The Empire of Ancient Mexico The Aztec The Empire of Ancient Mexico

The Aztecs were hunters and gatherers who lived in present day Mexico The Aztecs were hunters and gatherers who lived in present day Mexico. Just like the Maya, they had sophisticated Calendars. The calendars would tell them when to plant and perform rituals. The Aztec were fierce warriors and eventually had the largest empire in Mesoamerica.

Geography The Aztec lived in the high basin called the Valley of Mexico. Several shallow lakes covered the basin floor. The land was fertile and the climate was mild.

Aztec Capital Founded in 1325 on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco. They called it Tenochtitlan or “place of the cactus fruit” (The eagle and the cactus). It was centrally located, easy to defend, provided good farmland and allowed the Aztec to strengthen their position in the Valley.

Aztec Expansion In the early 1400’s, the Aztec joined forces with 2 other city states in a pact called the Triple Alliance. With the help of their allies, they conquered most of the Valley of Mexico. By 1502, under Moctezuma, they reached their height as an empire.

Way of Life Like the other civilizations of the Americas, the Aztec were mostly farmers. They were broken up into 2 social classes: Nobles and Commoners. They had schools, a written language, and even enjoyed poetry.

Way of Life - Agriculture The Aztec adapted to their environment by developing a farming technique called Chinampas. These “floating gardens” were created to produce food for the whole population – about 10 million in the empire, 1 million in the Valley of Mexico and 200,000 in Tenochtitlan alone.

Religion/Sacrifice The Aztec were highly trained warriors who were dedicated to the practice of war. Winning wars allowed them to collect Tribute. Tribute could be goods or people. The people (POW’s) could be used for human sacrifice. The Aztec practiced human sacrifice on a HUGE scale…thousands of people per year (mostly POW’s) had their hearts cut out in honor of the gods. Priests would perform these sacrifices to appease the gods and to ensure political control.

In 1519 the Aztecs came into contact with Spanish explorers led by a man named Hernan Cortes. The Spanish eventually killed and conquered the Aztecs by joining forces with other local tribes who didn’t like the Aztecs.

That’s All Folks!!