Altepetl
Aztec civilization |
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Aztec society |
Aztec history |
The altepetl (
Established altepeme were characterized by a central temple dedicated to a
Mesoamerican politics
Local rulers of altepeme generally retained their authority over taxation and land distribution while under the indirect rule of an empire in exchange for their submission, participation in military campaigns, and tribute payments. However, starting with Moctezuma Ilhuicamina I in the 1440s, Aztec imperialist efforts over the altepetl deepened by removing the powers of taxation from local rulers and replacing non-compliant rulers with military governors. These heightened pressures produced unstable conditions in Mesoamerica in which altepetl frequently rebelled by withholding tributes and pursuing secession. Cuauhnahuac, a major altepetl of the southern Aztec empire, rebelled on three occasions. The Aztecs responded with intense violence, which only fueled more violence in response.[4]
At the time of Spanish invasion in 1519, the Aztec Empire alone consisted of approximately 450 altepeme. The Spanish recognized and exploited the preexisting political divisions among the various altepeme and the Aztecs, inciting dissident city-states to rebel. No "super-altepetl" identity existed to unite against the Spanish. The Totonacs of Cempoala were among the first to ally with the Spanish, having only recently been brought under Aztec control after many years of resistance. The Tlaxcaltec of Tlaxcala initially resisted the Spanish but soon joined the conquest effort as a crucial ally against the Aztec Empire. After the fall of Tenōchtitlan in 1521, the Spanish increasingly demanded that altepetl rulers publicly destroy their figures of deities (referred to as idols by the Spanish) and whitewash temple walls. While destroying idols had represented a transfer of sovereignty and tributes to the conquering power in Mesoamerican politics, with the invasion of the Spanish, Indigenous peoples soon realized "that in the Spanish context it implied a far more sweeping, cosmic transformation."[4]
From the inception of contact between the altepetl and the Spanish conquistadors, submission to Christianity was non-negotiable. As described by historian Ryan Dominic Crewe, "the Spanish offered two clear options: accept Christianity and be saved in this world and in the next, or resist it and face damnation in both." Prior to the fall of Tenōchtitlan, the Spanish could not force compliance because of their heavy dependency on those who they were admonishing. Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo wrote that "more often than not hungry Spanish soldiers would read their protocol and then promptly settle into a meal prepared by those they had just admonished." After the fall of Tenōchtitlan, the balance of power shifted heavily in favor of the Spanish, who forced Christianization upon the various altepeme.[4]
As it became clear to each altepetl that the Spanish were in Mesoamerica to stay, they quickly learned to use conversion as a means of gaining political capital. By 1523, nobles in Tenōchtitlan had requested baptisms and provided them with properties for their monasteries and churches to assure themselves a place within the new colonial order. Matlatzinca and Otomi peoples in the Valley of Toluca as well as Mixtecs in Oaxaca used baptisms as a means of reclaiming local authority after years of Mexica imperialism in the face of Spanish rule. Throughout the 1520s and 1530s, altepeme retained their autonomy through Christianization and local rulers now adopted new Spanish Christian names: "the names of local elite began to echo those of the men who were turning out to be their overlords rather than their liberators."[4]
Spanish missionaries imposed forms of symbolic and physical violence in the altepetl in order to erect "a new universe of meaning" for Indigenous peoples. A coordinated assault was launched by missionaries and conquistadors on Indigenous priests and adherents on January 1, 1525, which resulted in the destruction of the main temples in Tenōchtitlan,
Examples
- Azcapotzalco
- Cempoala
- Chalco
- Cholula
- Coixtlahuaca
- Cuauhnahuac
- Huexotzingo
- Tenōchtitlan
- Texcoco
- Tlatelolco
- Tlaxcala
- Toluca
- Yanhuitlán
References
- ISBN 9780890651070.
- ^ Smith 1997 p. 37
- ^ ISBN 9780826342836.
- ^ ISBN 9781108492546.
- ISBN 9781118589847.
- OCLC 44019111.
- OCLC 39455844.
- ^ ISBN 9781108492546.
- ISBN 9781108492546.
Further reading
- García Martínez, Bernardo (2001). "Community Kingdoms: Central Mexico (Nahua)". In David Carrasco (ed.). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures: The Civilizations of Mexico and Central America. Vol. 1. OCLC 44019111.
- OCLC 9359010.
- OCLC 24283718.
- Noguez, Xavier (2001). "Altepetl". In David Carrasco (ed.). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures: The Civilizations of Mexico and Central America. Vol. 1. OCLC 44019111.
- OCLC 39455844.
- Smith, Michael (1997). The Aztecs. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 0-631-23015-7.