The Aztec Civilization: The Most Advanced In The Americas

The Aztecs were a remarkable civilization. Th is civilization were distrusted and disliked because they tended to push others out of their way. They ruled an empire in Tenochtitlan in the time of 1350 to 1519. They also were known for their agriculture and human sacrifices. Agriculture was a very important part of their h istory because without their farming method the Aztec couldn't have created such great civilization. According to Document A of the Aztec DBQ, states that the Aztec empire grew more than 200 miles west to east, and north to south. Th is means that with the growth of the empire the population also grew and more effective agriculture techniques were needed to feed the people. They created the method of ch inampas because they

The Aztec and Spanish weaponry was both similar and different. The Spanish and Aztec had variations of a spear that were used in battle. The Aztec spear was a long piece of wood that was sharpened at both ends. The tips of the spear were also hardened in the flame of a fire. A Spanish spear was similar but was not double sided. Spanish spears also had sharpened steel points at the end. Although the Spanish had steel weapons, the Aztec made weapons with obsidian blades. For example the maquahuitl (war club)

The Aztec and Incan empires both had strong armies. In the Aztec empire by the early fifteenth century the Aztecs were powerful enough to overcome their immediate neighbors and demand tribute. During the middle decades of the fifteenth century, the military elite that ruled much of Tenochtitlan, the Aztecs launched ambitious campaigns of imperial expansion. Know as “the Obsidian Serpent” Itzcoatl and Motecuzoma advanced first to Oaxaca in southwestern Mexico. After capturing Oaxaca and slaying

The Aztecs were one of the last tribes to arrive in Mexico, in 1195 CE, when they arrived in the Valley of Mexico other tribes had taken the best land so the Aztecs were left with the swampy shores. They soon adapted and began to conquer their neighboring tribes. They continued to expand until they had their very own empire. The empire continued to thrive, until the Spanish arrived and had a fixed mind set on wanting the empires region of land.

The Spanish had superior weapons and technology which was a vital aspect in the defeat of the Aztecs. The Spanish had muskets, spears, cannons, gunpowder, horses and firearms but it was the use of the steel Toledo swords and chainmail armour by the Spanish that allowed them to win. The Toledo sword was the primary weapon used by the Spanish and was one of the finest swords manufactured in Europe at the time. The Toledo sword was highly flexible and strong. Although the Aztecs used obsidian which could inflict critical wounds on unprotected body parts, the obsidian was very fragile and would shatter against steel swords and armour. This rendered the obsidian weapons useless as the Spanish used steel in the majority of their weapons. A Spanish

Throughout the book, writers mention that Aztec governments did everything that they could to give the Spanish everything that they needed, and that the Spanish took advantage of them. “…he took the Spaniards to be gods; he believed in them and worshiped them as deities.” The people of Mexico were loyal to those that they believed to be gods and “when they conquered the Mexica and all belonging to them, we never abandoned them or left them behind in it.” Under Spanish rule many men, women and children were exploited, tortured and murdered. The Broken Spears captured this in great detail while Traditions and Encounters skims over a lot of these details. This seems to create a gap between the two texts, making the differences between the authors more apparent.

The author argues that the Spanish were completely at fault for the total destruction of the Aztec Empire. In Broken spears, the author explains how many factors other than Spanish power contributed to the downfall of the Aztecs. Not only did the Spanish have many advantages over the Aztecs, but also they also exploited them and took advantage of the cultural difference. The main key aspects to the Spanish victory, is that the Spanish were viewed as gods at first because of their appearance, the Aztecs welcomed the Spanish with gifts and festivities, which showed the Spanish had total control of people. The Aztecs also held a ritual ceremony for the arrival of the “god” that included a human

Maybe too much credit is given to Cortés as one of the greatest Spanish conquerors who developed effective strategy to defeat the Aztecs. Restall see this as somewhat of a myth accounting for the failure of historians to look at history before the 1519 (Restall, 19). Restall says “However, too often, without any direct evidence, the actions of Conquistadors after the 1519– 21 invasion of Mexico are taken as deliberately imitating Cortés, while pre-1519 patterns are ignored.” Whatever the case for whom should be given the credit for the strategy used to defeat the Aztecs; one must admit Cortés was able the win the trust of the people and use the Aztecs’ fear of him to control their empire. Cortés harbored fear of his own. Elliott says, “Cortés felt some uneasiness, when he reflected that it was in the power of the Indians, at any time, to cut off his communications with the surrounding country, and hold him a prisoner in the capital.” The Omens of the Aztecs betrayed them and caused them to see the arriving settlers as gods. They were not prepared to defend themselves against the advanced weapons of the Spanish. Much like the Aztecs, the Mayans faced hard times at the hands of the Spanish conquerors, but their defeat came much easier to the Spanish.

In regards appearance, the Spanish were essentially covered from head to toe in iron armor. Even the weapons they carried were covered in iron. The Aztecs were unaccustomed to the iron-clad individuals. In regards to weaponry, the Spanish were, even more, intimidating in the fact that they had cannons. The Aztecs describe the cannon to Motecuhzoma, "a thing like a ball of stone comes out of its entrails: it comes shooting sparks and raining fire...smoke that comes out of it has a pestilent odor. The odor penetrates even the brain and causes great discomfort" ( 30). For me personally, the only reason I can think of for Cortes to fire off a cannon was to show dominance over the Indians. For people who had never even heard of a cannon before, it is understandable that the Native Americans were fearful of Cortes and his men. Along with the iron-clad armor and weapons the

The Natives encountered by Columbus seemed to not be very warlike; although there were accounts about them having weapons. The warlike way in Cortes’ letter of the Aztecs was that the people were protected by their swords and sheltered by their shields.

Spanish swords were fast and easy to swing around. They could stab and do deadly damage. The Aztecs didn’t have steel, so their shields and armor were not made to withstand the sword. Aztec war clubs were very sharp, as they were made from obsidian, but so heavy that a warrior needed to use both hands to swing it, and was not as strong as Spanish steel. Cortes brought horses, which easily outran Aztec foot soldiers. The gun was the biggest advantage that the Spanish had. According to one source, when Moctezuma had sent ambassadors to greet the Aztecs, Cortes fired his guns to impress them, and the ambassadors leaped into the sea from the shock of seeing the gun. The Aztecs had slings and spears, which could travel long distances and were very accurate, but were not as deadly as guns, which could fire fast and accurate with deadly results. Because Cortes brought these weapons, he is the reason the Aztec empire

The Spanish had better weapons, This was a huge advantage because it really scared the Aztecs a lot. The horses were a great weapon for the Spanish. You can’t compare cannons, and spears. The armor was also a huge advantage for the Spanish because the Spanish had metal, and the Aztecs had feathers. A great advantage that the Spanish had was that they had horses. You would normally think that horses are not a huge deal, but these horses totally freaked out the Aztecs. And finally a huge mental weapon that Cortéz had, was that the Aztecs speculated that he was a god.

     A second major theme, which played a very important role in this event, was the incredible advantage given to the Spanish due to their technology. The Aztecs were an advanced civilization with a large infrastructure, an organized system of government and many artistic and cultural achievements. However, they severely lacked many important advantages that were common in Europe at that time. The Aztecs had no iron tools or weapons,

Another thing that gave the Soanish an advantage over the Incas was weapons. The Spanish are armed with some of the best

There was many benefits and drawbacks for the Spanish imperial power. One of the benefits the Spanish power was the land that they would obtain from conquering the Aztecs. They would have conquered much land which is now known as Mexico. After the middle ages Spain had become a superior empire and was continuing to grow through exploration. The man who was leading the exploration was Hernan Cortes. Hernan was a very adventurous and ambitious man. When he first sailed he had heard that Christopher Columbus had found a myriad of land and gold in the Caribbean island. By that time Spain was building larger colonies in Caribbean. Cortes eventually found Tenochtitlan which had an abundance of gold and silver in all directions and and also had a great deal of land. Another the Spanish had acquired was more slaves. After the Aztecs surrendered they were introduced to the encomienda system. Some with each purchase of land the settlers were awarded a number of Aztec workers. The Spanish men didn't pay these workers they still had legal rights.The owners were to treat them well and educate them with the Christian religion. The Aztec were at the lowest level of the encomienda system. Once the Spanish decided to invade the Aztec Empire they had a great advantage for the fight ,for their weapons were a lot more advanced. For example, the aztec had a war while the spanish had a sword. A war club could slice like a knife, but would usually shatter against tough surfaces like Spanish