Posts Tagged: altepetl

Ahuitzotl – the Mysterious Creature of the Lake

30 April 2018

The legendary animal that reportedly haunted many fishermen’s sleep back in the 15th century Central Mexico, ahuizotl was widely known around the great Lake Texcoco and among towns and altepetls surrounding it; widely known and greatly feared. Described as a lethal creature with spiky fur,... Read More

Army with no Beasts of Burden

29 August 2017

It is well known that Tenochtitlan’s influence, not to say outright domination, encompassed Central Mexico and after the time of its eight Tlatoani Ahuitzotl reached almost from coast to coast. However, in order to carve out such an empire one must have substantial warriors’ forces... Read More

A plea for help from the Toluca Valley

31 May 2017

To the south and west of Lake Texcoco spread fertile areas of easily cultivated valleys bordered by highlands of various elevations. Plenty of cities and towns dotted those, some subdued by Tenochtitlan prior to the second part of the 15th century and Axayacatl‘s rule, some... Read More

School with no Summer Break

31 March 2017

If you happened to be a teenager in one of the Central Mexico’s prominent altepetls/city-states such as Tenochtitlan, the famous island-capital of the Mexica Aztecs, or their partners of the mainland, Texcoco or Tlacopan, you would be excused from counting on enjoying your life free... Read More

Part XV: The Conquest of Tlatelolco

28 February 2017

After the unsuccessful night attack on Tenochtitlan described in the Tenochtitlan’s Conquests Part XIV Tlatelolco found itself in a dire dilemma: to try and fight in an open battle that they had not much chances of winning, or to crawl before their powerful but now... Read More

Part XIV: The conflict with Tlatelolco intensifies

28 January 2017

Tlatelolco, indeed, had taken a dubious course when, following the demonstrative competition upon the Great Plaza described in the Tenochtitlan’s Conquests Part XIII, Moquihuixtli and his adviser Teconal began sending messengers to various independent cities of the mainland, asking for help and support against Tenochtitlan.... Read More

Part XIII: What triggered conflict between Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco

28 January 2017

In the mid-15th century, Tenochtitlan‘s influence spread already far and wide, even though it was still nowhere near what it would be only a few decades later, under the rule of the vigorous eighth ruler Ahuitzotl, who would conquer lavishly, stretching Tenochtitlan’s influence almost from... Read More

Historical fiction and the war on Tlatelolco, part 1

27 December 2016

By the second part of the 15th century, Tenochtitlan was already an important, dominant altepetl with quite a few provinces to rule. A member of the Triple Alliance, situated between its powerful allies and so probably playing a central role, the great island-city was thriving,... Read More

Historical fiction and the true rise of Tenochtitlan

4 March 2014

The remnants of the 13 years of his reign, Itzcoatl, the fourth Mexica-Aztec emperor, spent on the attempts to inherit as many of the former Tepanec provinces as he could, making it clear to every neighboring town or city-state who the next rising power of... Read More

Dragged into a court? Bring a friend to witness for you

22 October 2013

While living in Tenochtitlan or any other important altepetl of the 15th century Mesoamerica, you should be careful to break no law. Whether selling your goods on the marketplace, pursuing your career as an engineer or an artisan, working the land or aspiring to a... Read More

  1. Pages:
  2. 1
  3. 2