Studied by 9 people
Aztecs original name
Mexica
called themselves the people of the sun because they have two sun gods and thought the world was made by the sun
Place the Aztecs settled
Tenochtitlan
found where a eagle in its mouth on top of a cactus
religion
polytheistic
over 200 different gods
main gods
Tlaloc, god of rain
Huitzilopochtli, god of war and sun
Quetzalcoatl, god of civilization
Tezcatlipoca, god of destiny and fortune
sacrificed people to their gods
Chinampas
self watering farms that use the water around them and use the trees for nutrients
Slaves
not against their will
form of jail to pay off debt
prisoner of war or debt
rarely forced
Aztec merchants
professionals called the Pochteca would set off with slaves to buy and trade
they were spies, finding cities weaknesses are, building their military, and planned war based on how well the city was doing
they were the richest group in Tenochtitlan
went on trading expeditions
they knew geography well, so they’d be good for warfare
taxes they paid grew the Aztec state
Artisans
they were skilled craftsmen
most respected were the mask makers, goldsmiths, feather workers
feather workers created valuable items like a headdress made of quetzal feathers
Sun stone
a calendar
many symbols representing days and religion
5 world stages
death by jaguars
death by wind
death by fire
death by flood
death by movement
Human sacrifice
to prevent destruction from gods, they’d please them by feeding them the human sacrifices
devotion to their religion
two gods sacrificed themselves so to honor and feed them they use blood to nourish them
the sun would end without it
warriors
if you were a young man, you had to join the military
worst insult is a coward
highly honored
success by bravery in wars, tactical skill, heroic deeds, capturing enemy warriors
Wars
they had flower wars
fighting against other civilizations
they had similar beliefs, to capture people in war for sacrifice
practice fight or ritual war
all equal and at the same time
if they were successful, they’d be honored, have the right to wear certain clothes
tribute
they would earn tribute, like gifts and taxes from the conquered group after a war
they wanted tribute to grow their economy and their empire
Hierarchy (bottom to top)
slaves
farmers
women
artisans
novice warriors
merchant
eagle soldiers
jaguar soldiers
nobles
priestesses
priest
great speaker
Quetzalcoatl
Tlaloc
Huitzilopochtli
Emperor
treated as a god
privilege and luxury
had gardens and zoos
responsibilities are chief priest, commander in chief, head of state
needed to know leadership and military strategy
Nobles
rich and wealthy
in control of society
ran the government
owned land, slaves, servants
commanded the army
control of land, labour, and tribute
priests and priestess
hard job even though they were treated as nobles
some examples of what they had to do are measuring time, naming certain constellations
reading the calendar
Farmers
grew crops, skilled hunters, and fishers
when Aztec citizens paid taxes, farmers had to give up a share of their produce to taxes
Tlatelolco market
largest market in the world at that time
could hold up to 60000 people at a time
used the barter system which was a system where things were traded
Education
ages 10 -15
expected to be hard working
harshly punished
all schooling was free
Calmecac for nobles
Telpotchcalli for commoners
Calmecac
trained to be a strong warrior
needed to be tough
trained to be higher up in society
for nobles
Telpotchcalli
oral lessons on history, religion, citizenship duties
music was learned
hard labour jobs
didn’t learn to read or write, everything was written
ideal qualities of an Aztec citizen
courage
self sacrifice
modesty
clean living
obedience
Hernan Cortes
lead an expedition to the new world
he got to present day Mexico in 1519
he wanted to claim land, find gold, and spread Catholicism
when he got to Mexico he declared an independent government
sank and burned the ships he sailed with to have full power over all his armies
conquistadors
to conquer one group
Aztec first meeting Spanish
Lack of knowing others worldview led to the downfall of the Aztecs
Omens
sign or prediction of something that will happen in the future
Aztec believed in them
example: fire comets, meaning the gods were not happy
Aztec weapons
war club
wooden spears
atlatl
bow and arrow
Spanish weapons
sword
halberd
crossbow
arquebus
Biological warfare
The Spanish used smallpox because the Spanish won’t get sick because their immune system can handle it, rather as the Aztecs can die from it
25% - 50% died because of it
Spanish teaming up
they met other indigenous people, in which he befriended them or conquered them to go against the Aztecs
Malinche
a young woman who was a slave
link between Cortes and Moctezuma because she spoke both languages
Moctezuma’s dilemma
he believed Cortes was Quetzalcoatl and he would do anything for him
characteristics Cortes fit into were sailing from the east, he was white-skinned and had a beard
Moctezuma showed Cortes their golden tressures, so Cortes had planned to take over them the whole time
Noche Triste
Cortes heard governor Velazquez had sent troops to kill Cortes, so Cortes had fled to defeat them. He let second in command be in charge of Tenochtitlan. When he returned, they had massacred a group of dancers.
Final battle
during the last siege Aztec priests though sacrifice and prayers would help
they lasted through a 75 day siege
canals, causeways, aqueducts blocked
August 13th they surrendered
Spanish destroyed the city, from temples, houses, etc.
affected worldview after the spanish
values, valued themselves over others
religion might shift due to them being disappointed in their gods for not saving them
no society, where Spanish are higher class and Aztecs are all slaves
New economy
made the encomienda system, which is the same as other Spanish colonies, which were based on land grants
settlers were given an Aztec worker, or slave, treat them well, and educate the “worker” about Catholicism
System of slavery
king - 20% of gold
governor - taxes, colony
conquistador - “Aztec workers”
Aztec - do all the work
Cortes men pay in return
instead of riches they got a wife and a big piece of land
Bartolome De Las Casas
he advocated for indigenous people
can write directly to the king
made laws for indigenous people for better work treatment and less slavery
famous for anti-racism and human rights
marriage laws
helped Cortes colonize
whoever didn’t marry within 6 months of arriving would lose their encomienda and go back to Spain
they’d have mixed race families
they aren’t against Spanish or Aztec but grow up with more Spanish culture
independence movement
king Carlos sent a new viceroy to New Spain in fear Cortes would cut him off and he would not receive more riches
Spanish settlers and Aztecs weren’t happy with Spain becoming overly wealthy because of New Spain
Everything good stopped coming so in 1821 declared independence from Spain, which is now known as Mexico
Culture today
Many of Aztec culture is in many Mexican traditions like the day of the dead, and also seen through writing and art
Note
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