Chapter Nineteen: THE MARRIAGE OF TECULEHUATZIN

The Jade Steps
Chapter Nineteen: The Marriage of Teculehuatzin

For more than two weeks, every day in Tlaxcala seemed more enjoyable to the Spaniards than the previous. The friendship shown to them by the Tlaxcalans was overwhelming. Children were constantly giving them flowers. Everywhere they went in the city, they would be invited into homes to share a meal. Older women, Señoras, were always bringing them food in their quarters, and there seemed to be a never-ending number of young ladies, Señoritas, desiring to share their quarters with them.

One reason for such an abundance of hospitality was the Spaniards’ strict obedience to Cortez’s stern command to take nothing – nothing – from the Tlaxcalans except what was given to them. They vividly remembered when Cortez caught a soldier named Mora stealing a turkey from a village on the way to Tlaxcala and ordered him hung. Mora would have died had not Pedro de Alvarado cut the rope with his sword at the last moment.

While the men were enjoying themselves, Cortez spent as much time as possible with King Xicotencatl and Chief Maxixcatzin teaching them about Christianity. He told them a score of stories from the Bible, mostly about the life and miracles of Jesus. He explained repeatedly how the Christian God was a god of love and forgiveness and salvation. He explained how gods like Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc were like Satan.

But with the advice and admonition of Friar Bartholomew Olmedo and Padre Juan Diaz, he did this gently and patiently. The two other main Tlaxcalan Chiefs, Citlalpopocatzin (seet-lal-popo-cot-zin) and Temilotecutl (tem-ee-lo-tay’-cuttle) began attending the discussions.

Were Cortez and the other Spaniards sons of gods or sons of men? This was the question that most interested them. “Be assured,” Cortez answered, “we are human just like you. All of us are equal in the eyes of the Lord. The only difference between us is that we have the great fortune to be Christians and thus can be granted salvation. We wish the same for you, and for you to be our brothers in heaven as you are now here on earth.”

Malinali saw the effect that these words of Cortez had upon all four – but more than just her translated words, it was the obvious sincerity with which Cortez spoke that touched them the most. In the moment of silence that followed, one of Cortez’s officers, Juan Velasquez de Leon, entered the room and asked to speak to Friar Olmedo. They conversed quietly, yet the friar could not contain his surprise at the request the young officer seemed to be making. “It is impossible!” the friar called out. “You and this girl do not speak a word of each other’s language. She is not a Christian. Impossible!”

“Then you must baptize her, for marry her I will!” Velazquez de Leon shouted back. All eyes were now turned upon him. He looked at Cortez. “Forgive me, Captain. But I… I…” he glanced at Malinali and blushed. His youth and passion were showing, she thought. He stopped stammering and stood up straight. “Captain, I have fallen in love with a young lady and wish to marry her – not a marriage of convenience as, forgive me, Captain, yours to the Fat Cacique’s daughter in Cempoala, but for her to be my fully lawful Christian wife.”

Cortez said nothing for a moment, just sat and looked at his officer. “Perhaps we should meet this young lady, Señor de Leon,” he said softly.

De Leon brightened. “She is outside. Thank you, Captain.” He left and quickly reentered with an extremely beautiful woman. Malinali saw Chief Maxixcatzin’s head snap back in shock, then a look of intense satisfaction spreading across his face. “Otila!” he exclaimed. The young lady looked at the chief. “Tahtli!” she responded. “Father.”

Cortez and Malinali exchanged glances. “Does this marriage have the blessing of the lady’s father?” he asked, looking at the chief. A few brief words between the chief and Malinali confirmed that it did. Cortez looked up at de Leon. “Then it has my blessing as well. I wish you both great happiness.” There wasn’t a person in the room who wasn’t smiling. “Friar de Olmedo, please begin making all the necessary preparations,” Cortez requested. He turned back to King Xicotencatl.

“For this we will need a church. I would like to request of the king that he give us one of his temples which we will convert into a house of Christian worship and ceremony.” The king quickly assented. Cortez immediately ordered Padre Juan Diaz to accompany the king’s messenger to the designated temple and begin the conversion – “in the spirit of friendship and cooperation,” he commanded of Diaz.

Soon after they left, along with Velazquez de Leon and Otila, Pedro de Alvarado made his entrance. Accompanying him was a young woman with a regal bearing whose beauty was simply astonishing. “My Captain,” he bowed to Cortez. “May I have the honor to introduce to you the Princess Teculehuatzin (tay-coolie-wat-zin), daughter of King Xicotencatl, to whom I am betrothed. I understand you have given your blessing upon the marriage of Señor Velazquez de Leon and the Princess Otila. I wish for your blessing upon ours.”

Being almost blind, the king did not see his daughter. Cortez’s look at Malinali was more intense this time. “Please explain to the king that Don Pedro is as close to me as a brother. He is the finest and bravest man among us. Will the king consent to grant the precious gift of his daughter to Don Pedro?” Malinali could see Cortez’s mind whirring.

The king called out to his daughter upon hearing Malinali. “I had promised you to Malinche, my Teculehuatzin. Is this what you wish?”

“Oh, my father,” she responded, “if your eyes were only young again and could see him, you would know why I call him Tonatio, the Sun – and if you could see me, you would understand that my love for him is as bright as the sun.”

“Malinche,” said the king upon hearing these words, “I give my daughter to Don Pedro as gladly as I would give her to you, if you do not object.”

Cortez closed his eyes and shook his head imperceptibly to himself. He opened his eyes to look at Malinali and say “Otra vez,” once again. Their eyes locked for another moment, then he said, “Please tell the king that I am happy his daughter and my brother have found love for each other, and that it is my honor to bless their marriage.”

* * * * *

“Should I ask how you did this?” Cortez asked Malinali when they were alone that night.

“Do you need to?” she replied mischievously. “I knew the first thing to do was meet Teculehuatzin and the other daughters of the nobles. I took one look at her and realized she would require a man as handsome as she was beautiful – and forgive me, my Captain, but Don Pedro with his hair and beard like the rays of the sun seems like a god. So all I needed to do was make sure they would meet.”

Cortez’s grin showed he was enjoying her explanation. “But how did you arrange for Velazquez de Leon to meet the other lady – Otila?”

Malinali burst out laughing. “Oh, that was not my doing. She was with Teculehuatzin and me in the market square when my Totonac friends happened to bring Don Pedro there. Señor de Leon was with him, and while I introduced Don Pedro and Teculehuatzin, Señor de Leon saw Otila. He stood still and silent for a moment and just stared at her. Then he started talking to her loudly, comparing her to the moon, a flower, and a beautiful bird. He went on and on, with Otila of course not understanding a word he was saying. It was so funny I had to force myself not to laugh. But Otila did not think it was funny. She thought it was wonderful. She asked me what he was saying, I told her, I introduced them, and they walked off into the market with him holding her hand. When I turned back to Don Pedro and Teculehuatzin, they too had wandered off together. I saw my job was done.”

“You are a magician,” Cortez whispered.

She smiled back at him. “Would you like some more of my magic?” she whispered back.

It was an ecstatic night.

* * * * *

The wedding celebrations and ceremonies were the most euphoric and elaborate in the memory of every Tlaxcalan – and it seemed that the entire population of the Tlaxcalan kingdom turned out for them.

A grand parade, led by Cortez, King Xicotencatl, Chiefs Maxixcatzin, Citlalpopocatzin and Temilotecutl, followed by Tlaxcalan nobles in feathered finery, Cortez’s officers on horseback, the Spanish soldiers with their armor and swords gleamingly polished, the Xocotlan and Totonac warriors led by Chief Mamexi, wound through the city. Every step of the way they were surrounded by deliriously happy throngs of Tlaxcalans waving, cheering, and showering them with flowers.

The temple the king had given the Spaniards had been cleaned and whitewashed, the statue of the Tlaxcalan god of war, Camaxtli, replaced with a cross and a painting of the Virgin Mary. On the very spot where the statue of Camaxtli had been, there was now a carved stone baptismal font with a basin of Holy Water. In front of the font, waiting for the procession, were Friar de Olmedo and Padre Diaz.

Nearby were the Princesses Teculehuatizn and Otila, together with four other daughters of Tlaxcalan nobles. The first of these four, Toltequequetzaltzin (toll-tay-kway-kwayt-zalt-zin), led the other three to the font, where the priests baptized them. Cortez stepped forward, took Toltequequetzaltzin by the hand, and escorted her to Gonzalo de Sandoval. He then escorted the other three in turn to Cristobal de Olid, Andres de Tapia, and Alonzo de Avila.

The priests then conducted a Mass. When a bell rung concluding the Mass, Juan Velasquez de Leon stepped forward as Princess Otila came to the font. Once she was baptized by Friar de Olmedo and given the name Doña Elvira, they both stood hand in hand before Padre Juan Diaz as he recited a prayer in Latin, read from what he called the Old Testament, recited what he called a Psalm, then read from what he called the New Testament. He then turned to Otila with Malinali on her side to translate.

“Doña Elvira, have you freely entered into the Catholic Church to become a Christian and accept Jesus Christ as your savior?” She quickly answered yes. He looked at the couple.

“Marriage is a sacred covenant between the two of you and God. Is it your free choice to accept this covenant between each other, to love and honor each other, to be faithful to each other, and accept the sacred responsibility of the children who may come of this marriage?”

They both eagerly said yes. Cortez, standing by de Leon, handed him a ring, and Malinali did likewise with Otila. Padre Diaz asked them to place the rings on each other’s finger. “The exchange of these rings seals the sacred bond between you which no man may now break asunder. Doña Elvira and Velasquez de Leon, I now pronounce you husband and wife, married in the eyes of the Lord.”

The newlyweds embraced, stood and bowed before everyone assembled, and walked to the side of the altar.

Now came the moment all of Tlaxcala had come to see. People had squeezed into every place to stand in the plaza in front of the new church, and were crowded onto every rooftop around it. Princess Teculehuatizn stepped forward to be baptized. Malinali turned to the crowd and announced in as loud a voice as she could:

“The Princess Teculehuatzin, daughter of Xicotencatl, King of Tlaxcala, has now accepted the Christian God as her god, and the Son of God, Jesus Christ, as her savior. The Princess Teculehuatizn has been given the Christian name of Doña Luisa.”

As her words were repeated by those who heard them to those who didn’t, a murmur arose from the crowd which was trying to understand the meaning of these strange words. The murmur ceased when Pedro de Alvarado proudly stepped to Teculehuatzin’s side. His long golden hair and beard gleamed in the sunlight, and people began shouting the name they knew their princess had given him – Tonatio! Tonatio! He flashed a smile and bowed to the crowd, which responded with cheers and yells.

The princess spoke to Malinali, who informed Pedro de Alvarado, “Doña Luisa says the people love you.” He grinned and responded, “No, they love their princess – they love me because they know that I love her.” Malinali thought for a second, then suggested, “Perhaps we should turn the ceremony around so the people can see the two of you, while I translate Father Olmedo’s words to them.”

This was accepted by all. Don Pedro – Tonatio – with Cortez at his side, and Princess Teculehuatzin – Doña Luisa – with Malinali at her side faced Father Olmedo and the crowd, while Malinali loudly translated the words of the ceremony. When the rings were exchanged, the final words pronounced, and the newlyweds embraced, the crowd burst into delirious celebration. Thousands of flowers were flung in the air towards the couple. The entire city seemed convulsed in celebrating.

The celebrating continued far into the night, with the Tlaxcalan celebrants consuming great quantities of pulque, the fermented juice of the maguey plant.

* * * * *

Early the next morning, the city was asleep – but not King Xicotencatl, who sent a messenger requesting a meeting with Cortez. When he arrived at Cortez’s quarters, Malinali thought he looked very somber. He evidently had something very serious to say. Yet he did not look angry. Instead he looked calm.

“Malinche, after the uniting of my Teculehuatzin with your Tonatio, many people spoke to me. They were very happy about this uniting, but what they spoke most of was there was no blood. They thought this very strange at first. How can there be an important ceremony without sacrifice, how can one ask the blessing of the gods without feeding the gods their food of heart blood? Then they talked of how different is this Christian god of yours – a god that does not need blood to give his blessing. Such a god must be very strong to not require food.

“This is what many of my people said to me. I have talked about this with those who rule Tlaxcala with me. We talked about how such a god must be more powerful than the gods of Montezuma and the Mesheeka. We talked about your words to us that gods who drink human blood are demons. We talked about how strongly we felt the ceremony yesterday in our hearts, yet the ceremony was of such peace. We talked about how happy our daughters are to be Christians now.

“We talked of these things for many hours, Malinche, and now we have made our decision. It is our request that you make us Christians as our daughters.”

Malinali could see Cortez was stunned. His eyes went blank for a second, then focused on her. “Doña Marina, please tell the king to forgive me, but I must take a moment to pray and give thanks to God for the king’s decision.”

Malinali whispered Cortez’s words to the king as Cortez got down on one knee, crossed himself, and prayed. He then stood up to embrace the king and tell him, “Now you are truly my brother, here on earth, and forever in heaven.”

Cortez wasted no time. He asked for Padre Juan Diaz to meet him at the new church for an important baptismal ceremony. Before long, a small group had assembled at the altar. With most of the town still sleeping off the night before, the crowd of witnesses was even smaller.

Cortez addressed the Padre and the group. “Padre Diaz, we are gathered here by the grace of our Lord God, Who has granted the four rulers of Tlaxcala the wisdom to request they be baptized as Christians.” With these words, the padre clutched the cross hanging at his chest, crossed himself, and muttered words of prayerful thanks. Cortez continued.

“Doña Marina, please explain to the king and the other nobles that such a sacred ceremony as this requires padrinos, godparents, who will witness and sponsor their initiation into the Church of Christ, and who will guide and walk with them into living a Christian life. That is why I have asked my closest officers, Don Pedro de Alvarado, Don Cristobal de Olid, and Don Gonzalo de Sandoval to be their padrinos this day. Please tell the king that I am honored to be his padrino, his godfather, and that I request that you be his madrina, his godmother and guide in Christ.”

It was Malinali’s turn to be stunned. Her eyes locked with Cortez’s. She nodded her head slightly and knew that her partnership with him was now complete.

Once she related Cortez’s words to the Tlaxcalans, Cristobal de Olid took Chief Temilotecutl by the hand and led him to the baptismal font where Padre Diaz christened him with the name Don Gonzalo. Chief Citlalpopocatzin was led to the font by Gonzalo de Sandoval and christened Don Bartholomew.

Pedro de Alvarado then stood in front of Chief Maxixcatzin, flashed his dazzling smile, bowed to him, then bowed to King Xicotencatl standing next to him, greeting the king with the word “Suegro” (father-in-law). He turned to Malinali. “Doña Marina, please tell the king that I call him Suegro which means he is now a father to me. Tell him that it is my highest honor to welcome him and his chiefs to the Catholic Church of Christ this day – and that it is only this honor that could have taken me away from his daughter and my wife on this morning.”

His words brought smiles of deep satisfaction to both Tlaxcalan faces. Maxixcatzin whispered something in the king’s ear which Malinali could not help over hearing: “Now we know why Otila’s new husband is not here.” The king struggled to suppress a laugh and both assumed faces of seriousness. Pedro de Alvarado took Maxixcatzin’s hand, led him to the font to be baptized and christened Don Lorenzo.

King Xicotencatl now stood alone. Cortez stepped to one side of him and Malinali the other. They each took one of the king’s hands to lead him to the font. “Padre,” Cortez addressed Padre Diaz, “I bring to you his eminence King Xicotencatl, ruler of the ancient Republic of Tlaxcala, to be received into the bosom of Christ, to be washed of his sins, and welcomed into our Holy Catholic Church. I say this as his padrino, his guide in our faith. I bring also to you Doña Marina, who is to be his madrina and witness to this sacred ceremony.”

“You both accept the duties and obligations of padrino and madrina of this new child of Christ?” asked the Padre. Malinali and Cortez nodded. They stepped aside, the king lowered his head to have the holy water poured over him. After words in Latin and the sign of the cross, the Padre said, “I christen you Don Vincente.” Cortez and Malinali again took the king’s hands. They both said to him, “Mi hermano.” The king turned to Malinali. “It means,” she said, “that for both of us, you are our brother.”