Chapter 15

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Chapter 15 The Aztec and Inca Empires
Section Notes
Video
The Aztec Empire Aztec Life and Society The Inca
Empire Inca Life and Society
Mesoamerican Achievements in Science and Math
Maps
The Aztec Empire, 1519 The Inca Empire, 1530 Inca
Roads Lake Texcoco Assessment Map
History Close-up
Tenochtitlán Machu Picchu
Quick Facts
Images
People in Aztec Society Chapter 15 Visual Summary
Linking to Today Preserving Food
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The Aztec Empire
7.7.1 7.7.3

• The Big Idea
• The Aztecs built a great empire in central Mexico
  but were conquered by the Spanish in 1521.
• Main Ideas
• The Aztecs built an empire through warfare and
  trade and created an impressive capital city in
  Mesoamerica.
• Hernán Cortés conquered the Aztec Empire.

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Main Idea 1The Aztecs built an empire through
warfare and trade and created an impressive
capital city in Mesoamerica.

• The first Aztecs were farmers, but when they
  arrived in Central America, all the good farmland
  was taken. To survive, they had to hire
  themselves out as warriors.

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The Aztecs Rise to Power

• War was the key factor in the Aztecs rise to
  power.
• The Aztecs built alliances, or partnerships, to
  build their empire.
• The Aztecs made the people they conquered pay
  tribute, or give them cotton, gold, or food.
• The Aztecs controlled a huge trade network.
  Markets drew buyers and sellers from all over the
  Aztec Empire.
• By the early 1500s the Aztecs had the most
  powerful state in Mesoamerica.

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Tenochtitlán

• Tenochtitlán was the capital of the Aztec Empire.
  It was built in the middle of a lake, on an
  island.
• The Aztecs built causeways, or raised roads
  across water or wet ground, so people could
  access the city.
• The Aztecs built stone canals to bring water to
  the city and floating gardens to raise food and
  flowers.
• The city had huge temples, a busy market, clean
  streets, and magnificent palaces.
• It was the greatest city in the Americas during
  the time of the Aztecs.

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Main Idea 2Hernán Cortés conquered the Aztec
Empire.

• In the late 1400s Spanish explorers and soldiers
  arrived in the Americas. The soldiers, or
  conquistadors, came to explore new lands, search
  for gold, and spread the Catholic religion.

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Cortés and Moctezuma

• A small group of conquistadors led by Cortés
  reached Mexico in 1519.
• Moctezuma II, the Aztec leader, believed that
  Cortés was a god.
• Moctezuma sent Cortés gifts, including gold.
  Cortés wanted more gold, so he went to Moctezuma.
• Cortés took Moctezuma prisoner. The other Aztecs
  attacked Cortés and his men. The Spanish were
  driven out, but Moctezuma was killed.
• Cortés returned with many Indian allies and in
  1521 they defeated the Aztecs and ended their
  empire.

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Causes of the Defeat of the Aztecs

• Alliances The Spanish had made allies in the
  region who gave them supplies, information, and
  warriors.
• Weapons The Spanish had better weapons than the
  Aztecs. They had cannons, armor, swords, and
  horses that the Aztecs did not have.
• Geography The Spanish were able to cut off the
  capital city. The people had no food or water, so
  many Aztecs died of starvation.
• Disease The Spanish had unknowingly brought
  deadly diseases such as smallpox to the Americas.
  These diseases killed the Aztecs, who had never
  been exposed to such diseases.

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Aztec Life and Society
7.7.2 7.7.4 7.7.5

• The Big Idea
• The Aztecs developed complex social, religious,
  artistic, and scientific systems in their empire.
• Main Ideas
• Aztec society was divided by roles and by class.
• The Aztec religion required human sacrifice to
  keep the gods happy.
• The Aztecs had many achievements in science, art,
  and language.

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Main Idea 1Aztec society was divided by social
roles and by class.

• People in Aztec society had clearly defined
  roles. These roles, along with social class,
  determined how Aztec men and women lived. They
  had four distinct social classes.
• Kings and nobles
• Priests and warriors
• Merchants and artisans
• Farmers and slaves

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Classes of Aztec SocietyKings and Nobles

• The king was the most powerful person in Aztec
  society.
• The king was in charge of law, trade and tribute,
  and warfare.
• The king had nobles to help him manage the
  kingdom.
• The nobles were tax collectors and judges as well
  as other jobs. They passed their titles down from
  father to son.

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Classes of Aztec SocietyWarriors and Priests

• The priests had a great deal of influence over
  the lives of the Aztecs.
• The priests had many duties, including keeping
  calendars to decide when to plant crops and hold
  religious ceremonies.
• Aztec warriors also had many duties. They fought
  to capture victims for religious sacrifices. They
  also brought great wealth to the empire.
• The warriors were very well respected by the
  Aztecs.

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Classes of Aztec SocietyMerchants and Artisans

• Merchants gathered goods from all over the empire
  and sold them in the main market.
• Many merchants were very wealthy and used their
  money to build large houses and send their sons
  to private schools.
• Artisans were also rich and important to the
  Aztecs. They made gold jewelry and elaborate
  headdresses.

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Classes of Aztec SocietyFarmers and Slaves

• Farmers and slaves made up the lowest class of
  Aztec society.
• Most of the people who lived in the empire were
  farmers who grew maize, beans, and a few other
  crops.
• Farmers were very poor and did not own their own
  land.
• Slaves were people who had been captured in
  battle or who could not pay their debts. They
  were laborers, and if they did not obey, they
  were sacrificed to the gods.

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Main Idea 2Aztec religion required human
sacrifice for keeping the gods happy.

• The Aztecs believed that they had to feed the
  gods. Most sacrifices were enemy warriors.

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Aztec Sacrifices

• The Aztecs believed that keeping the gods happy
  meant that their lives would be blessed.
• The greatest number of sacrifices were made to
  the war god Huitzilopochtli and the rain god
  Tlaloc.
• Priests led the sacrificial rituals, which took
  place on top of the temples that had been built.
• Humans were sacrificed because it was believed
  that the human hearts and blood would feed the
  gods and keep them strong.
• Aztec priests sacrificed as many as 10,000
  victims a year in religious sacrifices.

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Main Idea 3The Aztecs had many achievements in
science, art, and language.

• The Aztecs valued learning and art. Aztec
  scientific achievements, artistic traditions, and
  language contributed to their culture.

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Scientific Achievements

• The Aztecs studied astronomy and created a
  calendar much like the Mayan calendar.
• The Aztecs also knew many different uses for
  plants. They knew of 100 different plants that
  could be used for medicine.

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Writing and Literature

• The Aztecs had a complex writing system and kept
  extensive written records.
• The Aztecs also had a very strong oral tradition.
• They considered fine speeches very important and
  also enjoyed riddles.
• Stories about ancestors and gods were also a part
  of the oral tradition. The Aztecs told these
  stories to their children and passed them down
  from generation to generation.
• After the Spanish conquered the Aztecs, many of
  these stories were written down.

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The Inca Empire
7.7.1 7.7.3

• The Big Idea
• The Incas built a huge empire in South America,
  but they were conquered by the Spanish.
• Main Ideas
• The rise of the Inca Empire was due to conquest
  and the achievements of the Inca people.
• Pizarro conquered the Incas and took control of
  the region.

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Main Idea 1The rise of the Inca Empire was due
to conquest and the achievements of the Inca
people.

• In South America, another great empire arose.
  That empire belonged to the Inca.

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Foundations for the Incan Empire

• Pre-Inca civilization began to develop in what is
  now Peru. Four major cultures developed and built
  some of South Americas first cities.
• The early Incas began as a small tribe in the
  Andes mountains. A ruler named Pachacuti led the
  Incas to expand their territory through
  agreements with, or conquests of, other tribes.
• Later Inca rulers continued to expand their
  territory. By the 1500s the Incan Empire was huge
  and had 12 million people.

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The Incan Government

• As the Incas conquered more people, they had to
  devise a way to control them.
• They made the conquered leaders move out of their
  villages and move in with leaders who were loyal
  to the Inca government.
• The Inca made the children of the conquered
  leaders come to the Incan capital to learn about
  Incan ways.
• The Incas established an official language,
  Quechua.
• They controlled the economy by having the Inca
  pay a tax with their labor.
• There were no markets or merchants. Instead, the
  government would distribute goods. Leftover goods
  were stored in the capital for emergencies.

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Main Idea 2Pizarro conquered the Incas and took
control of the region.

• A civil war began in the Inca Empire between the
  two sons of the king, Atahualpa and Huáscar.
  Atahualpa eventually won the war and ruled the
  empire.

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The Fall of the Incas

• Although Atahualpa had won the war, the
  infighting had weakened the empire.
• A group of conquistadors led by Francisco Pizarro
  arrived in the empire. They demanded that
  Atahualpa convert to Christianity.
• When Atahualpa refused to convert, the
  conquistadors attacked the Inca, and thousands
  were killed.
• The Incas tried to free Atahualpa with a roomful
  of gold and silver, but the Spanish killed him
  anyway.
• The Spanish defeated the last of the Inca, and
  the empire fell in 1537.
• The Spanish had superior weapons and horses.
• They brought diseases that weakened the native
  peoples.

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Inca Life and Society
7.7.2 7.7.4

• The Big Idea
• Many kinds of people make up Inca society in
  an empire know for grand architecture and complex
  oral literature.
• Main Ideas
• For the Inca, position in society affected daily
  life.
• The Incas made great achievements in building,
  art, and oral literature.

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Main Idea 1For the Incas, position in society
affected daily life.

• Inca society had two main social classesan upper
  and a lower class. The Incas from Cuzco, the
  capital, made up the upper class.

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Society and Daily Life

• Upper Class
• Kings, priests, and government officials made up
  the Inca upper class.
• Men worked for the government, and women had
  household duties.
• Sons went to school.
• Upper-class families had many privileges, such
  as private schools, stone houses, and the best
  clothes.

• Lower Class
• The lower class was made up of farmers, artisans,
  and servants. There were no slaves in Inca
  society.
• They worked on government farms, served in the
  army, worked in mines, or built roads.
• Most children did not go to school, but instead
  learned to farm.

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Religion in the Inca Empire

• The Inca Empire had an official religion.
• When they conquered new regions, they taught this
  religion to the conquered people.
• They allowed the conquered people to worship
  their own gods as well.
• The god of the sun was the most important god to
  the Incas. They believed their kings were related
  to the sun god.
• The Incas rarely sacrificed humans. Instead, they
  sacrificed llamas, cloth, or food.

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Main Idea 2The Inca made great achievements in
building, art, and oral literature.

• The Incas had strong traditions of building, art,
  and storytelling. Many of their creations still
  exist today.

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Inca Contributions to Culture

• The Inca were known for their massive buildings
  and forts made of huge stone blocks. Blocks were
  cut so precisely that even today it is nearly
  impossible to fit a knife blade between the
  stones.
• The Inca also built a system of roads that
  connected all parts of the empire.
• The Inca artisans made jewelry of silver and
  gold.
• Oral literature was made up of storytelling and
  songs. The Inca also passed down their songs,
  dances, and religious practices.

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