Land Based Empires (Lecture)

ID Terms

Sovereignty

The authority of the state to govern itself or a territory it claims

Power

Tenochtitlan

This is the capital city of the Mexica empire and was based where mexico City is located now.

Like ancient Rome, Tenochtitlan was both a city and the center of an empire. It wasn’t a capital s much as a city-state that ruled over other city-states

It was just one of the Altepetls that made up the area around Lake Texoco

Altepetls

City-state in MezoAmerica

Pochteca

Long distance traders from the peasant class. Often very wealthy and do the major intelligence gathering for the empire

Nahuatl

Language spoken by the Mexica/Aztec

Aztlan

The mythical home of the Mexica.

Chinampa

Farming technique where artificial land was built by slowing planting mud and grass

Flowery War

A series of ritual wars between the Mexica and city-states outside of their empire

These were basically small conflicts. Intended not to gain territory or even tribute but to capture warriors to sacrifice

Often Flowery wars were committed against places like Tlaxcallan who were proving impossible to fully conquer.

Tribute

Wealth, often given in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance, or respect

Extracted wealth from colonized states

Tlacaelel

1397-1487

Nephew of Emperor Itzcoatl and brother of Moctezuma I.

Creator of new Mexica History

Increased religious rituals of sacrifice

Author of triple alliance

Formulated new laws giving new privleges for nobles

Tlaxcala

City that successful;y resisted being integrated into the Mexica Empire

Constantly subjected to flowery wars

Hated Mexica empire

Hernan Cortes

1485-1547

Catholic Spanish Conquistador who conquered the Mexica

Arrived in the Mexico Area around 1519

Was on a trade mission, and therefore in trouble with his crown for his territory grab

Allowed great cruelty, but also created lasting relationships with Indigenous people

Moctezuma greets him with gold as a tribute and asks him to leave. He is shown around and Moctezuma pledges allegiance to Spain.

Pedro De Alvarado

1485-1541

Spanish Conquistador with Cortez

Left in charge of Tenochtitlan in 1520

Massacred Mexica nobles in the Great Temple during an important festival.

Big Questions

How do empires work? How do they build and keep power? How does that change?

Arguments

Pre-1500 empires had 3 major qualities

  1. They were land empires, or at least very regionally focused empires

  2. Economic extraction was based on

Tenochtitlan

1430:

Triple Alliance: An alliance between the city-states of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan.

Tribute and trade for the Mexica included staples and luxury goods that came from all over the region. (e.g., beans, feathers, gold)

Trade and tribute were the central motivations for the creation and expansion of the Mexica empire.

  1. Built in the center of a lake

    1. Built using the Chinampa technique

  2. Plenty of bridges and causeways

    1. If under attack, they’d just draw the bridges

    2. Plenty canals

    3. People traveled by canoe

  3. Full use of all land

    1. Public gardens, parks, and marketplaces

      1. 60,000 people could trade at the marketplace as it was the center of the neighborhood

      2. Slaves, tamales, doctors, acrobats, animals, judges for dispute settlement.

    2. Boys taught to fight in schools

    3. Noble boys taught to be scholarly

  4. Largest city in the world at its height

    1. 200,000 citizens

  5. Very bureacratic

    1. Hierarchy

      1. Great speaker as leader

        1. Cared for people and agriculture

      2. Nobles

        1. 5% of population

        2. Ruled over the neighborhood

        3. Privileged to wear feathers and beaded cloaks

        4. Sons of nobles were allowed to be poets and scholars.

        5. Punished harsher because they’re expected to have responsibility

        6. Responsible for labor on their land

      3. Pochteca

        1. Merchants

      4. Peasants

      5. Slaves

        1. Peasants fall into debt and sell themselves to a noble

        2. Slave status not inherited

        3. Children sold in slavery

        4. Criminal sold into slavery

        5. Allowed to own goods, money, and time off

        6. Allowed to be sacrificed to the Gods.

Human Sacrifice was very common. Most sacrifices came from slaves and war prisoners (the latter preferred). City-states who fought back were attacked and taken as prisoners.

Building an Empire

  1. Trade

    1. Send Pochteca out to trade and scope out other territories. Build trading posts. Return and report to the great speaker

  2. Encourage others to visit

    1. Invitations to see Tenochtitlans’s greatness and culture

  3. Warfare

    1. Invitation to join the empire

    2. Some agree, many resist

    3. Mexica besiege them and take prisoners of war (military commanders, nobles)

    4. Continue to resistance collapses then ask for higher tribute

  4. Exotic Tribute

    1. Force city-states to trade for exotic goods

    2. Those states find other city-states that have the requested goods

    3. Mexica has a new trade partner

    4. Pochteca find new trade routes

    5. Restart

Client states: Did not have to pay tribute as they were seen as partners in military defense (providing troops)