AZTECS
The Aztecs were an American Indian people who ruled a mighty empire in Mexico from the 1400s to the 1500s. The Aztecs had one of the most advanced civilizations in the Americas and built cities as large as any in Europe at that time. ... The Aztecs built towering temples, created huge sculptures, and held impressive ceremonies all for the purpose of worshipping their gods. The Spaniards destroyed their magnificent empire in the year 1521, but the Aztecs left a lasting mark on Mexican life and culture . The majority of the Aztecs lived in what is now called the Valley of Mexico. ... The mighty Aztecs were the last indigenous group of people to enter the Valley of Mexico. Like many other pre-Columbian cultures, the Aztecs developed their own political system, religion, social structure, agricultural techniques, lifestyle and worldview . The Aztecs were truly unique. The early Aztecs were semi-nomadic hunters and farmers. According to legend, in about 1000 AD the Aztecs left their mythic, island homeland of Aztlan in the desert frontiers of northern Mexico to begin their 100-year migration south to the Valley of Mexico. ... From groups they encountered as they traveled, the Aztecs adopted new customs and traditions. The Aztecs were becoming a very religious people. When the Aztecs reached the Valley of Mexico in about 1193, this fertile inland basin was already heavily populated and little land was left for them to colonize. The Aztecs appeared rude and uncivilized to the members of the older city-states that clustered around the basin . ... As the Aztecs grew in number, they established superior military and civil organizations. According to the famous legend, the Aztecs finally settled at a spot where an eagle sat upon a cactus eating a snake. ... By 1325, on the island, the Aztecs built a temple to Huitziposhtli and began to construct the city of Tenochtitlan, the "Place of Prickly Pear Cactus Fruit." Over the next 200 years, the city slowly became one of the largest and most powerful cities of the world, and was the giant heart of the Aztecs Empire . The Aztecs society was structured in a hierarchy with nobles at the top. ... All members of the nobility could trace their lineage to the first Aztecs ruler Acamapichtli . ... The Aztecs also bought slaves from other groups. ... The Aztecs performed ceremonies in the gods honor that included gifts of incense, flowers, birds, and animals. ... The Aztecs believed that the gods needed human hearts and blood to remain strong, one of the reasons sacrifices were so important. ... The Aztecs held many other religious ceremonies in which nobles and commoners alike participated. ... The Aztecs married at an early age, about 16. ... A strange and mystical relationship existed between the Aztecs and corn. ... The Aztecs loved flowers, that they used in religious rituals, decorations, and in temples. ... Meat was in very short supply so the Aztecs rarely ate it. ... Aztecs fought not only to enlarge their powerful empire, but to gain prisoners to sacrifice to the gods as well. ... The Aztecs also used bows and arrows and spears. ... The Aztecs were revolted at this treatment by the Spaniards. ... The furious Aztecs ousted the Spaniards from their city once and for all; or so they thought. ... The Aztecs thought their enemies had departed for good and would never return. ... On April 18, 1521, much to the Aztecs surprise, the Spanish marched back to Tenochtitlan with large forces of Indian allies and 900 soldiers. ... The great reign of the Aztecs had come to a close. ... Many things the Aztecs created are gone and little Aztec architecture remains. ... Unfortunately, this means we do not know as much about the Aztecs as we could. ... Art, literature, customs, religious figures, and almost every trace of the Aztecs were destroyed.