Formal name: Moctezuma Xocoyotzin
Life: 1468-1520
Reign: 1502-1520
Name: Angry Lord
Place of Birth: Likely Tenochtitlan
Death: Palace of Axayacatl, Tenochtitlan, killed by Spaniards or possibly Mexica mob.
The day after Ahuitzotl’s ashes were interred in the Sacred Precinct a council was formed to select the next ruler. There were many choices. After some discussion all the lords there unanimously selected Moctezuma.
Born around 1468, Moctezuma was the son of Tlatoani Axayacatzin, nephew of previous tlatoque Tizoc and Ahuitzotl, and also a noted military leader and religiously devout man. He had served as Tlacochcalacatl, or military general, the highest rank in the Mexica world and it was said his military advice was always sound. He was a natural choice.
During a coronation ceremony likely held in 1502, retold in detail by Duran, the new king vowed to care for the people of Tenochtitlan, including the old, the young, the gods and warriors. How accurate Duran’s writings are is not clear but the scene he sets is one of a powerful oath taken to his people.
One of his first moves was to replace most of the heads of state his uncle Ahuitzotl had appointed across the empire. He contended many were commoners and it was unbecoming of the empire to not have nobles in place. Traditional views about the role of nobility would be a hallmark of his rule, making him a sort of Aztec Conservative with religion and tradition being central to his core beliefs.
Coronation
Moctezuma’s reign from his coronation until the arrival of Cortes was like the previous rulers. He spent time marching the army to various rebellions and wars. His inaugural war was against Nopallan in the southern state of Oaxaca. This land had already been conquered, but it’s people rebelled and Moctezuma marched to put them down, and collect sacrificial victims for his coronation festivities.
Moctezuma returned from the Pacific Coast with sacrifices for his festival. Invites were sent, preparations were made. On the chosen day, guests from across the empire began to arrive. There was dancing, music and sacrifices, of course. The festivities were well received by all guests and soon they left, impressed by the new king’s wealth and status.
During his reign Moctezuma Xocoyotzin went to war against Tlaxcala, Huejotzingo and numerous campaigns back to Oaxaca.
The Catholic sources begin to detail a series of omens; a comet, a strange bird, a two-headed man – all of these supposedly foretold the coming of Cortes. Some of the Catholic sources also indicate that the Indigenous people thought Cortes was Quetzalcoatl, returning to fulfil a prophecy. Today historians and modern storytellers reject these as Catholic narrative building. His arrival was, however, one of the biggest moments in human history.
Arrival of the Spanish
Cortes was the third Spanish captain to show up on the Mexican coast, and the second to speak to the local Aztec leaders, Capt. Grijalva met Aztecs the year before Cortes, in 1518. Moctezuma had received reports of these strangers for at least a year before he met Cortes on that fateful day in the streets of Tenochtitlan. There are many opinions on the handling of the Spanish by Moctezuma. It seems he chose a path of political appeasement which ended up leading Cortes into the heart of his capital. Soon the Spanish seized Moctezuma and moved him to their quarters, the palace of his father, the former ruler Axayacatl. On one fateful night, while Cortes was away from the city, the Spanish committed a brutal attack on the people of Tenochtitlan, who were celebrating the Toxcatl Festival. The core of Mexica nobility and military leadership was eliminated in one savage event.
When Cortes returned, now with 900 fresh troops and 80 horses, Moctezuma tried to put the massacre behind them by hosting a feast for Cortes. This did not go over well with the traumatized populace. Cortes continued to hold him in the palace until his death, most likely caused by the Spanish, but often cited as the victim of a stone cast by his countrymen in protest to his perceived weakness. There was certainly that sentiment at the time among the Mexica, who could not understand the continued entertainment of these violent men by their king. But in losing power over his countrymen Moctezuma would also have lost value to Cortes.
Whether by a stone to the head, or a knife to the ribs or whatever manner he died. The story of what happened to his body also has many varying accounts. One account says Moctezuma’s corpse was wrapped in cloth and left in the corner of the palace, found on the Noche Triste after the Spanish had snuck out. Another tells how Moctezuma’s own nobles carried the body out to the people, which triggered the revolt. Others say the body was unceremoniously dumped in a canal by the Spanish, and found by the Mexica. At least one account says his body was recovered and cremated in the manner of all Mexica rulers. It seems, to me, that Moctezuma died in a state of real and perceived weakness, held captive in his own city – unwilling to encourage violence against the Spanish.
Today, Moctezuma is the most well-known of the Aztecs. Americans joke about “Montezuma’s Revenge” when they invariably get sick on vacations to Mexico, invoking the ghost of an angry lord. Sadly, this context was my own introduction to the Aztecs. I understood it was a joke, but the idea of a displaced king cursing the descendants of his conquerors stayed in my imagination. Moctezuma was a noble man of intelligence and dignity but history fated him for one of its greatest demises. In his life he was an accomplished military captain, devout religious man and a respected member of the nobility and he should be remembered as such.
The empire was in a state of collapse when Moctezuma died, invaders occupying the capital, disease spreading, allies turning on them and an army weakening by the day. On June 30, 1520 the Spanish left the city on what would become known as “The Noche Triste” or to Indigenous folks, “La Noche Victoriosa,” as this was one of the few victories the Mexica and their allies would ever get over the Spanish.
With their capital back in their possession, the Mexica began to recover from the violent occupation and massacre but a new diseases was taking hold – smallpox. And a new leader was needed.
Moctezuma II’s Accomplishments
Extended the Empire south, into Zapotec lands.
Removed commoners from power, installed nobles.
Built a palace that would come to mark the seat of power in Mexico to this day.
Ahuitzotl <<- Moctezuma II ->> Cuitlahuac
