ANST-601 Lessons

Upon entering the Ancient Studies classroom, the students see two large headdresses displayed on stands. The headdress on the left is semi-concealed in darkness but you can make out the teeth and pelt of some sort of cat. The battle gear on the right is some sort of bird-like headdress, surrounded in light.

Welcome, students! These delightful reproductions are fantastic examples of the gear that  the Aztec jaguar and eagle warriors would have worn hundreds of years ago. We will discuss them a bit further along in our studies today, however I thought they might help you get ready for our discussion on the Aztec civilization.

History of the Aztec Empire

The Aztec empire is quite possibly the most modern and the most short-lived civilization that we will study in this class. Founded in 1428 CE, it lasted less than one hundred years as it was demolished in 1521 CE during the Spanish Conquest. At the height of the civilization, approximately 1520 CE, it covered a large portion of the southern part of modern-day Mexico, stretching around the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, and even southeast into modern-day Guatemala. At that time, the empire covered more area than that of modern-day France.

Unlike other civilizations we have studied this year, the Aztec empire was not the result of a land being conquered so much as it was a result of several tribes of people coming together to protect each other and claim back some of their land that had been stolen. It originated as a triple alliance between the city-states of Tenochtitlan, Tlacopan, and Texcoco in order to fight the Tepanec state of Azcapotzalco. 

In 1427 C.E., the army of these allies conquered their enemies and the capital of the new empire became Tenochtitlan, which is in modern-day Mexico City. The empire functioned as a tribute based empire, with allied states contributing to the wealth of the capital while receiving protection and goods from other allied states in return. Interesting to note: the allied states were only allowed to trade with the capital, never with each other. This process ensured that the capital remained in complete control of the resources of the empire, and by extension kept its control over the empire as a whole.

The Aztec Empire may have lasted much longer, and spread its influence much wider, if it were not for the Spanish Conquest. The Spanish landed on Aztec land in 1519 and murdered their head of state in 1520, but did not ultimately defeat them until August of 1521 CE when they laid siege to and destroyed the city of Tenochtitlan.

Priests and Magic

Most fascinating from a magical history standpoint is the hierarchy of the ruling nobility of the Aztec Empire. The ruler of the empire was known as the “great speaker.” He was considered a magical practitioner, although whether all great speakers were real magic practitioners is unknown. In addition to being the head of state, he was also considered the high priest through divine right.

The great speaker was expected to speak to the gods, to interpret their will and ensure their continued support of the Aztec people. To be clear, the Aztec people were deeply religious. Every decision and manner of doing something was sanctioned by the gods, as directed by the Great Speaker and the temple priests.

The second in command of the empire was the war captain. This individual would have been from the nobility, and most likely an eagle or jaguar warrior at some point in time (more on these warriors shortly). After the war captain in significance and power came the temple priests and then the rest of the nobility, which included the eagle and jaguar warriors.

As was typical in most ancient civilizations, it was only men who filled these positions. However, women were very highly respected in the Aztec civilization. A woman who had obtained the position of midwife - the highest status a woman could obtain -  was considered equal in status to a temple priest. While not ruling the empire, they certainly had a lot of influence and esteem within it.

It was the great speaker and the priests - when wizards actually filled those positions - that practiced magic in the empire. Both divination and astronomy (for the purpose of divination) were practiced in the empire, but this magical use was so closely intertwined with religious practices that it is nearly impossible to separate them. It is quite difficult to say how effective their magic was, however they did manage to cobble together many different city states into a very cohesive, functional, and large empire in a very short amount of time. The right conversations, the right battles, the right negotiations all at the same time seem to indicate that some sort of actual divination was happening in order to aid in the construction and success of this empire.

The Noble Warriors

Two of the groups of Aztec nobility that I keep hinting at are the eagle and jaguar warriors. These warriors would be akin to the medieval knights in Europe, as they were born into nobility. A commoner could be a warrior, but they could not become an eagle or jaguar warrior.

In essence, these two types of warriors worked as two sides of the same coin. The eagle warriors were named after what the Aztec considered the noblest bird. Their half of the warriors represented the sun. They attacked at dawn with a great, brutal force, aimed at terrifying and overwhelming their enemies.

On the other side of the coin were the jaguar warriors. These warriors were named after the Aztec lord of the animals, and represented the underworld. They attacked after the eagle warriors had overwhelmed the enemy, and proceeded to pick off the survivors one by one. You could say that they fought in a more guerilla type way than the overt manner of their agle warrior counterparts.

It is important to note the position of esteem becoming one of these warriors was. Your selection into one of these groups in some ways elevated you from the nobility into the warrior class of nobility. From this position, you could eventually be elevated to the position of war captain. The honour bestowed upon you and your family was significant, however there were some feats that could elevate you to an even higher esteem, such as giving up your life as a sacrifice.

Human Sacrifice

While not a pleasant topic, it is impossible to discuss the Aztec civilization without mentioning the practice of human sacrifice. As I discussed in Ancient Studies Year Five, we must be careful placing the values we hold today on the practices of the past. In truth, the practice of human sacrifice was a very logical and honourable act according to the Aztec people and their beliefs.

In its essence, human sacrifice was a pact that the Aztec people made with their gods. Bound by the concept called ‘tequitl,’ roughly translating to ‘duty,’ the Aztec were obliged to repay the gods for aiding them. While they were indebted to the gods for everything they had already been given, the debt went both ways. The more sacrifices the Aztec made, the more the gods owed them in terms of better harvest, better protection from their enemies, better success in battle, and so on.

Most of those who were sacrificed were captive warriors. The Aztec held any captive who died honourably in great esteem, and believed that they would be rewarded in the afterlife. Indeed, many Aztec people offered themselves for sacrifice as it was considered such an honour in their religion and they believed that all who were sacrificed would become a star.

Human sacrifice was present in many civilizations throughout the history of the world, however the Aztec took this practice to a level unmatched by any civilization to come before them. For example, the rededication of the temple of Tenochtitlan in 1488 CE saw some 20,000 captives sacrificed, and possibly significantly more if the boasting of the priests of that time can be believed.

The ritual of this practice - which I will not explain in detail - did take place somewhere interesting: atop Aztec pyramids. Aztec pyramids, while similar to Maya pyramids in style, were not used in the same manner as those of the Maya and Egyptians. Aztec pyramids were used solely for religious practices, mostly sacrificial in nature. They allowed the greatest number of people to bear witness to these events, and quite literally elevated them to be closer to the gods. 

While worth exploring, as they do offer fascinating finds from time to time, Aztec pyramids are not filled with the same cultural and monetary treasures as those of other civilizations who used them for burials. Nonetheless, we do send curse breakers into these pyramids to ensure nothing of significant value is left behind, else the Gringotts goblins would be rather upset, as well as to ensure that there is nothing of a dangerous nature inside to injure any Muggle explorers.

Conclusion

I’m afraid that is all the time we have to explore the Aztec civilization. Our next class will see us move further into North America as we discuss the Navajo people. Your assignments for today will be two-fold: a quiz on today’s material, as well an assignment covering the four civilizations we have examined thus far. Best of luck!

Image credits here, here, and here
Original lesson written by Professor Liria Morgan