The Doom of The Aztec People – Conquered By the Spanish
The Aztec people called their ruler Tlatoani. The Empire of Aztecs had reached its height under the rule of Tlatoani Montezuma I. Around the year 1517, the priests of the Aztecs began to see the omens of doom. They felt that something bad would happen in their empire and were, unfortunately, right. In 1519 Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes arrived in this region of Mexico. By the end of the year 1521, the Spanish had conquered the Aztec region. They took down much of the city of Tenochtitlan and built their own city on the site called Mexico City. From that time onwards, Maya flourished. The Maya Aztec Inca civilisation began as early as 2000 BC and continued to have a strong presence in this domain.
Let us know further about the Aztec civilisation and other civilisations.
The History of Maya
The Meso America around 3000 years was Spanish until they arrived in 1519 AD. The Maya was then organised into powerful city-state, which became different city-states over the course of Maya’s history. These city-states came into power, such El Mirador, Tikal, Caracol, Uxmal, and Chichen Itza. The Maya was then located in the Central part of America in another region now known today as the southern part of Mexico, the Yucatan Peninsula, Guatemala, Belize, and northern El Salvador. They were built in hundreds of cities that were filled with large stone-type structures.
The Aztec Civilization – What were the People of Aztecs Called?
Aztec civilisation, another name known as Culhua-Mexica, here mainly the Nahuatl-speaking people who reside in the 15th and 16th centuries, ruled this entire large empire.
The region now comes under the central and southern parts of Mexico. The name Aztec is derived from the word Aztlan which is variously translated as “White Land,” “Land of White Herons,” or also the “Place of Herons”. These people, also called the Tenochca, are from one of the eponymous ancestral communities.
Tenoch and the Mexica probably arise from Metzliapán (known as the “Moon Lake”); this is the mystical name for Lake Texcoco. This is from the word Tenochca, derived from the name of their great city, Tenochtitlan, which was founded on an island in Lake Texcoco, in the Valley of Mexico.
From the land of Mexica came the name of the city, which was previously overtaken by the Aztec capital. This was applied in the surrounding valley; later on, it was applied to the whole of the Mexican Nation. The Aztecs called themselves as Culhua-Mexica. This was done to link themselves with the Colhuacán, the focal point of the most civilised people of the Valley of Mexico.
Where Did the Aztec People Come From?
The origin of these Aztec people is quite uncertain. Still, the elements they imbibe in their own tradition indicate that they were the tribe which belonged to the tradition of hunting and gathering on the Northern part of the Mexican plateau. This they used to do before their appearance in Mesoamerican parts; this was perhaps done in the 12th century CE. Aztlan had the possibility to be legendary as well.
This was quite possible that their migration which happened towards the south, was a part of a general movement of peoples that were being followed, or it was perhaps helped by the trigger or the collapse of the highly developed Toltec civilisation of the central part of Mexico and its capital state known as Tula, which is a spectacular urban centre which has many featured pyramid structures, temples, public buildings, and statuary.
However, their stay in the land was quite temporary in nature. Aztec tradition holds a belief in the god known as Huitzilopochtli. According to their belief, this god instructed them to depart from their permanent home time and again in search of another permanent home;. In contrast, on their way, the location of their new home would be revealed by the appearance of an eagle perched on a nopal cactus with its serpent in its beak (this was the image which was then used on Mexico’s National flag).
A long pilgrimage ended in the year 1325 on a small island in the Lake of Tuxedo, where the elder members said they had spotted this eagle. There they built a temple and, around it, on the islands in Lake Texcoco, the first dwellings had started; this was initiated to make Mexico a powerful city.
After knowing much about the Aztec and Maya civilisations individually, let us know the difference between them both in the form of a different graph – Aztec Vs Mayan
Aztec vs Mayan
The Aztecs were the people who spoke the language of Nahuatl. They lived in central Mexico in the 14th to 16th centuries. Their empire had spread across the city of Mesoamerica. The Maya people lived in southern Mexico and northern Central America — a wide territory that includes the entire Yucatán Peninsula — from as early as 2600 BC. The civilisation’s height was between 250 and 900 AD.
The difference chart between Aztecs and Mayans is as follows:
Did You Know?
The Mexican people were the first ones to discover chocolate!
They also made a drink that was quite similar to hot chocolate which we drink today.
They believed that cocoa beans were gifts from God. They also believed that drinking the chocolate would give them God-like wisdom.
Before settling in Mexico, they were actually Nomads who used to wander in American regions.
The Aztec people believed in many gods, especially Rain God.
To keep Gods happy, they used to make many sacrifices, even human sacrifices.
Tenochtitlan, their capital city, was surrounded by many volcanoes and mountains.
Conclusion
Thus, we have seen the era of Mayan and Aztec civilizations. From this content, we have learned about their ideologies, beliefs, and people. Generally, we get a glimpse of Mexican history – how were the people of Mexico, their National Flag, their innovations, and other interesting facts.
FAQs on Maya Aztec Inca Civilization
1. What were the Maya, Aztec, and Inca civilizations?
These were three of the most prominent and advanced pre-Columbian civilizations in the Americas. The Maya civilization, located in Mesoamerica (modern-day southern Mexico and northern Central America), was known for its sophisticated writing system, mathematics, and astronomical observations. The Aztec Empire was a powerful state in central Mexico, famous for its capital city, Tenochtitlan. The Inca Empire was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America, situated in the Andean region of South America and known for its intricate road network and administrative system. You can learn more about these societies in the early Americas to understand their broader context.
2. Who came first: the Mayans, Aztecs, or Incas?
The Maya civilization was the earliest of the three. It originated as early as 2000 BCE, with its Classic Period flourishing between 250 and 900 CE. The Aztec civilization came much later, with their empire rising to prominence in the 14th century CE. The Inca civilization also developed later, establishing their empire around the 13th century CE and reaching its peak in the 15th and early 16th centuries. Therefore, the chronological order is Maya, followed by the Inca and then the Aztec, though their peak periods had some overlap.
3. What were the main similarities between the Maya, Aztec, and Inca civilizations?
Despite their geographical and temporal differences, these three civilizations shared several key characteristics. These include:
Polytheistic Religions: All three worshipped a pantheon of gods, many of whom were tied to nature and astronomical events. Religious rituals were a central part of their societies.
Agricultural Foundation: Their economies were heavily based on agriculture, cultivating staple crops like maize (corn), beans, and squash.
Complex Social Structures: Each civilization had a hierarchical social system with rulers, nobles, priests, commoners, and slaves.
Monumental Architecture: They are all renowned for constructing large-scale structures like pyramids, temples, and cities without the use of modern technology.
4. How did the political and social structures differ among the Maya, Aztec, and Inca?
The key differences in their organisation were significant. The Maya were not a single unified empire but a collection of independent city-states, each with its own ruler. The Aztecs formed a tribute-based empire with a single, powerful emperor at its head, who ruled from the capital, Tenochtitlan. The Inca had a highly centralized and bureaucratic government led by an emperor known as the Sapa Inca, who held absolute power. The Inca state exercised far more direct control over the economy and the lives of its subjects than the Aztecs did.
5. How did these three civilizations adapt their agricultural techniques to their unique environments?
Their agricultural ingenuity was crucial for their survival and growth.
The Maya, in the dense jungle lowlands, practised slash-and-burn agriculture and also developed raised fields to manage swampy areas.
The Aztecs, located around a lake system, famously created chinampas, or 'floating gardens'. These were artificial islands built on the freshwater lake, providing incredibly fertile land for year-round farming.
The Inca, in the steep Andean mountains, mastered terrace farming. They built stone walls to create level strips of land on the mountainsides, which prevented soil erosion and allowed them to farm at high altitudes.
6. What were the primary reasons for the decline of the Maya, Aztec, and Inca empires?
The reasons for their decline vary. The fall of the classic Maya civilization around 900 CE is still debated, with theories pointing to a combination of factors like prolonged drought, internal warfare, disease, and soil exhaustion. For the Aztec and Inca empires, the primary cause of their collapse in the 16th century was the Spanish conquest. The conquistadors, led by Hernán Cortés against the Aztecs and Francisco Pizarro against the Incas, had superior weaponry, brought devastating diseases like smallpox, and exploited internal political unrest to topple the empires.
7. Why are the architectural and scientific achievements of these ancient civilizations still considered remarkable?
Their achievements are remarkable because they were accomplished without technologies we consider essential, such as metal tools, the wheel, or written languages in the case of the Incas. Key achievements include:
Mayan Astronomy: They developed an incredibly accurate calendar system and could predict celestial events like eclipses.
Aztec Engineering: The construction of their capital, Tenochtitlan, with its causeways and aqueducts in the middle of a lake was an engineering marvel.
Inca Stonework and Roads: The Incas built massive stone structures that fit together perfectly without mortar and engineered an extensive road network spanning thousands of kilometres across mountainous terrain. Their record-keeping system, the quipu (knotted strings), was also a unique innovation.
