Aztec Civilization: A History from Beginning to End (Mesoamerican History Book 5) by Hourly History

Author:Hourly History [History, Hourly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-06-14T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

The Triple Alliance

“Clearly, it is difficult for us to come to a true understanding of what human sacrifice meant to the sixteenth century Aztec; but it may be observed that every culture possesses its own idea of what is and what is not cruel.”

—Jacques Soustelle

Although the city of Azcapotzalco was defeated and sacked by the combined military forces of the Triple Alliance, that was not the end of Tepanec power in the Valley of Mexico. The city-state of Coyoacan was an important Tepanec stronghold on the southern side of Lake Texcoco, which continued to hold out against the Triple Alliance after the fall of Azcapotzalco. Initially, the city of Tenochtitlan sent ambassadors to Coyoacan to encourage the city to join the new alliance. Perhaps not realizing just how fundamentally the balance of power in the region had shifted, the rulers of Coyoacan insulted these ambassadors and the Aztecs by forcing the group to dress in women’s clothes for their return to Tenochtitlan.

Itzcoatl, the ruler of Tenochtitlan, reacted swiftly to this grievous insult. He declared war on Coyoacan, and the city was quickly surrounded by Aztec warriors. They cut off the water supply to the city and started fires that blew dense, choking smoke into its center. The army of Coyoacan was forced to emerge and take on the Aztecs in open battle. They were quickly defeated and the city sacked. Other city-states in the area dew the appropriate conclusions from the instant subjugation of Coyoacan, and within a very short period, almost the whole of the Valley of Mexico was under the control of the Triple Alliance.

Within Tenochtitlan, Itzcoatl began a series of expansions and improvements that would see the city dramatically increase in size. New roads were built in the surrounding area, another causeway was created to link the island city with the mainland, and new and even more magnificent temples were created to honor Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc. Farming land in the area close to the city was expanded and improved with new irrigation systems to provide food for the city’s growing population.

The three leaders of the Triple Alliance also attempted to introduce a unified and codified set of laws that were intended to apply to all areas controlled by the alliance. The theory was that a simple easily understood set of laws which applied to all people would help to unify the alliance as well as ensuring the uniform application of justice. The punishment for most major crimes was simple: death by stoning or strangulation. Penalties for making false accusations were also severe in order to reduce the chance of people using the justice system as a way of getting even with their enemies.

When Itzcoatl died in 1440, the council of elders of the city of Tenochtitlan chose his half-nephew, Moctezuma, a general in the Aztec army, to be his successor as the next ruler of the city. Moctezuma was crowned king of Tenochtitlan in a lavish ceremony which involved the sacrifice of large numbers of prisoners taken during the Aztec’s successful campaigns.

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