Each region of the world has an incredible history dotted with its own civilizations, peoples and empires. America is no exception to the rule and, when we think of its pre-colonial history, often the first subject that comes to mind is that of the Aztecs, a great mysterious empire with a legendary history, sacrifices, to temples and typical outfits, a whole civilization that collapsed in a very short time after the passage of the Spanish conquistadors. However, most of us actually know this story rather poorly beyond these few clichés. I therefore propose today to explore it quickly with me, to learn more about the birth, the expansion and the fall of one of the most powerful American empires, the great history of the Aztec Empire. The northern border of Mesoamerica has always separated the sedentary and culturally influential world from the nomadic world, from the barbarians, the "Chichimecs" as they were then called. These peoples have long been too divided to undertake more than brief but destructive raids south. But these, over time, became more important, more numerous, and innovated by introducing the use of new weapons, including the bow. Their forays then became more ambitious, and during the sixth century they participated in the fall and destruction of Teotihuacan, one of the greatest cities in the world whose influence extended over most of Mesoamerica. . The Chichimecs then settled in the Central Meseta where they seized many cities and thus, this barbarian people mixed with the local populations and, a few centuries later, was probably at the origin of the fall of many other great cities. , in particular the legendary Tula, capital of the Toltecs, a name which means "master builders " and who will later be seen as the people at the origin of all civilization by the Mesoamericans. The looting of this capital around 1168 had an unexpected consequence : a small Chichimec tribe set out. The men leave their city, Aztlán, and go south led by four priests carrying on their shoulders the effigy of their god Huitzilopochtli, “the hummingbird on the left”, who guides their migration. Last arrivals, treated everywhere like barbarians, they are nevertheless welcomed by the sovereign of the powerful Culhuacan, who allows them to settle on the edge of his kingdom, in the swamps of Lake Texcoco. He then treats them as serfs and condemns them to a miserable life, but agrees, after a while, to offer one of his daughters in marriage to the young chief of the tribe who willingly accepts this honor, and in response makes the choice to make his new wife a deity by sacrificing her. Discovering the fate of his daughter, the king then hunts the newcomers who engage in a new exile. After some time their priests see, on an island in the center of Lake Texcoco, an eagle resting on a cactus devouring a snake ; it is a divine sign. The small tribe then settled on this marshy islet where no other people had sought asylum and, at the request of its priests, abandoned its nomadic way of life there. It was here, in the Valley of Mexico, surrounded by lakes and protective swamps, ideally located for trade, that the Aztecs founded Tenochtitlan in 1325. Tenochtitlan thus began its history like any other small Mesoamerican city, as a local power with little influence. For a long time, moreover, the Aztecs remained vassals of the greatest power in the region, the city of Azcapotzalco, to which they pay tribute and hire their men as mercenaries, in exchange for which they benefit from its protection. Moreover, disadvantaged by their Chichimec origins, the Aztecs find more prestigious ancestors by choosing Toltec princes of Colhuacan as sovereigns, the first of them, whom we know in any case, is Acamapichtli who reigns over the Aztecs in the second half of the fourteenth century. However, all this does not prevent Tenochtitlan from carrying out military campaigns, often by accompanying its overlord of Azcapotzalco, but also from extending its influence by weaving alliances with other cities of the region, and it is elsewhere of this way that it strengthens its position the most. But the status quo between the two cities, Tenochtitlan and Azcapotzalco, cannot be maintained while the first gains more and more influence in the region, which disturbs its suzerain, and in particular the king of this one : Maxtla. The latter multiplies the offenses and does his best to oppress the Aztecs and crush their rising power, which leads to a war. But Tenochtitlan can count on the precious alliances it has forged and, with the help of the cities of Texcoco and Tlacopan, the Aztecs overthrow the power of Azcapotzalco, destroy the city and sacrifice its king. It is the starting point of the Aztec expansion and domination over Mesoamerica, but also that of the solid friendship which will accompany the three cities until the fall of the Empire. But this victory has nothing to do with chance, Tenochtitlan has acquired a powerful army that it will develop throughout its history. The Aztecs can thus count on a regular army made up of professional warriors trained from an early age and well organized into several units, each having a role on the battlefield, which made it possible to implement devastating tactics with formations in tight ranks. , ambushes and traps. These men were properly equipped with a variety of melee weapons, often made of obsidian among elite troops, which is a stone that when cut was both very sharp and fragile, but also many ranged weapons. , as many bows as javelins, spears and slings. All of this was evolutionary, as the Aztecs incorporated the strategies and equipment of the peoples they conquered. Finally, they have also developed a fast and efficient communication system that allows them to coordinate military movements across their empire; for this they use merchant messengers called pochtecas. It is all these elements that are preparing to allow the birth of a new empire in the region. It is with the reign of Itazcoatl that Aztec history takes a completely different turn; he is a great ruler who established a code of laws, promoted education, art, literature and music and allowed the economic development of Tenochtitlan and, above all, who set up a gigantic empire. He is at the origin of the creation of a powerful confederation at the beginning of his reign in 1428, the Triple Alliance, which brings together the three major city-states of the Valley of Mexico: Tenochtitlan, Texcoco and Tlacopan. The first, of which he is the sovereign, is the most powerful of the alliance, of which it takes the head by assuming its political, religious and military direction. The second, Texcoco, brings its expertise in the fields of literature, education and governance . Finally, the third and weakest, Tlacopan, is strategically located and provides significant military and political support to the alliance. It was this Triple Alliance that led major military campaigns and founded a great Mesoamerican empire by subjugating many peoples and city-states. The subject kingdoms then pay tribute in material goods, food, crafts or other resources, in exchange for which the allies offer them their protection and certain economic advantages. The conquered territories are then distributed among the members of the alliance and the tributes levied on the subjected cities are shared equitably. Moreover, the empire did not extend only by the conquests, diplomacy often allows the Aztecs to weave alliances and to draw cities in its air of influence in exchange for gifts, marriages, protection or beneficial trade for both sides. It is this system of Triple-Alliance which allows the Aztecs to maintain political and military domination over the greater part of the region, while remaining, with Tenochtitlan, the center of this whole system, since being the most powerful city in the threesome; this is also why we speak of the Aztec empire, even though the inhabitants of the two other cities of the alliance are not from this people. Be that as it may, this empire expanded more and more under the reign of warrior emperors, starting with Itazcoatl, then, but whose legacy was carried forward by Moctezuma I, who stabilized and prospered the empire in addition to expanding it, then by Axayacatl, who led daring military campaigns towards distant territories and reinforced the administration, justice and government of the empire, also by Tizoc, who managed to expand the borders of the empire despite some setbacks and resistance during his campaigns; but above all by Ahuitzol who led the empire to its territorial and cultural apogee. Finally, the last to expand the empire is Moctezuma II, but his reign does not end as happily as that of his predecessors. Be that as it may, all of this is facilitated, as we have seen, by the efficiency of the Aztec army, but also by the flexibility of its population which, taking advantage of advances in the agricultural domains, can give up during its activity for a while and mobilize very quickly for the war while being assured of always being able to feed itself; all this without forgetting that the tributes also make it possible to ensure a supply of the army and the population. Additionally, the Aztecs have a view of the world and of war that is deeply tied to their religion and beliefs. War rituals and human sacrifice are an integral part of their culture, and this may have given rise to conflicts and military campaigns to capture prisoners for ritual sacrifice. This makes it possible to legitimize the conflicts which, apart from the expansion of the Aztec influence, provide prisoners to meet the demand for sacrifices from the Gods, without which they cannot ensure the survival of the universe. Thus, it is much more important during wars to take captives than to kill enemies, which will harm the Aztecs later. One of the consequences of the Aztec expansion is to have made Tenochtitlan one of the most imposing and radiant cities in the world. Built in the middle of a lake, its inhabitants had to develop by implementing impressive infrastructures, canals, aqueducts, bridges and floating artificial islands. In this context, doing agriculture is a real challenge, especially when you know that you have to feed a population of 200 to 300,000 souls, at a time when Paris still only hosts nearly 150,000. For this, the Aztecs relied on chinampas, fertile artificial islands on which a variety of crops could be grown, from corn to tomatoes to flowers. But all this is only made possible by the very efficient irrigation of the city, without all these infrastructures making it complicated to cross; Tenochtitlan is a marvel of architecture and urban planning, far from the labyrinthine European cities of the time. Trade is also the wealth of this city which, taking advantage of its empire, establishes land and river trade routes to the most distant regions. To facilitate all this, we then rely either on precious products such as cocoa, cotton, feathers or certain shells, or on a local currency, the quachtli, which takes the form of small metal discs. Around all this is organized a hierarchical society where everyone has a well-established place: the king, the nobility, the priests, the warriors, the merchants, the craftsmen, the farmers and the slaves. The majority of people are born into one of these classes and stay their whole lives, but upward social mobility is not impossible and a strategic marriage, an act of military bravery or an exceptional achievement in a field can propel some new men . Life is punctuated by two calendars, the 365-day solar and the 260-day ritual, which give meaning to each day and define what activity should or should not be practiced there. The religion, which puts forward a complex pantheon, is based on these calendars while the many rituals, in particular the sacrifices, punctuate the daily life of the Aztecs. It was all this together that enabled the Aztecs to effectively govern their territories, coordinate economic activities, maintain order and promote social cohesion. However, all this cannot last forever, and soon newcomers appear in Mesoamerica. It has been some time now since outsiders have come in contact with the Mesoamerican peoples, especially on the side of the Mayans at first, but a ship has recently docked in lands that are part of the Triple Alliance 's area of influence. , in Tochpan. These white-skinned foreigners, who go in search of territories and wealth on unknown boats, remind Emperor Moctezuma II and his priests of certain legends, so one wonders if these would not be deities. When several hundred of them finally land in the empire, the emperor sends them an emissary and several gifts, so he tries to clear it all up. But the news is not good, these foreigners led by a certain Hernan Cortés definitely look like deities, but the legends are not tender and we are worried on the Aztec side, we think that they came to punish men. All this does not get better as the foreigners crush a Tlaxcaltec army, a rival people of the Aztecs, and travel to their capital Tlaxcala where they form an alliance against Moctezuma II. Nor can the emperor oppose the capture and sacking of Cholula, the second largest city in the empire, by the combined forces of the foreigners and their new Tlaxcaltec allies. This time for sure, this certain Hernan Cortès is a divinity who has come to punish Moctezuma, the latter then thinks of fleeing but his entourage dissuades him, and he goes instead to meet foreigners, before inviting them into his palace in Tenochtitlan. But things go worse and worse, these agitated guests turn into torturers and try to convert the emperor to a new belief, Cortes even allows himself to desecrate the local temple and have a cross placed there; the population of the city then accepts less and less this foreign presence. But now, after several weeks, the divinity Cortes leaves the city with several hundred of his men, leaving the emperor and his court in the hands of one of his lieutenants, who after some time takes the opportunity to massacre them all at exception of Moctezuma. When Cortes returns to Tenochtitlan with reinforcements, the city revolts and the Aztecs attack foreigners by the thousands, divinity or not, the situation is no longer acceptable ; the conquistadors go so far as to eliminate the emperor before fleeing at night, many of them are massacred while the capital is finally liberated. But the conflict does not stop there, Cuitlahuac, who was designated emperor during Moctezuma's captivity, takes up arms and pursues the foreigners to Otumba. There, tens of thousands of Aztec warriors face a few dozen conquistadors and several hundred of their Tlaxcaltec allies, but despite this numerical disadvantage they manage to get out and join Tlaxcala. But much worse than this defeat, the Aztecs are affected by a new disease which decimates the population and the warriors, even the emperor loses his life. The situation then becomes worse and worse, the Aztecs find no support among their tributary cities who see the Spaniards as liberators, while on their side they receive reinforcements by sea and see their local allies strengthen themselves, preparing for a big offensive. This is not long in coming, they quickly seize Texcoco, the second city of the Triple Alliance, part of the population of which joins the Spaniards to attack Tenochtitlan, in front of which they quickly put the siege accompanied by tens of thousands of indigenous allies. The technological superiority of the conquistadors allows them to take control of the lake quickly and often win battles, but the Aztecs do not give up and are tough opponents who adapt to Spanish technologies, although they never do. use themselves. The invaders even suffer some defeats, and the siege is far from simple, sometimes they have to watch helplessly as their captured comrades being sacrificed on the city temple. Despite everything, by dint of destruction, the Spaniards manage to settle permanently in the city and to advance further and further. On August 13, 1521, after 75 days of siege and more than a hundred thousand deaths on the Aztec side, the city was finally taken, as well as the last emperor who was executed a few years later. It took less than two years for the conquistadors to bring about the fall of the most powerful Mesoamerican empire in history. Thus, New Spain was born from the ashes of a great empire and in a way took its place by becoming the most important Spanish colony in the New World, centered on its capital: Mexico City, itself built on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. In reality, the Aztecs did not completely give up the fight in 1521, some centers of resistance continued to pose problems for the conquistadors for several more years. But none of this is enough and, thereafter, Catholicism gradually replaces the old beliefs while cathedrals are founded on the old religious sites. The transition was not easy for the natives, illnesses decimated their ranks for a long time and they suffered from European domination which excessively exploited this abundant workforce. Some peoples are doing better than others, however, the Tlaxcaltecs for example receive certain privileges to thank them for the crucial help they have brought to Cortes. However, all this does not erase the Aztec history and the incredible empire that has dominated Mesoamerica all along , at a time when the cities of the region were often among the most developed in the world. The division of local powers made Tenochtitlan rich, through its alliances and the resulting tributes, but was also the first reason for its fall when everyone rallied to the conquistadors, then seen as liberators. In short, I hope that I managed to retrace the main lines of this story through this video. Don't hesitate to help me reach my goal of 100,000 subscribers if you liked the video, and once again thank you to the members who support the channel every month for a few euros, who are a great help, and I hope to be able to meet you again for a next episode of history.