The conquest of a great part of Mesoamerica and South America was accomplished by the Spaniards in a relatively brief time. In 1519, Hernán Cortés landed on the coast of Mexico and, within two years, had conquered the Aztec empire. In 1527, word reached Francisco Pizarro of the fabulous wealth of kingdoms further south. Cutting short his sojourn in Panama, he led several exploratory forays along the Pacific coast of South America, then sailed to the north coast of Peru, where he struck inland …