Moctezuma II
Ninth emperor of the Aztec Empire, whose reign saw the empire's greatest expansion and the first European contact.
Moctezuma II was the ninth emperor of the Aztec Empire, reigning from 1502 or 1503 until his death in 1520.[1] Through warfare, he expanded the Aztec Empire to its greatest size, incorporating the Zapotec and Yopi people.[2]
Quick Facts
- Reign
- 1502/1503–1520
- Coronation
- 1502/1503
- Predecessor
- Ahuitzotl
- Successor
- Cuitlahuac
- Queen
- Teotlalco, Tlapalizquixochtzin
- Issue
- Isabel Moctezuma
- Pedro Moctezuma
- Francisca de Moctezuma
- Mariana Leonor Moctezuma
- Chimalpopoca
- Tlaltecatzin
- Father
- Axayacatl
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
Moctezuma II was the great-grandson of Moctezuma I through his daughter Atotoztli II.[3] He was a famous warrior before becoming tlatoani, holding the high rank of tlacatecuhtli.[4] His reign began with difficulties, including a major drought in 1505 that caused widespread crop failure and starvation.[5] He changed the previous meritocratic system, widening the divide between nobles and commoners by prohibiting commoners from working in royal palaces.[2]
He built a large tecpan (palace) about 200 meters long and 200 meters wide.[6] According to Barlow, the war with Achiotlan was supposedly caused by Moctezuma's envy of a beautiful flowering tree belonging to the lord there.[7] Sons of kings were expected to start their education much earlier than others, so Moctezuma likely began at about five years old.[8] According to Barlow's study, the conquest of Achiotlan took place in the year 1504.[7][9]
What the cited sources add
Barlow also records that Ixtlilxóchitl says the war of the province of Tototepec occurred in 1507.[7] The conquest of Tlaniztlan can be situated between 1507 and 1509, based on the dates of preceding and following conquests.[7] Barlow identifies Huitztlan as the first town of Moctezuma's reign to appear in the Acolhua source "Pintura de México"[7] Tlachquiyauhco fell in 1511 or 1512, not 1503 as some commentaries state.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Other variant spellings include Motekwsomah, Moteksomah, Motecuhzomahtzin, Moteuczomah, Motecuhzomah, Motēuczōmah, Moctezuma and Mutecçuma; "Aztec Political Structure", Tarlton Law Library (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hassig 1988, p. 221; Hassig 1988, p. 221 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Caso, "Fragmento de genealogía de los príncipes Mexicanos (Cat. Boban 72)", Journal de la Société des américanistes, 1958, p. 21–31; Carrillo de Albornoz, "Moctezuma II Xocoyotl", Real Academia de la Historia; de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl 1892, p. 321; Chimalpahin 1997, p. 101 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Aragón, "Expansión territorial del Imperio mexicano", Anales del Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, 1931, p. 42–64; de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl 1892, p. 321 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Anales de Tlatelolco", Conaculta, 2004, p. 99; de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl 1892, p. 321; de Sahagún 1577, p. book IX, fol. 4v – 6r (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Evans, "Aztec Palaces and Other Elite Residential Arquitecture", Palaces of the Ancient New World, 2004, p. 15, 22–24 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Barlow, "Las conquistas de Moteczuma Xocoyotzin", Estudios de cultura náhuatl, 2015. facts only, no text reused. scielo.org.mx
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hassig 1988, p. 221; Carrillo de Albornoz, "Moctezuma II Xocoyotl", Real Academia de la Historia (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Moctezuma II" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Barlow, "Las conquistas de Moteczuma Xocoyotzin", Estudios de cultura náhuatl, 2015 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Moctezuma II (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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