HIST 1010 Fall 2024 Lecture 028: The American Empires of the Aztec & Inca PDF

HIST 1010 Fall 2024 Lecture 028: The American Empires of the Aztec & Inca By Matt Malczycki Flag of Mexico – the coat of arms of Mexico includes Aztec/Mexica symbols – the eagle perched on a cactus eating a snake marked the birthplace...

HIST 1010 Fall 2024 Lecture 028: The American Empires of the Aztec & Inca By Matt Malczycki Flag of Mexico – the coat of arms of Mexico includes Aztec/Mexica symbols – the eagle perched on a cactus eating a snake marked the birthplace of Huitzilipochtli, god of war – Aztecs built their capital of Tenochtitlan there  Early Sources for Aztec History – Hernan Cortés’s (d. 1547) letters & biography – Bernal Diaz (d. 1584) True History – Bernardino de Sahgun’s (d. 1590) 12 volume Florentine Codex – Diego Duran’s (d. 1588) works – NOTE: All of these sources are Spanish sources. Where are the Aztec sources?  Aztec or Mexica? – The term “Aztec” was coined by a European ethnographer, so it’s Eurocentric to use it BUT we’ve all been using it too long to change. – The people known to us as “Aztecs” called themselves “Mexica.” – The name “Mexico” comes from “Mexica.” – “Aztec” = “Mexica” for HIST 1010 purposes  Aztecs (sometimes “Mexica) – migrated from near modern US-Mexico border southward ca 1275 CE – spent roughly 200 years at bottom of central Mexico social order – every male trained as fighter – Aztecs served as mercenaries for stronger “Tlazoltéotl: Tlazoltéotl rides a snake and a broom, c. AD 1400–1521." Online Photograph. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. city-states 23 Oct. 2008.  Tenochtitlan – Aztec capital – began as small island in shallow Lake Texcoco – used chinampa method to build up island – eventually the island was large enough to live on & eventually it became a city – Tenochitlan had 600,000 inhabitants at one time, making it one of the 5 largest cities in the world ca 1450 CE  Aztec Society – royal family – nobility – merchants (pochteca) – commoners: farmers & craftsmen – slaves – every male learned to fight – women ran the home economies AND did most of the buying & selling in the markets  Aztec “Capitalism” – pochteca: the traveling merchant caste lower than royals & nobility but often much wealthier – pochteca also conducted diplomacy & commercial law – pochteca self-regulated regional Aztec free trade economy – different market days for different cites = widespread prosperity – Aztec Empire was just as much trade empire as military empire Aztec Empire – capital of Mexica/Aztecs was Tenochtitlan – Aztecs ruled over as many as 6 million people in 4-500 smaller city- states/provinces – Aztecs created empire through military power Mexica/Aztec Religion – polytheistic – included human sacrifice – operated on Mayan calendric system – some of the gods were: – Tlaloc – Huiztilopochtli – Quetzalcoatl – BUT what we know of it comes mostly from hostile Christian sources Moctezuma II (Montezuma) (d. 1520) – last long-term Aztec emperor – probably came from priestly elite rather than warrior elite – hostile expansion might have made Aztec enemies more likely to cooperate with Spanish – apparently did not know what to make of the Spanish or how to confront them – killed in 1520 Inca Empire – extended 2700+ miles along the west coast of S. America – roads linked town & supply depots, which made military administration possible – kept records with quipu/ khipu cords – advanced stone work survives to present in places  Cuzco below: one of the gates to the city of Cuzco – capital city of Inca Empire – fortress-palace-temple city famous for massive carved stone architecture – began as village ca 500 BCE – major city by 1200 CE – city center was home to 40,000 people & ”suburbs” home to another 200,000 Martynas,. "Sacsayhuaman Terrace Gateway." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified July 19, 2016. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/5388/sacsayhuaman-terrace-gateway/. people at height  Cuzco below: example of Inca precision stone masonry & architecture at – capital city of Inca Cuzco Empire – fortress-palace-temple city famous for massive carved stone architecture – began as village ca 500 BCE – major city by 1200 CE – city center was home to 40,000 people & ”suburbs” home to another 200,000 Canopic, Flickr User:. "Inca 12 Angle Stone." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified March 12, 2014. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/2373/inca- 12-angle-stone/. people at height Pachacuti (d. 1472) and Topa (Tupac) (d. 1493)  Inca Religion – there was an imperial religion as well as local variations of the same polytheistic faith – blend of Inca gods and gods of subject peoples – Inti, the Sun God, was chief god – at left: (possibly) Viracocha, the creator god & father of Inti doorway god, Gateway of the Sun, Tiwanaku , image, from Encyclopædia Britannica, accessed November 1, 2021, https://academic.eb.com/levels/collegiate/assembly/view/7951.  Machu Picchu – at elevation of 7000+ feet – probably a retreat/lodge of Inca royalty – was abandoned mid- 1500s – left largely intact & untouched – remained secret from Europeans until 20th century Machu Picchu , image, from Encyclopædia Britannica, accessed November 1, 2021, https://academic.eb.com/levels/collegiate/assembly/view/688 12. The End