Compare And Contrast The Spanish And Aztecs

In the past, many different civilizations have made amazing achievements. Three of the many civilizations have made quite interesting fulfillments. In the past, people were astonished at what humans in the America's had accomplished! The Aztec, Mayan, and Incan civilizations each had something that impressed people that came from different cultures. The Aztec's had a very impressive capital, the Mayan's had stunning pyramids, and the Incan's made a advanced way on how to farm.

The Aztecs were not able to survive Spanish colonization for multiple reasons. They had beautiful architecture, a political system and many members of their colony, but it was no match for the Spanish. The advanced technology the Spanish possessed proved to be greater than that of the Native Americans. The Aztecs were fighting with wooden swords and dogs, whereas, the Spanish with steel swords, guns and horses. The fighting techniques were different also. The Aztec fought to wound their enemies, sacrifice and/or enslave them. The Spanish people fought to kill and instill fear in as many people as they could. Many colonies were captured and enslaved by the Aztecs. Although, the captured colonies were afraid of the Aztecs, they feared the Spanish more. Cortes went to Mexico with his conquistadores and

The Aztec were a powerful group but did not have an imperialistic worldview like the Spanish. The Spanish expanded their empire and travelled across to the America’s. Here they explored and conquered many groups of people. As they fought the Spanish army grew with more slaves being taken in. This was very different from the Aztec people who fought only for control. They were not focused on expanding their religion and allowed conquered areas to keep their religion and way of life. They did not take slaves and used the captured men for human sacrifice. The Aztec thought that sacrifice would keep their gods happy and increased the amount of before they were conquered. Thus the Aztec worldview was based on religion and the gods. The Aztec and Spanish worldviews were different. The Aztec respected their gods and only conquered land to not be destroyed while the Spanish conquered land to expand their empire. These factors helped contribute to the fall of the powerful Aztec

They did not have a set military hierarchy, they just picked who they thought was best for the job at that time. Expansion was the cornerstone of the Aztec civilization, because their religion demanded that a large number of human sacrifices be made to the gods. To get these sacrifices the Aztec went to war with other tribes; in this way they captured more slaves for sacrifices and also more land to add to their empire. The Aztec was a strong civilization who had specialized war chiefs and an organized system for amassing large armies in a short time.

The Aztec and Incan empires both had strong armies. In the Aztec empire by the early fifteenth century the Aztecs were powerful enough to overcome their immediate neighbors and demand tribute. During the middle decades of the fifteenth century, the military elite that ruled much of Tenochtitlan, the Aztecs launched ambitious campaigns of imperial expansion. Know as “the Obsidian Serpent” Itzcoatl and Motecuzoma advanced first to Oaxaca in southwestern Mexico. After capturing Oaxaca and slaying

The Aztec and Mayan civilizations were two important, early civilizations that settled in Mesoamerica. The Mayan and Aztecs were two civilizations that lived in two different time periods, but they shared many physical and mental characteristics of one another. The Aztec and Mayan civilizations were different but they were more similar. The Aztecs and Mayans were more similar in their location, religion, writing system, government, social structure, gender roles, technology, and sporting activities.

The Spanish Conquest of Mexico and the Aztec people started when Hernán Cortés led the Spanish conquistadors to Tenochtitlán and conquered the Aztec Empire in 1519. The Spaniards had gunpowder, dogs, horses, and armor that would help fight against the Azteca. The Native Americans wanted to only wound their enemies with their woodened clubs tipped and sharp obsidian that was powerful enough to smash the Spaniard’s helmets. The use of the double-bladed swords helped the Spaniards fight close combat with the Indians. As soon as their chief died the Azteca would back down. Not only did the weapons cause a huge impact on the Aztec but also the spread of diseases such as smallpox that were carried by the Europeans affected the population. After conquering the Indians, the intensions of the Spanish in Mexico was to spread their beliefs about Christianity, find gold and use them as slaves. In drastic ways the Spaniards changed the native communities, for instance plagues spread throughout the whole country side after the defeat of Tenochtitlán. Smallpox, measles, and influenza were the outbreaks that hit urban cities the hardest. In 1520-1521 an outbreak of smallpox caused thousands to die because Azteca medicine was not affective against these diseases. The second outbreak occurred in 1531 and it was smallpox again but combined with measles and the third wave of the disease lasted from 1576 to 1581 killing 300,000 to 400,000 of the Aztec population. The Native Americans did not

Technological advancement greatly favored the Spanish. As mentioned before, the Spaniards where fighting to kill, so on all fronts they where better equipped. They came in on well-built ships, equipped with cannons. They carried iron swords and shields rather than spears and wooden shields of the Aztecs.

The author argues that the Spanish were completely at fault for the total destruction of the Aztec Empire. In Broken spears, the author explains how many factors other than Spanish power contributed to the downfall of the Aztecs. Not only did the Spanish have many advantages over the Aztecs, but also they also exploited them and took advantage of the cultural difference. The main key aspects to the Spanish victory, is that the Spanish were viewed as gods at first because of their appearance, the Aztecs welcomed the Spanish with gifts and festivities, which showed the Spanish had total control of people. The Aztecs also held a ritual ceremony for the arrival of the “god” that included a human

     The Aztecs were an American Indian people who ruled a mighty empire in Mexico from the 1400's to the 1500's. The Aztecs had one of the most advanced civilizations in the Americas and built cities as large as any in Europe at that time. They also practiced a remarkable religion that affected every part of their lives and featured human sacrifice. The Aztecs built towering temples, created huge sculptures, and held impressive ceremonies all for the purpose of worshipping their gods. The Spaniards destroyed their magnificent empire in the year 1521, but the Aztecs left a lasting mark on Mexican life and culture .

Aztecs began to develop regional politics. Aztec politics were based on military strength with a

Although both groups had slaves, they thought of them and treated them differently. If you were an Aztec slave, you had rights and you could even work your way out of slavery. On the other hand, if you were a Spanish slave, you had no rights and your slavery was permanent. For Aztecs, your children were free and you were considered a normal person. Basically, slavery was just a punishment. Whereas if you were a Spanish slave, your

The Aztec people are strong and resourceful people when it comes to survival. They have been in a lot of wars but they still survive over all. It all ended with their leader Cuauhtémoc he was hung by Spaniards in 1525. Before Cuauhtémoc there was Montezuma II Motecuhzoma Xocoyoti the ninth Tlatoani of Tenochtitlan Ruler of the Aztec Triple Alliance.

The events that occurred between the Aztecs and Spanish Conquistadors have many sides and opportunities for debate. One of the most debated topics being; Who was more savage and who was more Civil? Both the Aztecs and Spanish had powerful and thriving empires. These empires displayed their dominance through their advanced technology and flourishing military. Though it may seem that the Spanish were more advanced than the Aztecs, the Aztecs and Spanish were actually quite close to being equal in technological advancements.

     A second major theme, which played a very important role in this event, was the incredible advantage given to the Spanish due to their technology. The Aztecs were an advanced civilization with a large infrastructure, an organized system of government and many artistic and cultural achievements. However, they severely lacked many important advantages that were common in Europe at that time. The Aztecs had no iron tools or weapons,