[ Search ]

The Aztecs

This term we will be studying the Aztecs - Watch this space

When Spanish adventurers explored Central and South America they discovered two fascinating civilisations - the Incas in Puru and the fierce Aztec warriors in Mexico, unfortunately most of the Aztec civilisation was destroyed by the Spaniards in the early 1500's.
Indians from North America wandered down to Mexico and arrived on the shores of Lake Texcoco around A.D. 1300 and created a vast empire inhabited by fifteen million people. Their capital city, Tenochtitlan which means 'Place of the Cactus', was built upon islands in the middle of the lake and was dominated by huge temples. The Aztecs believed in many gods and regularly sacrificed captured prisoners to them.
Aztec gods:

  • Ometecuhlti and his wife Omecihuatl created all life in the world.
  • Their sons:
    • Xipe Totec - The Lord of the Springtime;
    • Huitzilopochtli - the Sun god;
    • Qetzalcoatl - the Plumed Serpent;
    • Tezcatlipoca - the god of Night and Sorcery.
  • Coatlicue - She of the Serpent Skirt.
The Aztecs had a sacred calendar which was read by Astrologer priests. There were twenty named days and children were often named after the day they were born on. Boys were trained to be warriors and the girls to look after the house. Maize, from which flour was made, and beans were the staple diet and most peasant families living in simple huts would keep rabbits, turkeys and dogs in their garden to be fattened up for special feasts. They also ate a variety of fruits, vegetables and fish. Special treats may have included boiled grasshoppers, cactus worms, locusts and insect eggs!
Go to the Topics index