The Devastation of the Americas: Smallpox and the Fall

In Episode 208 of The Rise of Colonialism, Lucas and Luna explore the catastrophic role disease played in the European conquest of the Americas. They focus on smallpox, the virus that swept through the Caribbean and Mexico in the 1510s and 1520s, killing millions and toppling the Aztec and Inca empires. The conversation traces the virus's path: from the Canary Islands to Hispaniola, the 1520 outbreak in Tenochtitlan during the siege by Cortés, and its later arrival in Peru. Lucas shares the haunting testimony of the Florentine Codex, where Aztec survivors describe the pustules and the inability to walk. They also discuss the theory of Virgin Soil epidemics, the role of introduced diseases like measles and typhus, and why immunity gaps made the Americas so vulnerable. The episode ends with a reflection on how biological factors, not just steel and gunpowder, reshaped the world. It's a sobering look at a turning point in colonial history, with echoes in the modern era. #Smallpox #AztecEmpire #IncaEmpire #SpanishConquest #Tenochtitlan #FlorentineCodex #VirginSoilEpidemic #HernanCortes #FranciscoPizarro #Colonialism #Disease #Epidemiology #NewSpain #Peru #Caxamarca #SixteenthCentury #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo