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The Aztec Empire: the Last Great Native Civilization in Mesoamerica by History.Com, Adapted by Newsela Staff on 08.21.17 Word Count 505 Level 540L

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The Aztec Empire: the Last Great Native Civilization in Mesoamerica by History.Com, Adapted by Newsela Staff on 08.21.17 Word Count 505 Level 540L The Aztec Empire: The Last Great Native Civilization in Mesoamerica By History.com, adapted by Newsela staff on 08.21.17 Word Count 505 Level 540L An Aztec dancer poses for a photo during a ceremony celebrating the birth of Cuauhtemoc, the last Aztec emperor, in Ixcateopan, Mexico, February 23, 2009. Cuauhtemoc was tortured and executed by Spanish conqueror Hernan Cortes in 1525. AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo The Aztecs lived in northern Mexico. They were a tribe that moved from place to place. Around A.D. 1200 they arrived in Mesoamerica. This was between central Mexico and northern Costa Rica. The Aztecs controlled many city-states in Mesoamerica. They built a powerful empire. Swamp becomes their home Many believe the Aztecs came from Aztlan. That means "White Land." They hunted and ate wild plants. The Aztecs were also known as the Mexica and also the Tenochca. In 1325, they built their first great city, called Tenochtitlán. It was named for them. When the Aztecs saw an eagle sitting on a cactus near a lake, they thought it was a sign to build their city there. First, they dried out the swampy land. Then they built the great city of Tenochtitlán there. Their farms grew crops of corn, beans, squash, potatoes, tomatoes and avocados. They also fished and hunted. They put together a large army and grew strong. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. Aztec empire had almost 6 million people In 1428, the Aztec leader was Itzcoatl. His army joined with armies from the Texcocans and Tacubans tribes. Together they defeated the Tepanec tribe. In 1440, Itzcoatl died. Montezuma I (also spelled Moctezuma) became the new leader. Soon the Aztecs ruled over 500 small states. They had 5 to 6 million people. Tenochtitlán became the largest city in Mesoamerica. More than 50,000 people shopped in Tenochtitlán on days when markets were open. This helped the Aztecs become rich. Nobles were the richest. The poor people were serfs, who worked on farms, and servants and slaves. The Aztec religion was like others in Mesoamerica. They prayed to Quetzalcoatl, a feathered serpent god. They built great temples, palaces and statues to their gods. The Aztecs watched the movement of the sun. They made a calendar with 365 days. Aztecs fall to Spanish invader Between 1517 and 1519, Spain sent men to take over Mesoamerica. One of the men was Hernan Cortes. Montezuma II was now the ruler of the Aztecs. Cortes trained his army of Spaniards. He and 400 Spanish soldiers went to Mesoamerica. There he found a native woman who could speak Spanish and the Aztec language. She helped Cortes speak to other native people living in that part of Mexico. He found out they did not like the Aztecs. So Cortes along with these other tribes made a plan to defeat Montezuma II. In 1519, Cortes and his men arrived in Tenochtitlan. Montezuma and his people thought Cortes looked like the Aztec god Quetzalcoatl. So the Aztec people were friendly, but Cortes and his men attacked. The Aztecs lost. Montezuma was arrested and died in prison. His young nephew tried to fight back. But he was defeated in a battle in 1521. This ended Aztec control of Mesoamerica. After his victory, Cortes burned Tenochtitlan. Mexico City was built in its place. It became the most important city of the Spanish in Mexico. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. Quiz 1 Why did Aztec civilization end? (A) because the Spanish had more people (B) because the Aztecs gave power to the Spanish (C) because the Spanish destroyed it (D) because the Aztecs ran out of food 2 What happened because of the Aztecs' strong military? (A) They were able to rule over a large area. (B) They were able to defeat the Spanish armies. (C) They were able to grow lots of food. (D) They were able to build Mexico City. 3 What information do you find in the section "Aztec empire had almost 6 million people"? (A) information about the defeat of the Aztecs (B) information about the Aztec lifestyle (C) information about Aztec hunting and fishing (D) information about Cortes and his army 4 If readers want information on where the Aztecs made their empire, which section should they read? (A) Introduction [paragraph 1] (B) "Swamp becomes their home" (C) "Aztec empire had almost 6 million people" (D) "Aztecs fall to Spanish invader" This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com..
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