Essays on Aztec

The exact origins of the Aztec people are uncertain, but their name came from their homeland Aztlan. The Aztecs appeared in Mesoamerica as a northern tribe of hunter-gatherers in perhaps the 12th century CE.

In 1428, under their ruler Itzcoatl, the Aztecs formed a three-way alliance with the neighbouring states of Texcoco and Tlacopan and became the dominant power in central Mexico. Tenochtitlán became the most densely populated settlement ever achieved by a Mesoamerican civilization. Itzcoatl’s successor Montezuma was remembered as the father of the Aztec empire. The Aztec civilization was highly developed socially, intellectually and artistically.

The basis of Aztec success was the agricultural system that made it possible to feed the population. The main crops in addition to maize were beans, squashes, chilies and amaranth. Aztecs were famous for their constructions of chinampas, artificial islands, created above the waterline that could be cultivated year round.

The empire reached its maximal extent, when the Spanish, led by conquistador Hernando Cortés, arrived in Yucatan from Cuba with three ships and about 100 men in early 1517. They were looking for gold, and the gifts from the Mexica ruler, Motecuhzoma, proved that gold was present. Cortes took Montezuma and his entourage of lords hostage, and gained control of Tenochtitlan, murdering thousands of Aztec nobles.