... by the hand of the Lord. America has, by divine Providence, been set apart to be a "city of refuge" to men and women of every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, who should believe in the Gospel. (Alma 46:17)
When we read of the savagery that marked the first contact of some European conquerers of America with the natives, after the marvelous discovery of the country by Columbus, it may not be easy to recognize the hand of the Lord in the entire history of that time. But I think we may say that God directed the conquerors in the same way that he led the Assyrians under Sennacherib, or the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar, or the Romans under Vespasian and Titus, and for very much the same reason, to overrun Palestine at various times.
The Aztec confederacy, which was broken up by Cortez, through his exploits in Mexico, was, in fact a "plunderbund" whose armed forces were maintained mainly for the purpose of robbing more or less defenseless communities, and carrying away corn and gold and other valuables, and especially human beings for slaves and cruel sacrifices; their worship was mostly revolting idolatry. Montezuma II, who was made a prisoner by Cortez, and who was killed while entitled to protection by the Spaniards, was really a despot, hated and feared even by some of his pretended allies. That is evident from the fact that thousands of the people of Tlascala joined Cortez in his march upon Tenochtitlan. That is perhaps also proved by the fact that a most efficient guide and pilot of the little army of Cortez was a young, brilliant woman, Marina, from Tabasco, who, by her loyalty to the invaders and her linguistic knowledge, saved the expedition from destruction at Cholula, and rendered valuable service at all times. Montezuma can not have been greatly beloved by the common people.
In Peru, the Incas, at the time of the arrival of Pizarro, who caused Atahualpa to accept "baptism" and then to be choked to death with a bow-string, and who burned the Chieftain Chalcuchima at the stake, were despots, who seemed to aim at the conquest of the world. Atahualpa himself had no legitimate claim to the position of ruler of Peru. Only a short time before the arrival of the Spaniards, he left Quito, where he was the governor, and marched upon Cuzco. His war was characterized by the utmost barbarity. He caused the family of the ruling Inca to be massacred, and the ruler himself, Inca Huascar, to be finally, murdered.
The culture of the Peruvians, although altogether remarkable and, in some respects superior to that of the Mayas and Nahuas, was nevertheless rigid, communistic despotism, made possible by the strangling of individual liberty and the establishment of superstitious class distinction. It rested on the falsehood that the Incas alone were the children of the Almighty, while the common people were their servants. The weakness of the system was seen clearly, when a handful of Spaniards could overthrow the structure, as easily as a child with the sweep of a hand destroys a house of cards.
If we remember that the Lord, according to the Book of Mormon, repeatedly cautioned the people here against despotism, which leads to destruction (see 1 (See vv. 10-12)
However, it is only justice to say that not all the Spaniards were in the class referred to. There were men, such as Las Casas, for instance, and many others, who gladly gave themselves and all they had in the unselfish service of the natives, to the best of their ability and the understanding they had.