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This article is about the weapon. You may be looking for the book of the same name.

"This says BELONGING TO HERNÁN. This is the cursed sword that gave Cortés the power to conquer the Aztec empire! Legend has it that the sword made him unstoppable in battle....And it gave him strange powers, like convincing the Aztecs that he was a god. The Aztecs believed the god Quetzalcoatl would come back to them someday, and with this sword, Cortés convinced them that's who he was. Legend says the sword holds limited power if the one who possesses it doesn't also have its sheath."
Arabella Smith[src]

The Sword of Cortés was a mystical, cursed weapon used by Hernán Cortés, a corrosive conquistador, during his conquest of the Aztec empire. The Sword's power was derived from its combination with a scabbard, made from the innards of Aztec sacrifices.

History[]

Cortés' weapon[]

"This type of power is dangerous. And what is worse is... Cortés. He scourged the Yucatán before moving inland to defeat the Aztecs. This sword had a part in that slaughter."
Tumen to Jack Sparrow[src]

The Sword was first wielded by the corrosive conquistador Cortés against the Aztec Empire, and such was its power, it rendered its user unstoppable in battle. It also convinced the Aztecs that Cortés was the god Quetzalcoatl returned to them in human form. However, the Sword was believed to have contributed to the conquistador's downfall, following the loss of the scabbard. This gave rise to the saying, "the loss of the scabbard will cause kingdoms to scab over." Cortés' power base in Mexico deteriorated, and he was ultimately defeated.[1]

Stone-Eyed Sam's weapon[]

"Stone-Eyed Sam had it last."
"What, the pirate captain? The scourge of Panama?"
"Years ago. He took the sword and sheath and used them to make himself king of an isolated island.
"
Arabella Smith and Jack Sparrow[src]

Both the Sword and its sheath eventually fell into the hands of Stone-Eyed Sam, who used the combined power to rule over Isla Esquelética in the Caribbean. The legend of the Sword caught the attention of Davy Jones, during his time as ruler of the sea, and he struck a deal with Captain Torrents to procure it, marking the man with the sign of Quetzalcoatl, mimicking that found on the scabbard.[1]

Jack Sparrow[]

Cortes vs Montezuma

The spirit of Cortés uses the Sword against the spirit of Montecuhzoma.

"The Sword, is now yours. You read the incantation. You invoked its power."
Hernán Cortés' spirit to Jack Sparrow[src]

Jack Sparrow and the crew of the Barnacle also set out to find the Sword, after Sparrow stole its scabbard from Torrents, whom Sparrow later marooned on Isla Esquelética. By this time, Left-Foot Louis had taken the Sword from Stone-Eyed Sam, whose kingdom had been devastated through the Sword's power. Jack caught up with Louis on Isla Fortuna, where Arabella Smith used the Sword to make Louis vanish into another dimension (or so she thought at the time). Jack and Fitzwilliam P. Dalton III recited an incantation found in the coffin of Francois, which summoned the spirit of Cortés himself.[2] The phantom taught Jack how to use the Sword, though was actually furthering his own agenda, and planned to once again wield the Sword to take control of the Seven Seas.[3]

In Tia Dalma's care[]

"The Sword belongs to no one. But I will house it here, and it will not be misused again."
Tia Dalma[src]

Cortés was finally defeated when Jack released the spirit of the conquistador's nemesis, Montecuhzoma, from the eye of Stone-Eyed Sam. Jack gave the Sword up to Tia Dalma, who placed it in her shack for safe-keeping.[3] It is unknown what ever happened to the Sword, as Tia Dalma was later part of the ritual to free Calypso.

Time travel[]

"Boys, prepare to meet your maker—at the hands of Stone-Eyed Sam and his all powerful weapon, the Sword of Cortés!"
Stone-Eyed Sam to Jack Sparrow and Fitzwilliam[src]

However, that wasn't the last time Jack saw the cursed blade. When Jack and Fitzwilliam returned to Isla Esquelética, the Timekeeper disrupted the flow of time. The very much alive Stone-Eyed Sam attempted to kill them with the Sword, until Jack restored time which caused Sam to disintegrate.[4]

Design and power[]

"One more thing, Jack Sparrow. That sword in your hands is powerless against creatures who reside in Davy Jones's locker—including your opponents."
Morveren to Jack Sparrow[src]

The Sword of Cortés held immense power. With the power of the Sword, Cortés conquered the Aztec Empire, which was the most powerful empire in the Americas at that time. The Sword could transform objects from one shape to another, which Cortés used to transform the fishing boat Barnacle into a grand warship called the Grand Barnacle for Jack Sparrow. The sword also had the ability to teleport people from one place to another. Arabella Smith teleported Left-Foot Louis from Isla Fortuna to the La Fleur de la Mort, though that wasn't what she intended, and Jack Sparrow teleported himself from Isla Sirena onboard the Grand Barnacle after he defeated the two Iguana monsters. The sword could also create winds out of nowhere, which Jack Sparrow used to sail the Grand Barnacle to Isla Sirena. However, the sword's power had its limitations. The sword couldn't hurt the creatures from Davy Jones' Locker. Also, the Eye of Stone-Eyed Sam was more powerful than the sword because it contained the spirits of the Aztecs that were slaughtered by the sword's first owner, the conquistador Hernán Cortés.

Appearances[]

Notes and references[]

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