The Aztecs And Incas

The Mayan, Aztec, and Inca civilizations brought major accomplishments to the world today. These accomplishments established them as advanced societies during their time without the influence of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Some of these accomplishments ranged from agriculture to architecture and on to writing and trade. Such as, the Mayans with their agriculture system of chinampas and there monumental temple/pyramids, the Aztecs with their trading in the city of Tenochtitlan, and the Incas with their road and bridge system connecting the whole empire.

A very long time ago, there were many ancient civilizations, three of them were called the Olmecs, Aztecs and Mayans. These were ancient civilizations that, throughout history, had many accomplishments. Focusing in on some of these achievements, a lot of the advancements made by these civilizations were in religion, economy, and technology.

Hernán Cortes is one of Spain's most influential explorers. He heard of the failed expeditions that had been repelled by the indians, and he believed that he could succeed where they had failed. In 1519, he landed of the coast of mexico with about 600 troops, 16 horses, and some cannons. The armour they wore and the guns, horses, and cannons had never been seen by the indians before. The message quickly got back to Moctezuma, who sent emissaries to make peace with the conquistadors. This soon was found to be unsuccessful and Cortés started making his inland trek to Tenochtitlán. As he was making his way, he ran into many villages, many of which he recruited to help him in the fight against the Aztec people. Cortés himself was thought to be Quetzalcoatl by Moctezuma, a god-king that swore to return one

The Aztecs had one of the most successful and advanced empires of all time. They had a dwelling culture The Aztec civilization was located directly in the middle of two mountain ranges in the central valley of Mexico ( Platt 10). Although the Aztec empire eventually came to an end they were able to do well as an empire. Contributing factors that led to the rise of the empire was their political structure, social components, and religious traditions which they preformed earnestly.

The Incas and the Aztecs Before the Spanish and Portuguese "discovered" the New World, there

The post-classical era in history (600CE- 1250CE) saw the rise and fall of many great empires. In the early part of the era, the Islamic Caliphates acted as a core region in the Middle East, heavily influencing the region around them. On the other side of the world, the Aztec Empire rose to power in the later part of the era with minimal trans-regional influence. Although on different sides of the world, both empires found similar ways to adapt to their diverse environments. In the post-classical era, the rise of the Islamic Caliphates and the Aztec Empire were similar in that they established cohesion through their respective cultures and used military conquest to come to power. Although there are similarities in the rise of power in the Caliphates and the Aztec Empire, there is a difference in the speed of expansion given that the Caliphates were located in a central trading region while the Aztec Empire was not.

The Aztec people felt very strong about their beliefs in gods and superstitions. Montecuhzoma the independent ruler of the Aztec empire swayed his people to believe in the power of gods and idols and live a spiritual life. This ultimately was a turning point for the Aztecs and is where the Spanish once again gained advantage over the Aztecs. While the Aztecs were faithful to their beliefs it made them powerless an easy take down. Superstitions played a huge factor in the Aztecs first encounter with the Spanish people. In 1519 when the Aztec people saw sight of something coming from a distance in the water, they believed it was Quetzalcoatl (Leon-Portilla, 18). Quetzalcoatl was a legend to them that promised to come back. Montecuhzoma misread the situation and sent messages and gifts in hopes that it sent a gesture to welcome the gods onto their land. This was a big mistake that Motecuhzoma made by opening his arms to the Spanish people upon their first encounter together (Leon-Portilla, 63). This is just one case where the Aztec people poorly used their judgement. However, Motecuhzoma did come to realize the behavior of the Spaniards or “Gods”. When the Spaniards held the gold given by the Aztecs their greed became noticed in the eyes of the Aztecs. The Natives described them as monkeys. They soon caught on that the Spaniards were not gods and heroes and more so barbarians

Maybe too much credit is given to Cortés as one of the greatest Spanish conquerors who developed effective strategy to defeat the Aztecs. Restall see this as somewhat of a myth accounting for the failure of historians to look at history before the 1519 (Restall, 19). Restall says “However, too often, without any direct evidence, the actions of Conquistadors after the 1519– 21 invasion of Mexico are taken as deliberately imitating Cortés, while pre-1519 patterns are ignored.” Whatever the case for whom should be given the credit for the strategy used to defeat the Aztecs; one must admit Cortés was able the win the trust of the people and use the Aztecs’ fear of him to control their empire. Cortés harbored fear of his own. Elliott says, “Cortés felt some uneasiness, when he reflected that it was in the power of the Indians, at any time, to cut off his communications with the surrounding country, and hold him a prisoner in the capital.” The Omens of the Aztecs betrayed them and caused them to see the arriving settlers as gods. They were not prepared to defend themselves against the advanced weapons of the Spanish. Much like the Aztecs, the Mayans faced hard times at the hands of the Spanish conquerors, but their defeat came much easier to the Spanish.

The Mongols and Aztec empires rose in the post- classical period, between 600 and 1450 CE. While each empire was distinct, they had economic, political, and social similarities. For example, the Mongols and Aztecs both had a militaristic society, courage in battle meant a higher status. One difference in these empires is that, while the Aztecs had a rigid social hierarchy, the Mongols had a more fluid one. The economy of the Mongols and Aztecs were also distinct from each other, with differing trade and production.

The book, Broken Spears was an interesting reading that talked about the Spanish conquest of Tenochtitlan. Throughout the book, it becomes clear that the Spanish were successful in their conquest as a result of a number of factors.The Spanish were intimidating in appearance and in their weaponry. They had animals that the Aztecs had never seen before. They also formed alliances with rival tribes, like the Tlaxcaltecas tribe. Finally, one of the key reasons that the Spaniards were able to successfully conquer the Aztecs was due to the fact that Motecuhzoma himself, believed that Cortes and his men were gods.

The Aztec and Incan empire in Mesoamerica and the Andean Regions differed in their religious, cultural, and political traditions. Although both empires were located in the area of Mesoamerica, they were only similar in few ways. These two cultures were very influential to the nurturing of Mesoamerica and the Andean Regions.

The Spanish were successful in their conquest of the Aztec Empire for numerous reasons. They were intimidating in appearance and in their weaponry. They had animals that the Aztecs had never seen before. They also formed alliances with rival tribes, like the Tlaxcaltecas tribe. Finally, one of the key reasons that the Spaniards were able to successfully conquer the Aztecs was due to the fact that Motecuhzoma himself, believed that Cortes and his men were gods.

The events that occurred between the Aztecs and Spanish Conquistadors have many sides and opportunities for debate. One of the most debated topics being; Who was more savage and who was more Civil? Both the Aztecs and Spanish had powerful and thriving empires. These empires displayed their dominance through their advanced technology and flourishing military. Though it may seem that the Spanish were more advanced than the Aztecs, the Aztecs and Spanish were actually quite close to being equal in technological advancements.

The Aztecs were warrior people who lived in the Valley of Mexico, with the capital at Tenochtitlan, during the 1400s. Under their authoritarian state, the Aztecs worshipped their patron god, Huitzilopochtli, among other deities. Despite their warrior tactics and developed belief system, the Spaniards conquered them in 1519. The Incas (or Inkas) were the people who lived throughout the Andes Mountains from southern Peru to central Chile. With a society based on agriculture, the Incas farmed the terrain of the Andes Mountains west of their capital at Cuzco. The Incas suffered a fall to the Spaniards in 1532. The Aztecs from the Valley of Mexico in the 1400s and the Incas from throughout the Andes Mountains during the 1400s are similar and different because of their ideological and intellectual values, their rise and fall by conquest of their empires, and the way they applied the characteristics of their economies to their lifestyles.

Cortes prepared for this expedition. However, Velasquez became regretful of his decision. He thought Cortes wanted to conquer the Mayans for his own personal gains. Velasquez attempted to change his orders, but it was too late. Cortes set sail and continued to put his fleet together. In 1519, Cortes explored the Yucatan coastline. Landing in Tabasco, Cortes captured the natives. Although, Tabasco people possessed little of value, they told Cortes of the great treasures of the Aztec Empire. Cortes moved his troops northward and conquered the port of Vera Cruz. In addition to, Cortes was making plans to advance against the Aztecs. He took a Tabasco woman and enlisted her help to supplement his army. Cortes used her to translate the native language to Aguilar. Aguilar was another Spaniard that had been shipped wreck at the port of Vera Cruz. He had learned the language of the natives. Aguilar translated the language to Cortes troops. They learned about the traditions of the Aztec people in Tenochtitlan. Cortes used this information he gathered to defeat the Aztecs. Finally, he convinced the native tribes to fight with him against the Aztecs. He knew he needed these allies to conquer the Aztec empire. With the knowledge of a myth about a white god, he was able to betray Montezuma II. “Quetzalcoatl was an Aztecan god. His name means “the feathered serpent” in the Nahuatl language. Quetzalcoatl was the patron of priests and the inventor of