A large number of historical works written in the sixteenth century were devoted to the discovery and conquest of America, and were classified as “general,” “natural,” or “moral.” This history by Bernal Díaz stands out for the words “true history” in its original title: that is, the events have been “seen and experienced.” Aware that his position as a soldier made him vulnerable to the criticism of learned historians trained in rhetoric and fine writing, the author makes clear from the start his criterion of personal experience, one that is likely to become increasingly highly respected. He omits the imperialistic, ideological plan of the official histories in favor of experience. This work is seen by some as the first novel of Spanish-American literature. It is a powerful exercise of memory that, written over three decades later, reconstructed the days leading to the discovery of the Aztec empire and the conquest of Mexico. The author brings his writing to life through a remarkable narrative skill, based on attention to detail and not excluding irony. His text, moreover, is constructed as a demanding, polemical argument; he strongly questions the inaccuracies of other historians of the same events and, instead of the unctuous panegyrics they wrote about the hero Cortés, he defends the work of the self-sacrificing soldiers who accompanied him. DMG