible piece.

Long before the glory days of Classical Greece, there was the Minoans.

This impressive civilisation based on Crete, spread it's influence throughout the Aegean, most notably at the Bronze Age settlement of Akrotiri.

Let's explore the ancient lost city of Akrotiri 🧵 The Minoans were a seafaring people who preferred trading to military prowess in order to spread their influence.

They were the dominant force in the Mediterranean setting up outposts and trading goods with Asia Minor, Syria and even as far away as Pharaonic Egypt.

Founding father Benjamin Franklin wrote a poem of the dramatic downfall of Blackbeard when he was young lad, aged just 13.

Let's read it in full shall we... 🧵

https://twitter.com/HistoriaJack/status/1933519992017883172

Will you hear of a bloody Battle,
Lately fought upon the Seas?
It will make your Ears to rattle,
And your admiration cease;
Have you heard of Teach the Rover,
And his Knavery on the Main;
How of Gold he was a Lover,
How he lov’d all ill got Gain.

The Golden Age Pirates are legendary, infamous for their daring raids and freebooting lifestyle.

None however come close to the level of notoriety achieved by Captain Edward Thatch, aka Blackbeard.

Let's explore the life of the Golden Age's most notorious pirate 🧵 Edward Thatch (Teach) was born in Bristol, England in about 1680.

We know very little about his early life, but we can safely assume he operated in the New World as a Privateer during the War of Spanish Succession.

In June 1579, Francis Drake landed in what is now California.

After claiming the new land for England (naming it Nova Albion) he had an encounter with the Native Miwok peoples, who welcomed and honoured their strange visitors from the sea.

Let's explore this encounter 🧵 For some context Drake has been at sea since 1577, after travelling through the straits of Magallan, he had raided a Spanish treasure galleon.

He was making his way home, first attempting to sail North with little success before turning back and docking off the California coast.

Throughout the ages we find plenty of turning points, crucial events, and key battles that helped shape the very course of History.

In July 1520, Spanish Conquistador Hernan Cortés won one such battle.

Let's explore the largely forgotten Battle of Otumba 🧵 (thread) Let's first take a look at the events leading up to the battle.

Cortés and his band of conquestidors had entered the Aztec capital Tenochtitlán in November 1519.

Along the way they had made strong alliances with states such as Tlaxcala.

The Great Exhibition held in 1851 was the pinnacle of Victorian Age Britain.

It was put on to showcase Britain's role as the dominant industrial power, but it grew into so much more than that.

Let's explore the legendary event 🧵(Thread) The event was organised by inventor Sir Henry Cole and Price Albert, husband to Queen Victoria.

It drew inspiration from the French Industrial Exposition of 1844, but Cole and Albert envisioned a much larger, more grander affair, to showcase the best of Britain.

Sir Henry Morgan is best known today as the face of a global rum brand.

But in the 17th century he was better known for his daring raids on the Spanish Main.

Let's explore the life and exploits of the King of Buccaneers 🧵 (Thread) Morgan's background is a bit obscure.

His exact birthplace is unknown, best guess is he was born in 1635 near Llanrumney (Cardiff).

We are not sure when he arrived in the New World but it was likely with Cromwell's forces in 1654.

In late 1577 Francis Drake set sail from Plymouth on a voyage that would lead him around the globe.

Along the way he would rub shoulders with the natives, stake an English claim in California and plunder a Spanish treasure galleon.

Let's explore Drake's Circumnavigation🧵 Since the first voyage of Columbus Spain had expanded it's area of control to most of Central and South America.

They were naturally protective of their new territory and it's seemingly boundless riches.

But England wanted a share of the prize.

In October 1519, Hernan Cortés on his March to Tenochtitlán, stopped at the city of Cholula.

Within days of his arrival 1000s of Choulans would be laying dead in the streets whilst their city burned around them.

This is the story of the Massacre of Cholula 🧵 (thread) Cholula was an important ally of the Aztecs with it being both an important trading and relgious centre.

The city had a large population and was home to the largest pyramid in the world (by volume) in the shape of the Great Temple of Cholula, dedicated to Quetzalcoatl.

Juan Ponce de León was a Spanish Conquistador who travelled to the New World with Columbus.

He became the first European to step foot on what is now the United States when he landed in what he named La Florida.

Let's explore his story 🧵(Thread) Juan Ponce de León was born in Valladolid in 1474, he was from a prominent wealthy family and served as a royal page at the Aragon court.

Juan later became a Knight and fought in the Reconquista.

To follow on from yesterday let's take a look at the 4 survivors and their eventual fates...

Short thread 🧵

https://twitter.com/HistoriaJack/status/1921192236949119319

First up is of course the star of the show Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca.

From Mexico City De Vaca travelled back to Spain in 1537.

Here he campaigned, in vain, to lead a follow up expedition and instead in 1540 he was made a Governor of the Río de la Plata region in South America.

In 1527 an expedition was launched to explore and settle the lands known as La Florida.

The mission was a complete disaster with only 4 of the original 600 colonists surviving.

One of the survivors was Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca.

This is his story 🧵(Thread) Cabeza de Vaca was born in Andalusia in about 1490, he was of minor nobility (Hidalgo).

His family had a good reputation with his father taking part in conquests against the Moors and the capture of Gran Canaria.

His reputation earned him the appointment of royal treasurer on Panfilo De Narváez expedition to conquer La Florida.

In 1511, a Spanish Caravel was shipwrecked off the coast of the Yucatán.

The survivors went through a terrifying ordeal that killed most of the group. Only 2 men survived...

One became a Maya military commander who fought against his fellow Spaniards, the other joined Hernán Cortés' conquest of the Aztecs.

Let's explore the extraordinary tales of Gerónimo de Aguilar & Gonzalo Guerrero 🧵 Gerónimo & Gonzalo travelled to the new world sometime prior to 1510, both soon found themselves stationed in Panama.

After a legal dispute the pair and 14 other men and women left the colony to travel to Santo Domingo.

Sir Francis Drake was an English Privateer in the late 16th century.

His exploits, including a circumnavigation, not only saved England but challenged the Spanish monopoly in the New World.

Let's explore the tale of Drake's greatest heist 🧵 Francis Drake was born in 1540 in Devon, like so many Devonshire men of the age his eyes turned to the sea.

He began his nautical career with slaving expeditions in the New world alongside his cousin John Hawkins.

Long before Classical Greece or Imperial Rome there was the Minoans.

This Bronze age civilisation was the west's first truly great civilisation; thus they laid the groundwork for all that followed.

Let's explore their story⬇️

🧵 The Minoans were a bronze age culture which emerged on the island of Crete around 3100 BC.

The name Minoan derives from the legendary King Minos of Knossos (You may remember him from my Icarus thread).

The Siege of Tenochtitlan is one of the most important events in all of history.

It was a clash of civilisations, the old world pitted against the new.

The might of the Aztec emperor Cuauhtémoc against the rouge Hernan Cortés.

So without further ado let's dive in 🔽

🧵 We pick up the tale after the Spanish expulsion from Tenochtitlan & the death of Moctezuma.

Cortés has had his ego bruised, his men are demoralised, but he is not down and out just yet.

He immediately begins scheming to retake the city, this time by force.