the aztecs€¦ · world history. aztec history •1325 –driven into the swamps around lake...
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The Aztecs
1325-1519
World History
Aztec History• 1325 – driven into the
swamps around Lake Texcoco, where they saw the eagle from legend.
• Tenochtitlan (“place of the prickly pear cactus”) built.
Early society and interactions• Aztec built temples, public
buildings, and houses over the next 100 years.
• The Aztec allied themselves with groups at neighboring city-states Tetzcoco and Tlacopan, forming a triple alliance
• Predict what happens next
Monarch• Most famous monarch – Montezuma II
Commoners• How do you farm in a
swamp?
Culture• Aztec
architecture –massive pyramid dedicated to Huitzilopochtli in the center of Tenochtitlan
• At the top was a shrine to the gods and an altar for human sacrifices
Hernan Cortes’ Arrival• 1519 – Hernan Cortes arrives with 550 men and 16 horses
-> Made alliances with city-states that opposed the Aztecs
-> Arrived at Tenochtitlan and was welcomed by Montezuma II
• Aztecs were impressed by men on horseback, cannons, firearms, and steel swords
Tensions• Tensions rose, and the Spanish took Montezuma II
captive
• 1520 – the Aztecs revolted, killing many Spaniards
• With no natural immunity to disease, many Aztecs succumbed to smallpox
• Meanwhile, the Spaniards came back with new soldiers and their new allied Mesoamerican city states (50,000 from one city-state alone!)
• Cortes levelled buildings, temples and pyramids and used the stone to construct Spanish government buildings. Rivers and canals were filled in. Tenochtitlan disappeared