Aguilar - David L Farebrother - Bog

The year is 1519. Hernán Cortés has been commissioned by Governor Diego Velazquez to investigate rumors of native civilizations and rich lands lying far to the west, beyond the islands of the Indies. Cortés leaves La Trinidad, Cuba, with eleven ships and 600 men under arms. He finds a harbor on the coast of Cozumel and there learns of a couple of shipwrecked Spaniards being held prisoners by the Maya on the mainland. One of them is Geronimo Aguilar, who has been stranded for eight years, a slave of a Mayan cacique. Cortés ransoms Aguilar and persuades him to serve as translator on his quest, which eventually takes them to Tenochtitlan, the capital of the powerful and mysterious Aztec Empire. Aguilar remains true to his faith throughout the tumultuous trek into the unknown territory despite the barbaric cruelties of both the Spanish Conquistadores and Mexica overlords.