The most famous primary source for the Spanish conquest of New Spain, or Mexico, is probably the conquistador Bernal Diaz’s True History of the Conquest of New Spain. Diaz, a veteran conquistador from the first two expeditions to Mexico, he details the journey’s of Juan de Grijalva, and of he and Cortes.
But there are other primary sources written by people who were there and saw the events first-hand. They are listed below.
Andres de Tapia
Relación de la conquista de México
Andres de Tapia was from Estremadura, Spain and was part of the Cortes mission from the beginning. He was a loyal subordinate to Cortes, despite being related to Cortes’ enemy, Diego Velazquez, the Governor of Hispaniola. In Cozumel he spotted the Spaniard Aguilar who had been held captive by Maya in the Yucatan. He made it to Tenochtitlan and was there for all the critical events.
He went on to accompany Cortes on a few more expeditions before landing back in New Spain, where he held a series of mid-level bureaucratic positions before dying in 1561.
Anonymous Conquistador
Narrative of Some Things of New Spain and of the Great City of Temestitan, México
This piece documents the life of the people in Mexico, as well as the animal and foods. Counter to the other narratives it is a more documentary look at the New World at the time of the conquest. The writer is still unknown, although numerous candidates are suspected – including Cortes biographer Gomara.
Bernal Diaz del Castillo
True History of the Conquest of New Spain
Diaz’s version is probably the most well known account of the Conquest. He was a member of both the previous expeditions to Mexico under Cordoba and Grijalva. On his third expedition with Cortes, he became a trustworthy and reliable soldier for Cortes.
Bernardino Francisco de Tapia
Relación de méritos y servicios del conquistador Bernardino Vázquez de Tapia
Bernardino was a lifelong conquistador, having participated in several previous expeditions in the Americas, including the Grijalva expedition. After the conquest he ran several encomiendas.
Francisco de Aguilar
Relación breve de la conquista de la Nueva España
After becoming a friar, Francisco de Aguilar wrote his version of the conquest.
Hernan Cortes
Letters from New Spain
Cortes wrote to several people during his time in Mexico including the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, and five of those documents still exist. Bound in various editions, the letters and last will and testament include narrative details about his time in Mexico, his family and other information.