aztecs

hey people
i was wondering if anyone has any good information on aztecs. i am interested in learning there culture and lifestyles. and i also heard that they had bigger citys then any country in europe at that time. well i am out

I'd start here

www.google.com...

Originally posted by konartis96
and i also heard that they had bigger citys then any country in europe at that time. well i am out

Yeah, Tenochtitlan was truly huge... However the population is disputed. Some say around 200,000. Others 400,000. Some even more than that, nearing 1 million. Considering the MASSIVE armies they put out, I would actually guess more towards the latter.

One of the most interesting things about Aztecs is that they made the most amazing city in the middle age, basically an island in the nenter of a lake system. The lake system was controled by dams and it had four boulevards from the perimeter to the center, that was considered a ceremonial and spiritual center. The Spaniards where amazed by its beauty and construction, then How such and advenced society went under the rule of no more than 300 spaniards?

Firts they had prophesies of "gods" with white skin that would come...
Seconf the Smallpox that was brought here killed millions
and Most impostant Most of the tribes living in Mexico Hated the AZTECS that were imperialistic and enslaving in their comercial and political manuvers (rings a bell?) so the other tribes sided with the spaniards and that is why the empire fell in 1521....
I am sure you will love the history of those societies, for they teach us a lot of mistakes and a lot of good things

The Spaniards also had horses and "boom-sticks" that scared the crap out of them . And also the first time the Spanish tried to conquer them by force the lost....only to try again a few years later and succeed.

You are right the horses were th e best weapon in Spaniards arsenal...

yes they were and i wonder why spain wanted to conquer them and destroy them. they should of just learned off of eachother.

I agree with 'ya konartis96! But I think its because they were greedy self-rightess pigs....no offense to any Spainards.

yeah thats true right when they find a new civilization they want to destroy it and make it there land thats what happened in canada, usa, they took the land from the indians. damn europeans. they were greedy and wanted everything for them selves

Originally posted by hatchedcross
The Spaniards also had horses and "boom-sticks" that scared the crap out of them

. And also the first time the Spanish tried to conquer them by force the lost....only to try again a few years later and succeed.

Dont forget that the metal swords of the spanish rendered the aztec swords useless, since the blade pieces flew off (sharp volcanic rocks or something, cant remember) when they hit each other.

I would guess that was pretty surprising, since against the unarmoured and equally armed opponents, the aztec swords could chop a guy in half better than any metal sword can.

[edit on 23-10-2004 by merka]

yes they were and i wonder why spain wanted to conquer them and destroy them. they should of just learned off of eachother.

im sure this was because they wanted to impose the catholic faith on to them and they already had their own gods that worked fine for them,when they wouldnt accept catholocism they started killing- theres a story of a traveller returning to the spanish court to show off a rubber coat he had made from obviously a rubber tree,when he poured water on himself and didnt get wet he was executed for practising witchcraft,i think there was a lot of fear around at the time and the spaniards didnt like how advanced the aztecs seemed to be,so they just wiped them out and along with it much of their records.?

Regards.

bigger and more advanced civilization check POPUL VUH The sacredbook of th ancient quiche maya

Originally posted by optimus fett

yes they were and i wonder why spain wanted to conquer them and destroy them. they should of just learned off of eachother.

im sure this was because they wanted to impose the catholic faith on to them and they already had their own gods that worked fine for them,when they wouldnt accept catholocism they started killing- theres a story of a traveller returning to the spanish court to show off a rubber coat he had made from obviously a rubber tree,when he poured water on himself and didnt get wet he was executed for practising witchcraft,i think there was a lot of fear around at the time and the spaniards didnt like how advanced the aztecs seemed to be,so they just wiped them out and along with it much of their records.?

Regards.

Its so much more simple: Greed. They wanted the gold.

Originally posted by merka
Its so much more simple: Greed. They wanted the gold.

Yes, that is why in Brasil this did not hapenned. There was gold and other valuable minerals, but the population did not use them, so the Portuguese started exploring the mineral riches of the country.

yeah they must of destroyed them cause of there religion. they had many gods. and were very religious people and yeah they had most of the gold in there city and thats probably why the spaniards attacked them.

To this day the debate continues, what ifs and so about the precolombian Civilizations.

There are so many contradictions, that bogle the mind for example the mayans were amazingly advanced in geo and astronomical calculus and had the zero and advanced mathematics but NO WHEEL?, and it seems they could made incredibly accurate raods with NO CURVES with NO COMPASS?

I fascinating all the data the dead ends and weird facts because much info was lost...

Originally posted by kix
There are so many contradictions, that bogle the mind for example the mayans were amazingly advanced in geo and astronomical calculus and had the zero and advanced mathematics but NO WHEEL?, and it seems they could made incredibly accurate raods with NO CURVES with NO COMPASS?

Well, everything is develop from needs. What use is the wheel in the middle of the jungle? Or in the mountainous areas? Making something straight is simple, all it takes is a bit of will and a string tied between two sticks.

Something many people seem to forget is that time was not really an issue. Everyday life was surely reflected by this. If it took a year to make a straight road, they would have taken the time.

[edit on 24-10-2004 by merka]

You should remember that the Aztecs were a North American tribe that descended from the North. They became known as the Mexica and their arrival coincided with the destruction of the Toltec empire. They then founded their own city on an island in the lake of Texcoco. After a neighboring city-state controlled the city for a brief period, the Mexica formed a triple alliance with neighboring cit-states to overthrow the powerful Azcapotzalco. After conqueringmany of the cultures in the lake, they assimilated these cultures into their own. They spread their influence far into the reaches of modern day Mexico. Cortes arrived and destroys the city with angered city-states under Aztec control. Soon, Spaniards control the Empire and rapidly spread their power.

� ca. 1100 Nahuatl-speaking peoples begin migrating toward central Mexico. They are led by their tribal god Huitzilopochtli ("Hummingbird on the Left"), his image borne on a priest's shoulders. Aztl�n ("Place of the Herons"), an island in a lake in west or northwest Mexico, is said to be their point of origin.
� ca. 1175 The violent destruction of the central Mexican city of Tula coincides approximately with the arrival of Nahuatl-speaking peoples from northern Mexico.
� ca. 1325 The Mexica people settle on a marshy island in the Basin of Mexico's Lake Texcoco after almost 200 years of wandering. Naming their city Tenochtitlan, they build a sanctuary dedicated to their tribal/war god Huitzilopochtli and to the ancient rain god Tlaloc
� ca. 1371 In the Basin of Mexico, Tezozomoc (r. 1371�1426) becomes king at Azcapotzalco, then the most powerful city-state in the region. He assumes control of neighboring Tenochtitlan and names Acamapichtli its king.
� ca. 1372 Acamapichtli (r. 1375�95) enlarges Tenochtitlan's main sanctuary, building two temple pyramids side by side. He forges political alliances through strategic marriages.
� ca. 1391 Huitzilihuitl (r. 1396�1417), son and successor of Acamapichtli in Tenochtitlan, expands the economic and political power of the Mexica in the Basin of Mexico, while remaining subordinate to Azcapotzalco
� ca. 1427 Tenochtitlan joins forces with two smaller cities, Tlacopan on the west and Texcoco on the east side of Lake Texcoco, to form the Triple Alliance; together they defeat powerful Azcapotzalco and the Aztec empire begins. The Mexica of Tenochtitlan soon become the dominant force of the Alliance.
� ca. 1431 The Main Temple of Tenochtitlan is enlarged for the third time. A date-glyph "4 Reed," located at the rear of the pyramid of the Temple of Huitzilopochtli, marks this construction phase. Aztec military expansion throughout the Basin of Mexico progresses rapidly and building activity in Tenochtitlan increases.
� ca. 1445 Under the ruler Motecuhzoma Ilhuicamina (Motecuhzoma I, r. 1440�69), Aztec imperial domination spreads beyond the Basin. The Aztecs control extensive land, labor, and valuable resources. Several hundred northern city-states are conquered and subject to heavy tribute payments.
� ca. 1450 Tzintzuntzan in western Mexico thrives, receiving large quantities of tributary goods from communities throughout the Tarascan empire. Five keyhole-shaped pyramid platforms, called y�catas in the Tarascan language, make up the ceremonial heart of the city. They are faced with dressed basalt and often covered with petroglyphs. The y�catas are dedicated to the Tarascan sun god Curicaueri, a deity similar to the Aztec patron god Huitzilopochtli.
� ca. 1454 In Tenochtitlan, further construction takes place at the Main Temple in the year "1 Rabbit" (1454 A.D.). The pyramid is embellished with large-scale incense braziers and serpent heads. Cists are built on all four sides to receive thousands of offerings to honor the gods Tlaloc and Huitzilopochtli.
� ca. 1469 The Aztec empire continues to grow. At Castillo de Teayo, in the Huastec region of the northern Gulf Coast, an Aztec-style stepped pyramid with a stone temple at its summit is constructed. Numerous freestanding sculptures, carved in local sandstone, represent Aztec deities and standard bearers.
� ca. 1473 Tenochtitlan conquers the small island city of Tlatelolco located to its north in Lake Texcoco. The two cities merge, becoming the most densely populated urban center in Mesoamerica. It covers an area of approximately five square miles.
� ca. 1478 The expanding Tarascan and Aztec empires confront each other in battle, the Tarascans killing or wounding more than 20,000 Aztecs. A frontier of empty land guarded by fortresses on each side is established between the two empires.
� ca. 1480 A superbly sculpted monument, depicting the dismembered body of Coyolxauhqui, sister of the Aztec tribal and war god Huitzilopochtli, is placed at the foot of the stairway leading to his sanctuary at the Main Temple.
� ca. 1481 During the brief reign of Tizoc, a massive stone monument, known as the Tizoc Stone, is carved. Thirty conventionalized, stiff figures depict victorious Aztec warriors in ritual attire grasping by the hair the leaders of conquered towns. The captives are identified by place-name glyphs.
� ca. 1486 Aggressive expansion takes place under the rulership of Ahuitzotl (r. 1486�1502) when his armies subdue the peoples of the mountainous lands of Guerrero and Oaxaca, substantially extending the tribute domain.
� ca. 1487 A greenstone plaque with the date "8 Reed" commemorates the completion of an enlargement of the main sanctuary in Tenochtitlan in 1487. Large numbers of prisoners of war are taken to the imperial capital for ritual sacrifice.
� ca. 1490 The total number of inhabitants in the island city of Tenochtitlan-Tlatelolco may have reached 200,000 or more. The bulk of the urban population are workers, including craft specialists such as potters, goldsmiths, lapidaries, featherworkers, and stonemasons. They produce ceremonial art and luxury goods of the finest quality for use by Aztec nobles in temples and palaces. The most important commercial center of central Mexico is the great market of Tlatelolco.
� ca. 1502 Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin (Motecuzhoma II, r. 1502�20) is crowned king in Tenochtitlan. Like his predecessors he fails to conquer the Tarascans in the west and the Tlaxcalans to the east of the Valley of Mexico.
� ca. 1518 Spaniards sailing from Cuba journey along the jungle coast of Tabasco where they encounter local chiefs wearing colorful cotton capes, brilliant feather ornaments, and gold jewelry. They barter European glass beads for gold and supplies.
� ca. 1519 Hern�n Cort�s (1485�1547) and about 500 soldiers land near the modern town of Cempoala in early 1519. They are met by Motecuhzoma's emissaries, who offer exotic gifts including elaborate costumes, feather fans and headdresses, and jewelry of shell, turquoise, jade, and gold, hoping to prevent the strangers from continuing to the imperial city. Cort�s is also given a young woman named Malintzin or Malinche. Speaking both Nahuatl, the language of central Mexico, and Chontal Maya, spoken on the coast, she becomes his translator, confidante, and consort. On August 16, 1519, Cort�s and his small army set off for Tenochtitlan.
� ca. 1520 Motecuhzoma II is taken prisoner in Tenochtitlan by Cort�s and killed, but the Spaniards are forced to retreat.
� ca. 1521 The Spaniards ally themselves with the Tlaxcalans, long-time enemies of the Aztecs, and lay siege to island Tenochtitlan. After 93 days of siege, the population is decimated by starvation, disease, lack of fresh water, and the massacre of thousands. On August 13, 1521, Cuauhtemoc (1495?�1525), the last ruler of the Aztecs, is taken captive, the city completely leveled, and the Aztec empire falls to the Spanish conquerors.
� ca. 1522 Catholic churches and monasteries, as well as mansions for the new Spanish rulers, rise on the ruins of Aztec temples and shrines in Tenochtitlan. The architecture shows a mixture of Romanesque, Gothic, and Renaissance styles.
� ca. 1524 The first twelve Franciscan friars arrive. They begin converting the indigenous population to the Catholic faith. Dominicans follow in 1526, the Augustinians in 1533, and the Jesuits in 1572.
� ca. 1525 The Spaniards destroy most indigenous painted manuscripts and documents, especially those of a ritual nature.
� ca. 1528 Spanish institutions impose controls over the Indian population. The encomienda, granted by the crown to deserving Spaniards, entitles them to the labor and goods produced by the native group entrusted to them. Most encommenderos exploit the Indians and even enslave them.
� ca. 1530 Spanish plants and animals and a wide range of new materials and technologies are introduced. Metal tools and other implements replace stone tools.
� ca. 1531 Legendary apparition of the dark-skinned Virgin of Guadalupe to the christianized Mexican Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac north or Mexico City, the site of a former temple of the Aztec mother goddess Tonantzin.
� ca. 1535 The Viceroyalty of New Spain is established consisting of present-day Mexico, Central America, Florida, and parts of the Southwest United States. Tenochtitlan, renamed Ciudad de M�xico, is the capital of the Viceroyalty, and Antonio de Mendoza (1490�1552) is appointed the first viceroy.
� ca. 1536 The Colegio Imperial de Santa Cruz is founded in Tlatelolco and run by Franciscan friars, The students, sons of the native nobility, are instructed in European customs, Latin grammer, theology, liturgy, music, and other subjects. After four years of training, they return to their home communities to assist in religious and civil administration
(www.metmuseum.org...)

I want to add that this only a brief snapshot in the history of Latin America. Much more than this happened before the arrival of teh Mexica. The Toltecs and Mayans were far more advanced then the Aztecs, but the Aztecs assimilated the traces of these cultures into their own, adapting calendars and masonry. The cultures had many similarities to the Ancient cultures around the world, including stories of origins. Ancient Chinese symbols have been found in temples. These cultures also used Hieroglyphs and worshipped many of the geometric patterns in the heavens.
Maybe these cultures trace back to one great culture?

[edit on 24-10-2004 by Decon]