CHAPTER VII.
THE CHICHIMEC PERIOD.—CONCLUDED.
Aztec History—Reigns of Acamapichtli II. and Quaquauhpitzahuac—Rebuilding of Culhuacan—Huitzilihuitl II., King of Mexico—Tlacateotzin, King of Tlatelulco—Chimalpopoca Succeeds in Mexico—Funeral of Techotl—Ixtlilxochitl, Emperor of the Chichimecs—Symptoms of Discontent—Plans of Tezozomoc, the Tepanec King—Secret council of Rebels—Religious Toleration in Tezcuco—Conquest of Xaltocan and Cuitlahuac—Birth of Nezahualcoyotl—War between Tezcuco and Azcapuzalco—Victories of Ixtlilxochitl—Siege and Fall of Azcapuzalco—Treachery of Tezozomoc—Fall of Tezcuco—Flight and Death of Ixtlilxochitl—Tezozomoc proclaimed Emperor—Reorganization of the Empire—Adventures of Nezahualcoyotl—Death of Tezozomoc—Maxtla usurps the Imperial Throne—Murder of the Mexican Kings—Nezahualcoyotl's Victory—Itzcoatl, King of Mexico—Acolhua and Aztec Alliance—Fall of Azcapuzalco—The Tri-partite Alliance, or the New Empire.
The next and final chapter of the Chichimec annals covers a period of three quarters of a century, extending from the death of the emperor Techotl in 1357, to the formation of the tri-partite alliance between the Acolhuas, Aztecs, and Tepanecs, in 1431. It embraces the reigns of three emperors, Ixtlilxochitl, Tezozomoc, and Maxtla; and is a record of continued struggles for the imperial power between the Acolhuas and Tepanecs, resulting in the humiliation of the latter and the triumph of the former, through the aid of a third power, which is admitted as an equal to the victor in the final reconstruction of the empire. The rôle of the other nations of Anáhuac during this period, is that of allies to one or the other of the powers mentioned, or, occasionally, of rebels who take advantage of the dissensions of the ruling powers to declare their independence, enjoyed as a rule only until such time as the masters may have an opportunity to reduce them to their old allegiance. We find the aboriginal record more and more complete as we approach the epoch of the conquest, with much less confusion in chronology, so far as leading events are concerned, although perfect agreement among the authorities is yet far from being attained in the minor details with which the narrative is crowded. A new source of disagreement is, moreover, reached as we approach the final century of the native annals—national prejudices on the part of the native historians through whom those annals have been handed down, and a constant tendency among such writers as Ixtlilxochitl, Tezozomoc, Chimalpain, and Camargo, to exhibit in their highest colors the actions of the nations from which they have descended, while ever disposed to cloud the fame of rival powers. Fortunately, one authority serves, generally, as an efficient check upon another in such cases.
REIGN OF ACAMAPICHTLI II.
THE CHICHIMEC PERIOD.
Before relating the general history of Anáhuac during the successive reigns of the emperors Ixtlilxochitl and Tezozomoc, in which history the Mexicans took a prominent part as allies of the latter, it will be well to glance, briefly—for there is little to say on the subject—at the course of events in the new cities on the lake marshes. We left Tenochtitlan under the rule of its Culhua king, Acamapichtli II., or rather under the regency of his queen, Ilancueitl; while Quaquauhpitzahuac, son of the Tepanec king Tezozomoc, was on the throne of Tlatelulco, both kingdoms being tributary to that of Azcapuzalco. One of the last acts of the queen was the re-settlement of Culhuacan in 1378, by means of a colony sent from Mexico under Nauhyotl, the fourth of that name who had ruled in the Culhua city. This was done partly from motives of pride in restoring the capital of her own and her husband's ancestors, and partly to serve as a check on the encroachments of the Chalcas in the south.[VII-1] In 1383 the queen died. Ixtlilxochitl states that she bore her husband three sons, one of whom was Huitzilihuitl; Clavigero tells us she was barren, but took charge of the education of two of her husband's sons, Huitzilihuitl and Chimalpopoca, by another wife; Torquemada confounds the two Acamapichtlis, and is, consequently, greatly puzzled about Ilancueitl's children; and finally, Brasseur shows that she was espoused at an advanced age by the king solely for political motives, and that she lived harmoniously with his other two wives, one of whom bore him Huitzilihuitl, and the other Chimalpopoca.[VII-2] The reign of Acamapichtli II. dates, in a certain sense, from the death of his queen, who for many years had, at least, ruled jointly with him. The beginning of the wars between the Mexicans and Chalcas, which were waged so bitterly for many years, is attributed to Acamapichtli's reign, as are the conquests of Quauhnahuac, Mizquic, and Xochimilco; but it must be understood that it was only as the allies of the Tepanec king that the Mexicans engaged in these wars. Torquemada and Acosta assert that Acamapichtli's reign was a very peaceful one.[VII-3] It was after the conquest of Quauhnahuac, later Cuernavaca, that the first gold-workers came to ply their art in Tenochtitlan.[VII-4] After having ruled wisely and justly, greatly enlarging and improving his capital, he died in 1403, leaving the choice of a successor wholly to his nobles and priests.[VII-5] There is great disagreement among the authorities respecting the length of his reign, some dating it from his first call to the throne, and others from the death of the queen. Immediately after the funeral of Acamapichtli, an assembly of the wise men of the nation was held to deliberate on the choice of a successor. The priests made an effort to acquire the control by discontinuing the monarchy. They wished the temporal affairs of the state to be managed by a senate or council, with a military chieftain to lead their armies in war; but the majority believed that their only hope of national safety and future power was in a monarchy, and Huitzilihuitl II., the eldest son of the late king was called to the throne during the same or the following year. The speeches by which the old men convinced the assembly that their yet precarious condition, considering their isolated position and the powerful nations surrounding them, made it necessary to call to their throne a wise, prudent, and powerful king, are recorded by Duran, Tezozomoc, and Torquemada; as are the addresses of advice to the new king at his coronation, in which he was reminded that his position was no sinecure, but that on him depended the future greatness of the Mexicans foretold by the gods. The choice of the people was ratified by king Tezozomoc of Azcapuzalco; and at the same time it is reported that Itzcoatl, a natural son of the late king, by a woman of rank, was appointed commander of the Mexican armies. One of the means by which the Aztecs struggled to attain to their predestined greatness, was by contracting foreign matrimonial alliances with powerful nations; and as Huitzilihuitl had yet no wife, an embassy was sent to Tezozomoc with a most humble and flattering petition, begging that all-powerful sovereign to favor his most obedient vassal by sending one of his daughters, "one of his pearls, emeralds, or precious feathers," as Torquemada expresses it, to share with the new king his poor home in the marshes. The petition was granted, the princess Ayauhcihuatl was given to Huitzilihuitl, and the following year his brother Chimalpopoca won the hand of the beautiful princess Miahuaxochitl, daughter of the lord of Quauhnahuac, who became the mother of Montezuma.[VII-6] By the alliance with Quauhnahuac, the city of Tenochtitlan received a large accession of artists and skilled workmen; while from Tezozomoc, who is said by Veytia to have personally visited the city at the birth of his grandson, the Mexicans obtained the removal of the tribute which they had so long been obliged to pay, or, at least, its reduction to a merely nominal amount, including a few wild fowl and fishes for the royal table. From this time the Mexicans are said to have felt more at their ease, to have paid more attention to the arts and sciences, and to have abandoned their coarse garments of nequen for more sumptuous apparel.[VII-7]
AZTEC ALLIANCES.
REIGN OF HUITZILIHUITL II.