Download Aztec Life - Ms. Kirstie Jensch`s Social Class

2/12/17
Journey of a Princess
When the Aztecs settled at "The Place of the Prickly Pear Cactus", they tried very hard to get along with
their neighbors as their main god had instructed them to do. They did not go to war. They did not
capture people to feed to their many gods. Instead, they used their own people. It was an honor to be
sacrificed. Everyone knew that.
In a spirit of goodwill, the Aztec emperor sent a messenger to a nearby tribe. The chief of the tribe had
been a bit standoffish so far. The emperor was hoping that his message might help to make a new
friend. The emperor's message was an invitation. He invited the chief's daughter to journey to the Aztec
capital to meet his son.
When the princess
arrived at Tenochtitlan,
the Aztec capital city, she brought with her many servants
and attendants, along with a gorgeous wedding dress and presents
most enjoyable evening with the emperor and his handsome son.
for her new family. She spent a
A few days later, when her father arrived in the city of Tenochtitlan, he fully expected to attend a
wedding. Imagine his surprise when he learned that his daughter had been sacrificed with great
ceremony, along with her many attendants and slaves. It was the highest honor the Aztecs could pay.
Lesson 2
Aztec Emperors Rise To Power
While the Spanish
were struggling to
unify their kingdoms,
the Aztec were
establishing an
empire.
Aztec Emperors Rise To Power
• Acamapichtli
• Leader of the Aztec
– 1376
– Son of an Aztec
nobleman and a
Culhua princess
Broken hearted, the chief hurried home to his people. That very day, he sent his army to wage war on
the horrible Aztecs. The Aztecs won. They went on to conquer tribe after tribe in the valley. Each
conquered tribe had to pay tribute to the Aztecs in the form of food, clothing, jewels, and of course,
captives to feed the hungry gods. That made the Aztecs very happy and very rich.
Truly, the Aztecs were not worried that their main god might be angry with them for going to war a little
sooner than originally planned. After all, they had tr ied to get along. And just as soon as they had
conquered all the people in the valley, they would live in peace with their neighbors, exactly as their
god had told them to do. Surely there could be no confusion about that.
Aztec Emperors Rise To Power
• Societies who could
claim a direct lineage to
the earlier civilization of
the Toltec were the
most respected and
held the greatest power
in the Valley of Mexico.
• Aztec emperors
increased their power by
creating alliances with
other powerful rulers
Acamapichtli
– Culhua were
considered direct
descendants of the
Toltec
– Chose a daughter of
a Culhua royal so all
emperors could be
considered
descendants of the
Toltec
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Conquering New Societies
Aztec Emperors Rise To Power
• During the next 50 years, the Aztec gained
power and respect in the Valley.
•
Life in Aztec society developed around a
culture of war
•
The goals of battle were two fold:
• In 1428, Itzcoatl, formed a Triple Alliance.
• Within 4 years, most of the region was under the
control of the Alliance except for the powerful
Tlaxcalan.
• The Aztec remained in constant conflict with the
Tlaxcalan republic.
Conquering New Societies
1. To seek an honorable defeat for the
enemy and then make them pay tribute
and provide labour to the empire
2. To gain soldiers for the human sacrifice to
the god Huitzilopochtli
Conquering New Societies
• Military strategy was to conquer weaker
societies that were around stronger ones.
• The Aztec maintained power with a strong
military and their alliances with conquered citystates
• Then they
attacked the
weaker altepetl.
• The empire eventually included over 50 citystates
• The Aztec did not try to reorganize the societies
they defeated
– The defeated ruler continued to carry out local laws
and people continued to follow their own customs and
beliefs
Aztec Government
Aztec Government- Emperor
• Aztecs had one king/emperor who ruled over
all – chosen by a council of nobles and
priests
• Nobles served as judges, officials, and
governors
• Wore elaborate gold jewelry
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Aztec Societal Classes
Political Structure
• Society was carefully divided in to three
classes
Emperor
1. Nobility
2. Commoners
3. slaves.
The Chief of
Internal Affairs
Tlatoque
Tecutin
1. Nobility
• The nobility enjoyed
certain
privileges as they
were
nobles by birth.
• Priests, warriors and
artisans
who earned their rank
were
also considered to be
a part of this class.
1. Nobility
• In Aztec society,
warriors, priests,
as well as nobility
were highest of the
noble class and
were often revered
for their powers.
Priests
1. Nobility
• The very highest
social strata were
made up of a special
family called as the
pipiltin.
• These were the
hereditary nobility and
often had special
posts in the
government, the army
as well as the
priesthood
2. Commoners
• The second class was of the
commoners who carried out
the daily work of the society.
• It was made up the farmers
and traders of the state.
• They were eligible to own
land collectively as a family or
as a clan but could not own
the land individually.
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2. Commoners
• Commoners could
collectively own an area of
land for their lifetime.
• The poorest of commoners
was considered as the tenant
farmers.
3. Slaves
• Slaves were on the lowest step of the Aztec
society.
• They had no rights.
• But slaves did have an opportunity to buy
back their freedom with the required money.
• The tenant farmer cultivated
the land in return for a part of
the harvest; however, they
did not own their own land.
3. Slaves
• Aztec slaves were
usually people
captured from
other tribes.
• If an Aztec slave
had a child, their
child was also a
slave
The Role Of Law In The Aztec
Society
• The Aztec society was
pretty orderly with strict
laws to enforce the
discipline.
• If the law was broken
punishments were given
in the form of fines and
fees and heavier crimes
were punished with harsh
discipline or even death
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