Tlaxcala

The Aztec Empire was once a powerful force in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica that fell from power during the early 16th century when the Spanish arrived and began conquering the so called New world. This conquest was hastened by their advanced technology and by the introduction of foreign disease’s that the Natives did not have resistance too. What many people don’t consider though is the possibility that the Aztec’s themselves also contributed to their downfall with their own beliefs regarding human sacrifices and the actions they took to ensure it was possible. These sacrifices they held so dear and their action could have harmed them in the end by encouraging the surrounding tribes to ally themselves with the Spanish and by harming their population and military strength. These ritualistic sacrifices the Aztecs performed and believed in played a major role in their downfall during the Spanish conquest of the new world. Many can argue that the sacrificial culture the Aztecs believed in did nothing to harm them when the Spanish arrived due to the fact that nothing could have really been done to prevent the Conquest as the Spanish arrived with the intent to take control. The thing is that the sacrificial culture gave the Spanish an advantage in certain aspects during their conquest which ranged from gaining allies to painting the Aztecs as something that needs to die or be saved. It gave them an advantage that they did not need to work on as it was a normal part of Aztec culture…

An advanced society would be defined as a society that is highly developed or ahead of the times. Societies such as this would possess things such as; irrigated agriculture, long distance trade, writing system, and urbanization. Both the Aztec and Incan Empires reflected characteristics of an advanced society. The development of the Western Hemisphere resembled that of other civilizations. However, they were not as technologically advanced as others, although, they did build roads for long…

This image appears to be depict the Massacre of Cholula from the perspective of the Tlaxcaltecas. We see that most of the Cholula people were easily killed and dismembered by the powerful Spanish warriors in their metal armor. The artist represent the Spanish forces and what appears to be a few Tlaxcalteca soldiers as valiant heros conquering a weaker undeserving people. The Indian at the far right appears to be jumping of the pyramid as if to commit suicide. The portrayal of the Cholula…

The Mexican codex map was made 50 years after the Spanish conquered the Aztecs in 1521. The map illustrates two Mexican towns of Tlaxcala, the traces of the Mexican native society and the influence of the Spanish conquests in these regions. The church of Saint Barbara Tamasolco and Saint Anna situated on the left and right of the map represents each of these towns. The writings on the map resulted from the combination of the local language of the natives and one taken from Spain. Also, many of…

expedition was stranded. Later Cortés arrived in Tlaxcala, which was a confederacy of about 200 towns and tribes that did not have central government. The Tlaxcalans fought the Spanish in three battles spanning September 2nd - September 5th of 1519. After the battles Cortés began to release prisoners with messages of peace. But, soon after he realized the Spanish were enemies of Montezuma, Xicotencatl the Elder, and Maxixcatzin. They persuaded the Tlaxcalan warleader, Xicotencatl the Younger,…

Tadi walked home quietly so he wouldn’t startle anyone. On the way he saw warriors shoving prisoners toward the temple and priests trailing after them. Well I might as well watch the sacrifice, thought Tadi. So he followed the priests to the temple to find it very crowded. Dang it! I should have brought my hides thought Tadi. He butted his way through the crowd and got to the front. Tadi now knowed why there was such a big crowd. They had the landowner of the Tlaxcala tribe to sacrifice. First…

The Conquering of the Aztecs by Cortez The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire was one of the most crucial event in history, and the desire to gain wealth transform Hernan Cortez into becoming a famous and influential figure in the 16th century. His intelligence and determination were manifested by the way he made decisions to prepare his army for unexpected attacks. In other words, it was easy for Cortez and his army to conquer the Aztec Empire because of advance weaponry and the advantage…

It is no secret Cortés knew how to manipulate the minds of the Nahua as he is quoted in Diáz, “Do you know gentlemen, that is seems to me that the Indians are terrified at the horses and may think that they and the cannon alone can make war on them.” The Spaniards moved on after Tlaxcala, to Cholula as it was geographically closer to Tenochtitlán. The conquest of Cholula as described by Diáz and Tapia, was a stepping stone toward Tenochtitlán and was seemingly meant to galvanize the…

After the arrival and conquest of the Aztec Empire by the Spaniards, the production and use of clothes in Mesoamerica changed drastically. The Spanish people banned most of the Prehispanic dresses and body adornment, as they were considered as “uncivilized.” Indigenous, European and Asian fabrics influenced Mexican clothing production by the mid colonial period. The Spanish did not appreciated the local cotton, nor did they find the material produced on traditional backstrap looms wide enough,…

In the present article Carballo examines the temple and plaza offerings towards the process of urbanization that took place in central Mexico. He takes into account the site of La Laguna Tlaxcala as a case study to test the assumption of urban process through ritual performance. In other words, the process of urbanization can be defined as an integration of community membership and social differentiation of the individuals which includes power, wealth and occupational specialization. In this…