Anahuac
Anahuac, (Nahuatl: Ānāhuac) commonly known as the Aztec Empire, is an indigenous monarchy in North America and the second-largest independent country on the continent, after the United States to its north. It is the only independent monarchy in the Americas today, as well as the only majority polytheist country in the Western Hemisphere.
Many cultures flourished in pre-Columbian Anahuac, such as the Maya, Olmecs, Toltecs, Teotihuacan, Zapotecs, and--of course--the Mexica, better known as the Aztecs. In the 16th century, the Aztec Triple Alliance was invaded by Spanish conquistadores, who seized the capital city of Tenochtitlan in 1521 and installed a puppet kingdom which was later formally annexed as part of a large viceroyalty called New Spain. The Aztecs managed to escape total destruction and aged an insurgency against the Spanish even as their lands were settled by the Europeans, though its strength waxed and waned throughout the history of New Spain.
Today, Anahuac is a regional power in the Americas, a staunch ally of the United States, and a notable cultural exporter in the Anglosphere. It has one of the world's strongest economies, intimately linked to that of the United States, and is ranked fifth in the world and first in the Americas for number of World Heritage sites with forty-two. Starting in the 21st century, it became one of the most-visited countries in the world.
Many cultures flourished in pre-Columbian Anahuac, such as the Maya, Olmecs, Toltecs, Teotihuacan, Zapotecs, and--of course--the Mexica, better known as the Aztecs. In the 16th century, the Aztec Triple Alliance was invaded by Spanish conquistadores, who seized the capital city of Tenochtitlan in 1521 and installed a puppet kingdom which was later formally annexed as part of a large viceroyalty called New Spain. The Aztecs managed to escape total destruction and aged an insurgency against the Spanish even as their lands were settled by the Europeans, though its strength waxed and waned throughout the history of New Spain.
Today, Anahuac is a regional power in the Americas, a staunch ally of the United States, and a notable cultural exporter in the Anglosphere. It has one of the world's strongest economies, intimately linked to that of the United States, and is ranked fifth in the world and first in the Americas for number of World Heritage sites with forty-two. Starting in the 21st century, it became one of the most-visited countries in the world.
History
The earliest events of Aztec history are attributed to its mythology. Supposedly, the Aztec people came from a mythical land called Aztlan and later migrated south to the area around Tenochtitlan. Archaeologists have searched for the site of Aztlan or its inspiration since the Spanish Conquest: most proposed sites are located around the Tropic of Cancer, though some speculate that it was as far north as the Southwestern United States or in Texas. The strongest contender is considered to be Cerro del Culiacan, a large humped mountain matching most descriptions of Aztlan.
Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica
As a people, the Aztecs arrived in the Valley of Mexico in 1248, emigrating over the course of a century to arrive at Lake Texcoco in 1325. There, the Aztecs' tlatoani (literally "speaker," usually rendered as "king") Tenoch--himself possibly mythological--declared that they would build their city on an island in the lake after witnessing what they considered a divine symbol: an eagle perched on a cactus devouring a snake. According to legend, the eagle--representing Huitzilopochtli, the sun god and patron deity of the Aztecs--bowed to the newcomers as they approached. This symbol has since been immortalized in the Aztec flag and coat of arms.
Though such swampy land would seem to be a foolish place to build, Tenoch ordered teh construction of the Aztecs' greatest city: Tenochtitlan, from the Nahuatl for "among the prickly pears (growing among) rocks." The damp ground turned out to be an ideal location: by connecting the island on which Tenochtitlan stood to the lakeshore with easily disassembled causeways, they could simply take down the bridges to prevent hostile armies from entering in a distinct military advantage over their neighbors; and the lake itself gave them a great bounty to feed their people, the shallow waters becoming rich hydroculture farmlands called chinamitl,(commonly known as chinampas) a practice which continues to this day.
By the 15th century, the Aztecs had established a hegemony over most of their neighbors and were allied with two other city-states, called Texcoco and Tlacopan. As time went on, the Aztecs began to draw their human sacrifices--which they believed were demanded by the gods, or else the sun wouldn't rise the next day--from just two sources: willing volunteers of their own tribes, and prisoners taken from a neighboring confederation of four altepetl (city-states) called Tlaxcala. These prisoners were seized in preordained "conflicts" called xochiyaoyotl, or "flower wars;" these "battles" were a way for Aztecs to gain personal prestige rather than acts of military conquest, the objective for each warrior being to capture as many enemies as possible to be sacrificed. The Tlaxcallans, as the designated losers of these fights, were armed with fake weapons and pitted against trained warriors with real ones. As in other prosperous hegemonies before and after them, the Aztecs were resented by those they had subjugated.
Though such swampy land would seem to be a foolish place to build, Tenoch ordered teh construction of the Aztecs' greatest city: Tenochtitlan, from the Nahuatl for "among the prickly pears (growing among) rocks." The damp ground turned out to be an ideal location: by connecting the island on which Tenochtitlan stood to the lakeshore with easily disassembled causeways, they could simply take down the bridges to prevent hostile armies from entering in a distinct military advantage over their neighbors; and the lake itself gave them a great bounty to feed their people, the shallow waters becoming rich hydroculture farmlands called chinamitl,(commonly known as chinampas) a practice which continues to this day.
By the 15th century, the Aztecs had established a hegemony over most of their neighbors and were allied with two other city-states, called Texcoco and Tlacopan. As time went on, the Aztecs began to draw their human sacrifices--which they believed were demanded by the gods, or else the sun wouldn't rise the next day--from just two sources: willing volunteers of their own tribes, and prisoners taken from a neighboring confederation of four altepetl (city-states) called Tlaxcala. These prisoners were seized in preordained "conflicts" called xochiyaoyotl, or "flower wars;" these "battles" were a way for Aztecs to gain personal prestige rather than acts of military conquest, the objective for each warrior being to capture as many enemies as possible to be sacrificed. The Tlaxcallans, as the designated losers of these fights, were armed with fake weapons and pitted against trained warriors with real ones. As in other prosperous hegemonies before and after them, the Aztecs were resented by those they had subjugated.
The Spanish Conquest
It is said that the Aztecs had long believed that Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent god of the morning star, would one day return to rule Tenochtitlan after departing to the east. Several omens would foretell his arrival: a strange object (presumably a meteor or comet) would appear in the eastern sky; Lake Texcoco would boil on a calm day, flooding many houses; a woman, possibly the fertility goddess Cihuacoatl, would weep in the middle of the night; the stone temple of the sun god Huitzilopochtli would be consumed by fire; the straw temple of the fire god Xiuhtecuhtli would be struck by lightning and destroyed; a fisherman would capture a black, crane-like bird which Moctezuma II is said to have seen a vision of the stars and heavens and of men riding deer-like animals in its mirror-like crest; fire would streak across the sky; and, finally, strange two-headed people would appear, disappearing just as mysteriously. However, the historicity of these claims is debatable at best, and many believe that the accounts of the omens were fabricated following the Spanish Conquest to justify the Aztecs' defeat.