Aztec collapse of the Empire

Aztec History

The pre‑Colombian (before Colombus "discovered" America) governments of Mexico ranged from simple tribal systems to complicated empires like the Aztecs.  Likewise, the societies of pre-Colombian Mexico varied from simple extended-family groups to large civilizations rivaling their contemporaries (civilizations existing at the same time) around the world.  The Aztecs originally came from either northern Mexico or from what is now Arizona or New Mexico. After a long period of wandering the Aztec people saw an eagle on a cactus with a snake in its mouth.  They saw this in the middle of Lake Texcoco.  This was the sign that the vision of Huitzilopochtli had told them to look for.  It meant that their many years of wandering were over and it was time for the Aztec empire to rise.  So, the Aztec began to construct their new capital city of Tenochtitlán in the center of Lake Texcoco.

Aztec Society

As it developed in and around Tenochtitlán, Aztec society became more rigidly divided into social classes. Political power and control over the land came to rest in the hands of a few ruling families. Most of the people were farmers. Although the aristocrats (nobles), priests, and rulers could not have survived without the common people, the common people had little to say about just what the Aztec empire would do or even what their lives would be like. Indeed, by 1519 the farmers had declined in status to the level of serfs in medieval Europe.  This meant that most people in Aztec society did not own land; instead, they worked land owned by the upper class.  Commoners were unable to act without the permission of the land owner and, in fact, did not even own what they produced.  Instead, the land owners took most of what the commoners produced for themselves and left only enough for the commoners to survive.

Aztec Technology

When Hernán Cortés and his men entered Mexico it was almost as if they had stepped back in time to ancient Egypt. In technological terms, the people of Mexico were in the earliest stages of the Bronze Age. Although artisans knew how to use gold, silver, and copper, these metals were used only for ornaments.  All tools were made of stone, wood, and bone.
By the 16th century, the Mexican peoples had developed sophisticated agricultural technology which included canals for irrigation and advanced planting techniques.  Still, the Aztec had only a few domesticated (tamed) animals, including dogs, turkeys, and bees. There were no horses in the Americas, and the people of Mexico had no other beast of burden (animal used to till fields, carry loads, etc.).
While the Aztecs, and their predecessors (people who came before them) in Central America, had constructed brilliant and complex civilizations, they had done so with virtually no mechanical help. The Aztecs did not use the wheel for transportation. They had no labor‑saving devices such as cranes, watermills, windmills, or pulleys.  They generally relied on human muscle power to do work and to transport people and goods.  This, in a way, makes their achievements even more impressive.

The Aztec Empire

The Aztec Empire covered much of central Mexico. Around 1400 AD, the Aztecs began to conquer the peoples around them.  The Aztec would make alliances (agreements to work together) with weak neighbors against powerful enemies.  After the defeat of those enemies, the Aztec would turn on their allies and conquer them as well.  By 1502 their empire stretched throughout central Mexico south to the border of present‑day Guatemala. Thus, when Europeans arrived in the New World, the Aztec Empire was relatively young.  Many of Mexico's peoples accepted Aztec rule only reluctantly.  The Aztecs' betrayal of their treaties left many of the tribes very upset.
Perhaps because it was relatively young, the empire of the Aztecs had only the most basic administrative structure. The emperor, called "Great Speaker," was a semi‑divine (better than human, but not quite a God) ruler who lived in an elaborate palace complex surrounded by extraordinary wealth. The palace housed the emperor's servants and the people who managed the everyday functions of the state.  Basically, everyone who made the Aztec Empire work.
The functions of the state included the collection of tribute, or payments, from subject peoples. Once conquered, subject peoples had to pay tribute or suffer military retaliation. Garrisons (permanent military posts) with governors were set up to insure the prompt collection of goods and their safe transport to the capital. That was the extent of imperial administration. There were no standard laws, no concept of citizenship. People simply paid tribute to a godlike Aztec emperor.  Beyond the payment of tribute and continued loyalty, the Aztec required nothing of the tribes they conquered.

Tribute

The Aztecs collected such things as cacao beans, deer hides, conch shells, feathers and bolts of cotton cloth as tribute from subject peoples. Some of the tribute was kept by the imperial court in Tenochtitlán. The rest was used to pay the emperor's artisans and warriors. It was this tribute that kept the empire operating.
But, the Aztecs demanded another form of tribute from subject people as well: subjects for their human sacrifices. The Aztec gods needed human blood to maintain themselves.  The Aztecs believed that humans were created from a combination of corn, water, and the blood of Huitzilopochtli.   To maintain the gods it was necessary to sacrifice humans in order to return the pure corn/blood to the gods.  It was considered an honor to be sacrificed to the gods in Aztec culture.  As such, families and individuals hoped to be sacrificed.  This explains why the most intelligent, strongest, and most beautiful Aztec citizens were sacrificed.  Because, however, the Aztec required daily sacrifice, generally the best of Aztec society were reserved for the most powerful Gods or special occasions.  For lower level gods and day to day sacrifices, the Aztec used prisoners of war or members of tribes given as tribute.  It was important that the heart of the person being sacrificed was removed because the Aztec knew it was the source of blood for the body.

Key Religious Ideas

The Aztecs had a rich religious life. The Aztecs, like other Central American peoples, kept careful observations and records of the calendar. Through observations of the stars, the Aztec knew that the year consisted of 365 days.  They divided those days into 18 months of 20 days each and one special ceremonial month of five days.  The Aztec believed that critical events occurred on certain days and in certain cycles of years.  Every day on the calendar has a specific god which it was tied to; it was important to honor the correct god on the correct day.  By keeping track of the calendar, the Aztec priests could plan regularly occurring ceremonies and events, regulate planting times for agriculture, and foretell the future.
A key figure in Aztec religion was the god Quetzalcoatl (literally the "Feathered Serpent").  According to the Aztec religion, the white‑skinned Quetzalcoatl was to return to earth in the form of a man; Quetzalcoatl would come from the East. When he did, he would destroy the Aztec civilization.

Warfare

The key to keeping the tribute flowing into the Aztec capital was the army. Aztec warriors gloried in war. Splendidly costumed and armed with spears, darts, and clubs set with razor‑sharp stone blades, Aztec troops were, generally, the best in ancient Mexico.
While powerful, Aztec armies and warfare were not designed to kill the enemy. Because of the need for human sacrifices, Aztec soldiers routinely tried to capture their opponents. Rather than working as a group to kill the enemy, the Aztec soldiers worked as individuals to capture individual enemies.  To some degree, warfare was driven not only by the desire for new land and resources, but by the need for prisoners to sacrifice.  This view of war and battle contrasted sharply with the Spanish soldiers who accompanied Hernán Cortés.  In Europe, the object of war was to kill the enemy.  Europeans fought as groups aiming to kill the enemy, not capture him.  Cortés' men were hardened by long years of fighting in Europe.  For them, warfare was not a ritual event, but a job with a specific goal: kill the enemy on the field of battle.

The Spanish Arrive

Hernán Cortés was a soldier of fortune who had taken part in the conquest of Cuba. A clever and resourceful leader, Cortés was chosen to lead an expedition to Mexico to investigate stories of a rich civilization there.  The Spanish hoped to take gold and spices from the mainland and return it to Spain.
On the day that the Aztec religion predicted Quetzalcoatl's return, Cortés and his army landed at Vera Cruz on the eastern coast of Mexico.  Cortés landed in Mexico in March, 1519 with some 600 men, thirteen horses, and a few cannon and muskets. The sailing ships, iron tools, horses, steel armor and gun‑powder weapons of the Spanish immediately impressed the local people around Vera Cruz. They saw the Spaniards as a way to break free from the hated Aztec rule. For his part, Cortés realized that these people could be useful allies. An allied force of Spaniards and non-Aztec natives set out for the Aztec capital.  He relied on them throughout his campaign. 
Meanwhile, messengers arrived at Tenochtitlán with news of strange events in the east. A mountain was said to have moved on the water. From it there emerged men with white faces and long beards. The emperor, Moctezuma, unlike any of his predecessors, was more interested in religion than in war. In dreams he had seen the return of Quetzalcoatl. He had dreamed of strange men riding on the backs of deer. The emperor Moctezuma believed Cortés to be the god returned to destroy Mexico.

Cortés Arrives In Tenochtitlán

When Cortés and his men first saw the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán they were amazed by the sight. The city that lay before them contained about a quarter of a million people (250,000), more than double the largest city in Europe. Built on artificial islands in Lake Texcoco, the city covered almost five square miles. In the city the Spanish could see huge markets into which goods from all over Mexico flowed. Even more impressive were the massive stone pyramid temples, the largest of which was 120 feet tall. Temples, palaces, ceremonial ballcourts, and other public buildings, each covered with elaborate carvings of gods and heroes, dominated the city's center.
When the Spanish arrived outside his capital, Moctezuma welcomed them. He showered Cortés with rich gifts. Moctezuma believed he was welcoming Quetzalcoatl's return.  As a result of this believe, Moctezuma gave Cortés anything he asked for.  At first, this was mostly gold and food, but as time passed Moctezuma also gave Cortés Aztec citizens.

The Collapse Of The Aztecs

It did not take Moctezuma and other Aztec leaders long, however, to realize that the Spaniards were not mighty gods; it was clear that Cortés was not Quetzalcoatl returning to earth.  When it became clear that the Spanish were, in fact, nothing more than treasure hunters the Aztec made plans to resist.  Gathering their forces, the Aztecs attacked the Spanish, killing about one‑third of the handful of men Cortés had brought to Tenochtitlán.  Cortés, and the rest of his force, barely escaped from the city; during the time they were there, however, they managed to take thousands of pounds of gold.  Moctezuma was killed in the fighting.
In the summer of 1521 Cortés returned to the Aztec capital with a force of 600 Spaniards newly arrived from Cuba and about 25,000 non-Aztec natives. Cortés built small ships, mounted cannon on them, and sent them out into the lake to surround the city.  This prevented Tenochtitlán from being re-supplied, leaving the residence to starve.  Meanwhile, while the city was surrounded, smallpox broke out within Tenochtitlán and killed several thousand citizens. With no escape, the starving defenders fought their final battle on August 13, 1521.  The Spanish and their native allies defeated the Aztec decisively.  The conquerors tore down what remained of the broken city.

The Result

While Tenochtitlán fell within three years of the arrival of the Spanish, the overall conquest of Mexico itself would be along process.  It took the Spanish another 60 years to actually take over all of modern Mexico.  During that time, much of the damage to native cultures was done not by Spanish armies, but by disease.  Smallpox, in particular, proved particularly devastating to native peoples. It is estimated that of the 15 to 20 million natives in Mexico at the time of the Spanish arrival, only 2 to 4 million remained by 1550.  Today Mexico City stands on the ruins of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán. The city's main cathedral is located next to the original site of the main Aztec temple.

The Collapse of the Aztecs Chart

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