factors that led to the fall of the aztec empire

The Aztecs began their reign in 1427 and their leader was Itzcoatl, who reigned until 1440. In this way, the Aztec empire came to cover most of northern Mexico, an area of some 135,000 square kilometres with a population of around 11 million. With the fall of Tenochtitlan, the Spanish set about pacifying the rest of the empire and discovering what other treasures could be plundered. The Aztec Empire in 1519 In 1519, when the Spanish first made official contact with the Empire, the Aztecs ruled most of present-day Mexico either directly or indirectly. …show more content… In August 1519 CE, Cortés marched directly to Tenochtitlan. The Aztecs were ruled by an emperor who was elected from a council made up of priests, warriors, and nobles. Led by Hernán Cortés, the Spaniard's formidable firearms and thirst for treasure would bring devastating destruction and disease. Ancient History Encyclopedia. In 1535 CE, Don Antonio de Mendoza was made the first viceroy of the kingdom of New Spain. Without any kind of immunity or treatment to these newly … The Azcapotzalco forces were defeated by an alliance of Texcoco, Tenochtitlan (the capital of the Mexica) and several other smaller cities. Some of these groups sided with the Spaniards and helped contribute to the downfall of the Aztec empire. Works Cited There were many factors involved that led to the great fall of the Aztec empire. The Spanish founded new governments in order to rule over these new societies. After war and disease swept the empire, it fell in 1521. This young and warlike nation was highly successful in spreading its reach and gaining fabulous wealth, but then all too quickly came the strange visitors from another world. by wikipedia user: El Comandante (CC BY-SA). New York: Viking, 157-77. Aztec mythology foretold that the present era of the 5th sun would eventually fall just as the previous four eras had done, and so it came to pass. The economic basis of the Aztec hegemony was the Valley of Mexico ’s agriculture, characterized for several centuries by irrigation systems and chinampas, the misnamed “floating gardens” that were actually a raised-field system of agriculture. In the early 1500s, Spanish forces sailed across the Pacific and conquered the Aztec and Incan civilizations, even though the invading armies were greatly outnumbered by … Taking the position of tlatoani, meaning 'speaker' in 1502 CE, he ruled as an absolute monarch and was considered a god by his people and a manifestation and perpetuator of the sun. Endlessly troublesome, they, the Tlaxcalans and others, would prove to be vital allies for the Spaniards when they came to plunder and conquer the vast riches of Mesoamerica. Cortés was not satificied with the amount of gold, so he went to Moctezuma. At the time the Spaniards arrived to the New World they found different Indian civilizations with many similitude and differences. This seems a more reasonable explanation than the traditional view, now rejected by modern historians as a post-conquest rationalising fiction, that Motecuhzoma reverently believed that Cortés was the returning god Quetzalcoatl of Aztec mythology. He also presided over the completion of the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan. led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec empire and brought large portions of what is now mainland Mexico under the rule of the king of castile in the early 16th century. The diseases, like smallpox, caused many Aztec die. The Aztec empire flourished between c. 1345 and 1521 CE and dominated ancient Mesoamerica. He holds an MA in Political Philosophy and is the Publishing Director at AHE. Perhaps Motecuhzoma had taken note of this and took the more prudent policy of appeasement rather than engage the enemy in the field, at least as an opening strategy. Theories about what caused the Classic Maya collapse have ranged from overpopulation to ongoing military conflict between competing city-states to … The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Conquest of Mexico (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. The revolution began in 1910 when Francisco I. Madero challenged Porfirio Diaz, the president at the time. With your help we create free content that helps millions of people learn history all around the world. A.The Aztecs had no strong leaders and limited military skills. Your answer should make reference to the social and political contexts of the region as well as the military campaign. The Aztecs believed him to be the representative for some white skinned god, and hence feared and respected him. Yet, they worshiped these gods in very violent ways through human sacrifice. They attacked Hernanado and his men, and succeeded in driving them off. About one hundred years before, three powerful city-states in central Mexico — Tenochtitlan, Tlacopan and Tacuba — united to form the Triple Alliance , which soon rose to pre-eminence. Ancient History Encyclopedia. After the Spanish conquest, the empire of the Aztec was destroyed, but their civilization remained an important influence on the development of Mexican culture. The Aztecs were used to loose formations in battle; their primary objective had always been to capture a valiant opponent alive so that they might be later ritually sacrificed, and warfare was highly ritualised with precise moments for starting and ending. Whatever the reasons, the initial air of cordiality between the two sides soon turned sour for within two weeks the Aztec ruler was audaciously taken hostage and placed under house arrest by the small Spanish force. Spaniards found another Indian civilization called Incas Empire; it was a vast kingdom in the Andes Mountains of South America, but at the time of the Spaniards conquest the empire was in a huge crisis caused by the death of their leader. His special interests include pottery, architecture, world mythology and discovering the ideas that all civilizations share in common. In Mexico the Spaniards found a very stable empire called the Aztecs; the Aztec empire controlled a region stretching from the Valley of Mexico in central Mexico east to the Gulf of Mexico and south to Guatemala. In this essay I am going to give a brief overview about the Aztecs and then talk about the factors that led to the fall of this empire. Most of what made up the Aztec Empire strongly contributed to the decline of the empire. This investigation examines to what extent where those internal and pre-existing factors to blame for the downfall of the Aztec Empire. The Aztec built great cities and developed a complex social, political, and religious structure. Your answer should make reference to the social and political contexts of the region as well as the military campaign. The Spanish had better developed technology, guns, ect. Cortés, a native of Extremadura, had studied law at university, but at 19 years old he had decided to leave Spain and try his luck in the Caribbean colonies. There were many factors that contributed to the Fall of the Aztecs including: religion, tactics, drought, advancement in weaponry, and above all, newly exposed European diseases brought in by the Spanish. There could only be one winner, and within three years Mesoamerica, including the Tarascan capital of Tzintzuntzan and the Maya highlands, were under Spanish control. The Great Temple consisted of a massive pyramid topped by two temples: one for Huitzilopochtli, the warrior god and representation of the sun, and the other for Tlaloc, the god of rain, water, and fertility. A fierce battle ended in Cortés taking control of the temple, which he then set fire to, horrifying the population. There are many factors that led to the decline of the Aztec Civilization such as sacrifices, disease and the Spanish conquest . Shorn of their commanders, the Aztec units often disintegrated into panic. The empire continued to expand from 1430 CE, and the Aztec military - bolstered by conscription of all adult males, men supplied from allied and conquered states, and such elite groups as the Eagle and Jaguar warriors - swept aside their rivals. https://www.ancient.eu/article/916/. After some brief and violent contact in 1517, a Spanish force under Hernan Cortes arrived in 1519 to completely subjugate the Aztecs. Cortés’s victory at Tenochtitlán set in motion the rapid collapse of the Aztec empire. A few most vital factors include: The Aztec Religion, The responsibility of people who were considered "gods" (social aspect), and of course, the events that caused the Empire to decline and forever disappear. Cortés grabbed what booty he could and fled the city in a running night battle on the 30th of June, 1520 CE, in what became known as the Noche Triste (Sad Night). Cortés & the Fall of the Aztec Empire. Web. ... What event occurred just before the Spanish arrived and helped lead the fall of the Inca? Copyright © 2000-2020. Also, Aztecs were killing people from neighboring cities such as Tlaxcala which turned them into rivals as they decided to join the Spaniards in fighting against the Aztecs. They conquered the Incas in Mexico and the Aztecs in Peru, and shortly after created a civilization of their own in these respective places. He actually took the title of emperor from someone else upon forcing his father to retire. The disease and plagues that the Aztecs weren't used to at all, and the domesticated animals that Europe had that wasn't in the Americas all led to the downfall of the Aztecs in 1521 once the capital city was destroyed. This incident was just what Cortés needed, and after battling the Cuban relief force at Veracruz and persuading its leader Panfilo Narvaez to join his cause, he returned to the city to relieve the besieged remaining Spanish. However, Cortes returned later with the support of local Indian tribes that hated the Aztecs for centuries of cruel treatment to defeat the mighty Aztecs and take the empire. One neighbouring power in particular, a constant thorn in the Aztec flank, was the Tarascan civilization. The main idea of the Mexican revolution grew out of the belief that a few landowners could no longer control the old ways of Spanish colonial rule, instead land should belong to all the people who worked the land and extracted its wealth through their labor. Who knows how it would have been different if these people and their children had swelled the ranks that fought the Spanish, not to mention the other contributions th… The Spanish brought many deadly diseases when they arrived in Mexico. This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. From the ashes of this disaster rose the new capital of the colony of New Spain, and Cortés was made its first governor in May 1523 CE. Gathering local allies from his Tlaxcala base, and now supported by Texcoco, Cortés first won a great battle near Otumba and then returned to Tenochtitlan ten months later, laying siege to the city with a fleet of specially built warships. By around 1400 CE several small empires had formed in the Valley of Mexico and dominant amongst these were Texcoco, capital of the Acholhua region, and Azcapotzalco, capital of the Tepenec.These two empires came face to face in 1428 CE with the Tepanec War.The Azcapotzalco forces were defeated by an alliance of Texcoco, Tenochtitlan (the capital of the Mexica) … A campaign of territorial expansion began, where the spoils of war - usually in the form of tributes from the conquered - were shared between these three great cities. war, tribute, and trade. By 1515 CE rumours in the Aztec heartlands and several bad omens of a rapidly approaching crisis were fuelled by sightings off the coast of fantastic floating temples. It was a huge trading centre with goods flowing in and out, such as gold, turquoise, foodstuffs, and slaves. Of the two groups that made up the Aztecs, the Mexica were the most powerful and aggressive and are typically who are referenced when describing the Aztecs. (Nichols, 451), Aztec Empireby wikipedia user: El Comandante (CC BY-SA). The Conquistadores immediately found willing local allies only too eager to help topple the brutal Aztec regime and free themselves from the burden of tribute and the necessity of feeding the insatiable Aztec appetite for sacrificial victims, and so within three years fell the largest ever empire in North and Central America. The overthrow of the Aztec Empire by Cortez and his expedition rests on three factors: The fragility of that empire, the tactical advantages of Spanish technology, and smallpox. Superior weaponry and a devastating smallpox outbreak enabled the Spanish to … Battles were concentrated in or around major cities, and when these fell, the victors claimed the whole surrounding territory. Ancient History Encyclopedia Limited is a non-profit company registered in the United Kingdom. The first was help from disgruntled subject peoples or traditional enemies of the Aztecs. Some of the remaining Spanish, commanded by Pedro de Alvarado, were then killed at Tenochtitlan after they tried to interrupt a ceremony of human sacrifice. Motecuhzoma, after consulting his council of elders, decided on a strategy of diplomacy. First, killing thousands of people, whether you or your neighbours, simply can't be good for a society. Kenneth Swope argues that one key factor was deteriorating relations between Ming royalty and the Ming empire’s military leadership. Cortes’s army besieged Tenochtitlan for 93 days. The collapse of the Aztec Empire came relatively swiftly at the hands of a small, but menacing, force of Spanish conquistadors, who had set their sights on invading the territory, displace the indigenous leaders, and seize their immense reserve of gold. Your answer should make reference to the social and political contexts of the region as well as the military campaign. The loss of people in a loss that can't be calculated. Although he was killed in 1920, there was still disorder until the 1930’s. ...eir homes) and erosion. The main factors had to do with Spanish technology and the Spaniards’ ability to … Thus the following questions will be addressed: In what ways did this illusive mineral lead to the downfall of one the greatest empires of all time, and more broadly how did it affect other foreign economies most notably China. Instead, the quick collapse of the Aztec empire probably depended on other factors such as the pandemic diseases that they brought to Mexico, which can be defined as one of main causes of the quick fall of the Aztec Empire. This ended the Aztec civilization forever. Montezuma Meets Cortésby Unknown Artist (Public Domain). From 1427 to 1440, the Mexica became allies with two surrounding city-states: Texcoco and Tlacopan, forming the Triple Alliance. Ancient History Encyclopedia, 04 Jul 2016. The Spanish Governor of Cuba, Diego Velasquez, had already sent several expeditions to explore the mainland coast of America starting in 1517 CE, and these had reported strange ancient stone monuments and brightly dressed natives from whom were bartered fine gold objects. By around 1400 CE several small empires had formed in the Valley of Mexico and dominant amongst these were Texcoco, capital of the Acholhua region, and Azcapotzalco, capital of the Tepenec. What were the decisive factors that led to the fall of the Aztec empire? In his fleet of 11 ships went 500 soldiers and 100 sailors, all of them adventurers and treasure-seekers. Rich soil from the bottom of a lake was piled up to form ridges between rows of ditches or canals. These two empires came face to face in 1428 CE with the Tepanec War. Over the next three years, the conquistadores brought the whole of Mesoamerica under Spanish rule and established the colony of New Spain. The consequence of the Conquest by the Europeans was that the Aztec and Inca Civilizations were basically wiped out. Hernán Cortésby Unknown Artist (Public Domain). Some civilizations killed younger children and some killed adults, ripping out their hearts and cutting off their heads. Gradually, Franciscan friars arrived to spread Christianity, and the bureaucrats took over from the adventurers. Disease. Aftermath and the fall of the Aztec empire. After running a plantation and participating in the conquest of Cuba, he was now in his mid-30s and ready for his stab at fame and glory. Escaping the effects of disease on their society, the Spanish fled to Mexico in 1519 and then Peru in 1532. What were the decisive factors that led to the fall of the Aztec empire? The Ancient History Encyclopedia logo is a registered EU trademark. Cortés next burned all of his ships to remind his men that in the following months of hardship it was to be conquest or death. There were many factors involved that led to the great fall of the Aztec empire. The governor organised another expedition and chose as its leader Hernán Cortés. 123Helpme.com. License. Our latest articles delivered to your inbox, once a week: Numerous educational institutions recommend us, including Oxford University and Michigan State University and University of Missouri. Life in Latin America before the Europeans arrived insinuated a paradox because they had an organized leadership and were spiritual, yet they caused mayhem through violence and war. Lacking food and ravaged by smallpox disease earlier introduced by one of the Spaniards, the Aztecs, now led by Cuauhtemoc, finally collapsed after 93 days of resistance on the fateful day of 13th of August, 1521 CE. (The Mexican revolution EDSITEMENT) Before the crisis, the Inca government system was among the most complex political organizations of many Native American cultures. Related Content Some states were integrated more than others whilst those on the extremities of the empire were exploited merely as buffer zones against more hostile neighbours.

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