Rise of the Empire The in transition

● As the empire grew, the aztec society became more hierarchical, social classes with different functions developed, the confronted technological barriers that made it hard to maintain the large population. The Calpulli

● The Aztecs had been divided into several different Calpulli, or groups, during their wanderings. Much of the Aztec way of life was based on the calpulli, which performed important functions such as distributing the land, organizing labor gangs & military units, and maintaining temple & school. ● These Calpulli were not only kinship groups, but they were also residential groupings, these included neighbors, allies, and dependants. Every person, Noble and Commoner, were a part of a calpulli. However, as the Aztec Power expanded the Calpulli were transformed and a new forms of social stratification emerged. ● The new forms of calpulli contained a Noble class, this was based on families, and who the head of the household was.

“all the calpulli hang with me” -Jacob Rutgers

● Women spent six hours a day grinding corn by hand on stone

boards(these were also called metates) to provide food for the

Feeding the households in this maze-based economy. Other ancient enormous civilizations used this technique, such as Egypt and Rome, but population. were replaced by animal or water powered mills. Because the

Aztecs had such a giant population, and Maize was such a hard

substance to harvest, the population was extremely limited.

● Each City State was ruled by a speaker chosen from the nobility class. This leader was to be feared and seen as all powerful, he had private wealth and great public power. There were a strict set of rules that citizens had to follow when a they went to see him.

● The council appointed officials to govern the four quarters (phratries)

in which the city was organized, and advised the supreme chief, who The Empire led the tribe in wars and alliances. There was a second chief that supervised internal affairs. ● Although the system was theoretically democratic, actually the chiefs were selected from powerful families. ● The priesthood had a strong influence in tribal affairs but took no active part in government. ● During the century of social expansion, society and politics made a radical transformation. The Military virtues had been elevated to new extremes, and the purpose of Tribute finding tribute and finding victims for drove further aztec conquest. ● During this century, the empire was never integrated, the local rulers often stayed in place to collect tribute for the aztec overlords. ● Tribute provided economic and political function, concentrating on power and wealth in the aztec capital. ● Membership in society was defined by the participation in the calpulli or social group, and gender roles and definitions. ~Peasant women helped in the fields, bore children, and cooked for most of their time. ~Older women were given the responsibility of training young women weaving, a highly regarded skill. ● Marriage was arranged between lineages, polygamy was common in the higher classes but not peasants. Women were not Women In Society required to be virgins at marriage, but it was highly preferable. ● Women could inherit and pass on property, and their rights were fully recognized, however, politically and socially, women were subordinate to men. ● In the Aztec were practiced around 1 thousand times a Religious Beliefs year. ● of blood was either from

animals or even humans. ● The offering of blood was not always just killing, it was also offering blood by cutting oneself. ● The aztecs believed that they owed the gods a sacrifice to ask for them to give a good harvest, and weather. ● The that was the most important to the Aztecs was the god Huitzilopochtli. ● They sacrificed people to keep the “bad gods” away from the “good gods”. Gender Roles in Religious Aztec Religion

Females Males

● The females were labeled inferior and ● The males were the only priests of Aztec were called the instigation of conflict and Religion. warfare. ● The main role they had was to be a warrior ● They grinded maize to make the food for and to take captives in war to increase his the family. reputation. ● They would do house chores. ● Some men weren't the best warrior's so they were the hunter and gatherers Ideology of Conquest

● The Aztecs were originally 3 different groups, they were , Texcoco, . But later Tenochtitlan became the main empire of the Aztecs. ● When the aztecs conquered a city state, they would be asked to pay tribute. ● The city would have their own governments when conquered but payed tribute, most of it went to the Tenochtitlan Empire. ● ● The Aztecs used lots of human sacrifices in their religious , causing a loss in their population. Why the Aztecs Fell Which if the people who were sacrificed lived they would have had a larger population in their society, which would have made a difference in the war against the spanish. ● The Aztecs were prone to attract diseases because they weren't exposed to the diseases the spanish were exposed to. ● Another reason why the fell was that the spanish had better military tactics. ● The Aztecs believed that they owed a blood-debt to the gods. Human Sacrifices ● Sacrifices were made to please the gods and avert disasters. ● Many other places used human sacrifices but the Aztec society was the most known for it, because they would sacrifice around 1,000 humans a year. ● The humans sacrificed were placed on a slab of stone on top of a pyramid, then they would have their hearts removed and held to the sun, after that they would kick the bodies down the stairs. ● The humans sacrificed were people that were captured from conquests, or the empire's own citizens. Society ● The Aztec society was divided up into small groups called Calpulli, these groups contained social classes and nobility. ● The society's main source of food was maize, a corn like Summary grain.This was a hard substance to harvest, so it took the women a great amount of time to do so. ● Each city state had its own leader that was chosen from the nobility class. ● Tribute was important to the Aztecs both economically and politically ● Women had legal rights and equalities but were still subordinate to men.

Religion ● The Aztec religion involved sacrifice both human and animal. ● The most important god in this religion was Huitzilopochtli, the sun god. ● women were not allowed to be priests, only men. ● the primary reason behind , was that the Aztecs believed they owed a blood tribute to their gods. If they did not pay this tribute, the gods would become angry. Resources:

● http://www.azteccalendar. com/god/Tonatiuh.html ● https://www.coursehero. com/file/p6h284e/Religion-and- the-Ideology-of-Conquest-In-the- Aztec-religion-little-distinction/ ● http://anthropology.msu. edu/anp264- ss13/2013/04/25/aztec-human- sacrifice/ ● http://www.yale. edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1999/2/9 9.02.01.x.html# ● http://genderrolesaztec.weebly. com/male-role.html ● http://www.aztec-history. com/aztec-empire.html ● World Civilizations, The Global Experience; Fifth Edition. ● aztecgroup.blogspot.com