La otra conquista The Other Conquest

2000 1:50

Questions about the assignments?

Precolumbian Mexico
The Aztecs [who called themselves Mexica] were originally a nomadic people who originated in Aztln. The precise location of Aztln is unknown, other than it was in the North. The Aztec travelling merchants covered large expanses of territory, as far north as Colorado.

Predecessors
There were many civilizations that pre-dated the Aztecs in the region, and many lived near them while their empire expanded.

Expansion took place by means of conquering other civilizations and incorporating the conquered into the Aztec empire.

The Aztecs were both hated and feared by the neighboring civilizations, which ultimately helped contribute to their downfall.

The beginnings of the Empire

Starting in the north around 1168, the Aztecs wandered south in search of a sign that had been made manifest in a prophecy: when they came across an eagle with a serpent in its beak, perched on nopal cactus, they were to establish their capital there, in the early 1200s.

Lake Texcoco
An eagle doing just this was spotted near Lago Texcoco, and the foundations of the new empire were laid.

This was a hostile environment, surrounded by unwelcoming neighbors.

The neighboring civilizations, knowing that the island was snake infested, more or less accepted [or banished] the Aztecs to this island, hoping to finish them off. Or at least put some distance between themselves and the more aggressive Aztecs and their violence practices.

Little did they know that the Aztecs ate snakes!

TENOCHTITLAN
In 1325 the Aztecs took refuge on a previously uninhabited island and began to construct what would become the capital of their empire.

The construction of this city is an impressive accomplishment.

As the population grew, the island was artificially expanded by means of chinampas.

3 causeways [calzadas] connected the island to the shore of the mainland.

The empire
By 1519 the empire had spread from the Atlantic to the Pacific, containing around 500 towns and 38 provinces. Most of those living in the empire were not Aztecs but rather peoples conquered by them.

Organization of the Empire

The leader of the Aztecs was the Emperor, who was treated like a god. The Emperor was advised by a deputy, 4 generals and a council of advisers. Beneath them were the nobles, the tlatoani, who governed the provinces, and lesser nobles who controlled the cites. The common people, the majority, were organized into clans called calpulli. Each calpulli had a certain amount of land that they were responsible for and which provided them with food.

The lowest category was that of the slaves. Some of these were members of other peoples who had been captured, some were Aztecs who had been caught stealing, or who had economic problems such as debts or failed crops.

Daily life
market

Religion
The Aztecs had what seemed to be an enormous pantheon on gods, but many of these gods had several names, depending on what they were controlling and the time of year and/or circumstances. Most of the gods were borrowed from the Olmec and Toltec civilizations. The 2 most ancient gods had 4 sons, who in turn created the rest of the world. All 4 sons were named TEZEATLIPOCA [smoking mirror] and had other names and duties within the civilization, such as an association . Red TezeatlipocaXipe Totec [Flayed God] Blue TezeatlipocaHuitzipopochtli [Blue Hummingbird]-tribal god White TezeatlipocaQuetzalcoatl [Plumed Serpent] Black Tezeatlipoca [Lord of the Night Sky] http://www.mindspring.com/~coatl/p ages/append.htm

Human Sacrifice
They believed that regular offerings of human blood and hearts were necessary to keep the sun moving, and also to ensure that the earth would continue to provide sustenance to the people. Aztecs who were sacrificed considered it an honor, in that they were helping their people and were going straight to the highest reward. Many of the victims however, were from neighboring communities, and were captured as a result of a guerra florida or flowery warinvasions to capture sacrificial victims. For obvious reasons, the Aztecs were feared and hated by their neighbors!

The Templo Mayor and other structures

Writing system and language

The Aztec language is Nahuatl and there was no phonetic alphabet but rather a system of glyphs that represented a unit of meaning. Dots and glyphs were used in the calendar to signify a year and days [the Aztec calendar was like the Chinese in that the years had attributes-Year of the Rabbit. The Aztecs wrote on bark and deer skin, and had records of their history, conquests and religion, along with more mundane information related to commerce and trading.

All of these writings were destroyed by the Spaniards during the conquest. The examples of Aztec writings, called the codices [1 codex] now in existence were done at the bequest of Spanish priests following the conquest.

Nahuatl is a rather complex language. The names of both people and places tend to be composed of Nahuatl words strung together, and the writing system combines these glyphs.

at the water of chili peppers

Hill with ocelot [wild cat]

The Conquest
Hernn Corts set sail from Cuba in 1519 with about 600 men, some horses, dogs, and firearms. An advanced team had landed first in the Yucatan, and encountered Jernimo de Aguilar, a Spaniard who had been shipwrecked years earlier and had since been living with the Mayans and had learned their language. Aguilar joined Corts expedition [a second Spaniard decided to remain with the Mayans, as he had married and was more fully integrated into the society], providing Corts with an interpreter.

As the expedition moved north along the Atlantic /Gulf coast, they encountered peoples who did not speak Mayan [a family of languages as opposed to a single language]

Malintzn, La Malinche
In the Tabasco region, the Spaniards encountered a woman known by a number of names throughout history, but without whom the conquest would have been much more difficult.
She had been born into a noble family but was given or sold to another group, perhaps so that her more favored brother could rule. She was from a Nahuatl-speaking region and was given to a Mayan-speaking people, so she was fluent in both.

So when Corts arrived in Tenochtitln, he was able to commuicate with the Emperor Moctezuma, albeit in a complicated, roundabout way.

Cortsin Spanish-Aguilar

Aguilar-in Mayan--Malinche

Malinche-in Nahuatl-Moctezuma

Meanwhile, in the background..

Corts had the great fortune to meet up with sworn enemies of the Aztecs.
He also arrived in the same year that the god Quetzalcoatl was prophesied to return. Quetzalcoatl, the Plumed Serpent, had been banished from Aztec lands, and was said to one day return from the East, over the water, in the guise of a white man with light colored hair and a beard.

When the Emperor Moctezuma and his council of nobles first heard of the newcomers to the East, their first thought was of Quetzalcoatl. They later had doubts, long before Corts actually arrived in Tenochtitln, but it was too late.

How did the Aztecs lose?

They had a lot of enemies who saw the Spaniards as the lesser of 2 evils.

The priests had become too powerful within the Aztec society and had lost some support amongst the people.
Spears and cloth shields were no match for guns. The Spaniards horsesan animal never before seen-inspired fear and could outrun any warrior.

The cyclical nature of the Aztec calendar called for periods of destruction, leading to a sense of fatality and acceptance.

Post-conquest life
With their noblemen/gods vanquished, many Aztecs accepted Christianity. Why? Others fought the imposition of an alien lifestyle and belief system. Thousands fell victim to European diseases not previously known in the Americas, particularly smallpox but also measles, the mumps and even the common cold. Unlike the British pilgrims who arrived with their families, the Spaniards in the New World were men, and men who were either single or who had left their families behind in Spain [like Corts]. So there was much intermingling between Aztec women and Spanish men, sometimes by choice, sometimes by force.

More Aztecs learned Spanish than did Spaniards learn Nahuatl. The priests were often the exception. They were also often the protectors of the natives against the invaders [who were not always convinced that the natives were actually humans with souls worthy of respect.]

Questions about the readings or the presentation?

And now, our first student presentation.

While youre viewing, keep in mind & take notes on:

what readings or what parts of the readings helped prepare you for this film [qu lecturas o qu secciones te prepararon para esta pelcula? with whom did your sympathies lie during the viewing? Why? Con quin te simpatizabas mientras mirabas. Por qu?

do we always have to respect the views and values of others? Exlain. Estamos siempre obligados a respetar las opiniones y los valores de otros? Explica. Explain the relationship between Tonantzin and the statue of the Virgin Mary Explica la relacin entre Tonantzin y la estatua de la Virgen Mara.

Discussion Is there a limit as to what we can or should respect or follow in someone elses culture or religion? Can something cultural or religious be right or wrong? Can you think of any examples from real life? How would you explain the relationship between Tonantzin and the statue of the Virgin Mary?

Discusin Hay un lmite en cuanto a lo que debemos respetar en la cultura o la religin de otras personas? Se puede decir que las creencias o las prcticas de otras personas sean correctas o malas? Explica. Explica la relacin entre Tonantzin y la estatua de la Virgen Mara.

For next week

Readings: (5 line summary of each in the appropriate language p. 79-85 p. 86-91 p. 92-94 p. 122-130 Review of La otra conquista / The Other Conquest 150 words, with an emphasis on how unfairly either the Aztecs or the Spaniards were represented. Presentations: Chac Moolthe god of rain Chilam Balama sacred book of the Maya