1. The Aztecs and The Incas

2. Aztec Background Originally named Mexica
Located in what is now central Mexico
The empire lasted during the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries CE

3. Background
Tenochtitlan was the capital city and is located in what is now present day Mexico city
The Aztec empire caused the biggest demographic explosion in Mesoamerican history

4. Government The Aztecs founded the city of Tenochtitlan in 1325
Empire began in 1434
Aztec kings represented civil power and served as a representative of the gods on Earth
City-states were individually ruled by speakers that were chosen by the noble class

5. Social Structure
The Aztec society was divided into three socal classes: the macehualli (people) or peasantry, the pochteca or merchants and traders, and the pilli or nobility
Slaves or tlacotin consisted as a large part of the Aztec society
Though people were born into a certain class it was possible to move up the ranks within a life time

6. Religion
Main deity in the Aztec religion was known as both the sun god and war god
Human sacrifice was practiced heavily in the Aztec religion
The Aztecs believed that by performing these sacrifices that it gave power to the gods which in turn would insure the survival of the Aztec universe

7. Religion
War captives were used in the sacrifices and in times of peace the Aztec would have to resort to ritualistic warfare or flower war
In the year 1487 the Aztecs reported killing 84,400 war prisoners in four days at the great pyramid of Tenochtitlan
After a town was conquered the inhabitants where no longer eligible for sacrifice and became Aztec citizens

8. Art The favored form of art in the Aztec empire was sculpture
Most Sculptures were made from limestone, which is still abundant in Mexico today
Aztec sculpture was like most other Mesoamerican cultures and was mostly directly related to religion

9. Art
The Aztecs also made other religious and non-religious artifacts such as jade masks
Clothing was also a popular art form and women from around the empire would use bead, flower, and metal decorations
These artifacts were sold in markets by visiting merchants

10. Architecture
There where three main types of architecture in the Aztec society: sacrificial temples, emperors temple, and different shrines of the gods

11. Tenochtitlan

12. The Inca
Starting around 1438 the Incan leader, Pachacuti, began building the largest ancient empire in the Americas
The Inca’s developed the land of present day Chile, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia etc.
The most famous Inca site is called Machu Picchu

13. Machu Picchu

14. Religion The Inca were Polytheistic (they believed in many Gods)
The Sun God was the primary God
The Incas considered mountains and rivers their holy shrines

15. Inca Economy
Unlike the Aztecs, the Incas did not do a lot of trading, they tried to be self-sufficient
Primarily their success was based on agriculture- they used terrace farming and complex irrigation
The Incas grew over 200 types of potatoes
They used forced labor for massive projects
They colonized their conquered areas

16. Inca Society The Inca emphasized their military strength
They built a complex system of roads and bridges (over 2,500 miles of roads)
The Inca used a system of runners to carry messages throughout the empire
They made beautiful pottery, cloth and metalworking

17. Hernan Cortes
Hernan Cortes was a Spanish solider who lived in the 1500’s
The Spanish king asked Cortes to find and conquer new people who could serve Spain
In June 1521, the Spanish attacked the Aztec people and defeated the emperor Montezuma

18. Pizzaro
The riches of the Aztec Empire led other Spanish conquerors to seek their fortunes in South America
In 1533 Francisco Pizarro ordered an attack on the Incas and seized their emperor
Pizarro charged the emperor with many crimes and a military court sentenced him to death
To reward Pizarro the Spanish king made him governor of Peru
The Spanish conquerors were able to defeat the Aztec and the Inca by using horses and guns