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Montezuma Xocoyotl (II) was elected in 1502. His predecessor was Ahuitzotl who reigned from 1486-1502. Montezuma was the son of Axayacatl. He was 34 years old when he was elected ninth king of Mexico. Montezuma II was chosen over his brothers because of his qualifications as both a priest and warrior. Before taking the throne of king, Montezuma had to undergo a four day ritual that consisted of fasting, prayer and penance. Upon completion of the ritual, and receiving vast information and guidance, a sharp bone was used to pierce his nose cartilage and a rod made of jade was put through the incision and he was declared lord of Mexico. During the reign of Montezuma many beneficial tasks were accomplished. He created a palace for invalid warriors, established a hospital and constructed a canal in which water was brought into the capital. Although much good was done, his vanity brought much distraught as well. Upon his coronation, he reinstated the tax that was created by his father Axayacatl, even though it had been forgiven by his predecessor. Montezuma also replaced many people that held important positions because they were chosen by the previous emperor and not himself. He also demanded that only people who were ranked were worthy of waiting on him; this included even the most menial tasks. Though Montezuma’s vanity ran deep he was a fair man. He would dress in disguise and go into the courts and try to bribe the judges in attempt to test their dignity. If the judges accepted the bribe he was severely punished. Montezuma was fearless in enforcing the law, but in more so with those who worked inside the palace because he considered it to be a revered place. Upon his election to king, some prophesied that he would be the last of the emperors and the mighty empire would fall during his reign. In order to understand Montezuma’s later actions, one must have a rudimentary knowledge of the legend of Quetzalcoatl. There were two very important gods among the plethora of deities. One is Tezcatlipoca, which means “the mirror that smokes” who was king of the gods. Many attributed the prosperity of the Mexican tribe to Tezcatlipoca, and thought of him and thought of him as a guardian. The second important god was Quetzalcoatl, which means the feathered serpent. According to legend Tezcatlipoca drove Quetzalcoatl out but not before Quetzalcoatl vowed to return. ‘I will return in a One Reed year and re-establish my rule. It will be a time of great tribulation for the people.’ These Reed years that Quetzalcoatl mentioned fell on 1363.1467 and finally 1519, the year of Hernan Cortes arrival. Many also prophesized that when Quetzalcoatl returned, he would have white skin complexion and a dark beard. Montezuma had knowledge of the legend of Quetzalcoatl and deeply believed in it. He was very superstitions about sign and searched vigorously for omens that would discount the belief that the legend would come true during his reign. However his searching end in on confirmations that the Quetzalcoatl promise of return would be brought to fruition. A solar eclipse, a volcanic eruption and a comet appearing were some of the natural phenomena’s that helped boast Montezuma fear. At the time of Cortes’ arrival, Montezuma had control over a vast majority of provinces in Mexico; however there were three independent states that he tolerated. These states were Tlaxcala, Huexotzingo and Cholula. It was these places that Cortes went to gather forces to enter into Tenochtitlan with. In the year of 1519, Cortes set sail in accordance with orders given by Diego Velasquez. Velasquez simply commanded Cortes to update charts, spread Catholicism and attempt to make Indians become vessels of the king of Spain. Cortes did not have the order to establish a new colony. Upon Cortes’ arrival, Montezuma’s nobles greeted him with gifts tamales, beans, gold and a variety of fruits. Along with the gifts came a greeting from Montezuma. Cortes accepted the gifts graciously but insisted on meeting Montezuma in person. Montezuma refused to meet until he knew more about Cortes’ intention and if he was really and ambassador from Spain. “But if he was truly an ambassador, why had he come with an army arsenal of he most powerful weapons Mexico had ever seen?” From this decline, Cortes moved his men to Cempoala, where he had been invited by a chieftain. During this time Cortes’ men were growing restless and Diego Velasquez had no warrant from the Spanish crown to colonize this new land. However, Cortes felt confident that the crown would justify his initiative once they saw all the riches of gold and jade it would produce. Cortes then disobeyed a direct order to return and continued his quest to establish a new colony. On August 16, 1519 Cortes and his men headed out for the inland. After thirteen days of traveling they reached the state of Tlaxcala. Tlaxcala was one of the three independent states mentioned previously. Upon reaching this state, Cortes offered protection from México in exchange for an alliance with the Spaniards. Xicotencatl the general of Tlaxcala declined the offer and a battle of less than seven days occurred, which ended in Xicotencatl surrendering. Montezuma sent his ambassadors to Tlaxcala to offer Cortes a peace agreement. The agreement was Montezuma would give Cortes a massive treasure and would also pay tribute to the king of Spain annually. After promising to take Montezuma’s proposal under consideration, Cortes marched with 5000 Tlacalan warriors into the state of Choula, another independent state. Choula, unlike Tlaxcala were then allies with Tenochtitlan. Due to Cortes’ suspicion of an ambush, he captured a priest and a noble and tortured them for the duration of one hour until the plan was revealed to him. Cortes attacked on Choula resulted in the massacre of 5000 Choluans. When Montezuma heard of the horrendous massacre he made sacrifices to the gods for eight day s at the end of which he agreed to meet with Cortes and Tenochititlan. Cortes was welcomed into the great city. This was the only way Cortes would have been able to enter and ultimately conquer. On the fifth day of being there, Cortes received information that sever Spaniards had been killed. Cortes with four captains went to the palace of Montezuma and took him captive. Technically Cortes commanded Montezuma to come to the Spanish quarters and be treated like an honored guest or refuse and be killed. Montezuma ultimately agreed and ordered his people to swear allegiance to the king of Spain. Montezuma gave Cortes and the Spaniards his protection. While it seemed Cortes had control of the city, Panifilo de Narvaez had arrived under the orders of Diego Velasquez to bring Cortes to justice for disobeying an order. Cortes had warned Velasquez not to quarrel among each other because it would produce a divided front and weaken their image. Cortes left Tenochtitlan to handle Narvaez. While he was defeating Narvaez, he received word that there was and uprising back at Tenochtitlan. Cortes quickly returned to the great city and sought Montezuma to help regain control. However in Cortes absence, Cuitlahuac, Montezuma’s brother had become in control. When Montezuma was led to the roof by Cortes to call a truce, Montezuma was stoned by the people and died four days later. Many wonder how a ruler how a ruler as strong and mighty as Montezuma could have coward down to Cortes so easily. Some speculate that Cortes was well aware of the legend of Quetzalcoatl and used Montezuma vulnerability to his advantage. In other words Cortes preyed upon Montezuma’s superstition that the year Cortes arrived was also the year that the powerful deity was to return. Montezuma’s reign lasted from 1502 to 1520. His only surviving heir was his daughter from his first wife, Dona Isabel and who was accepted into the elite society of the New Spain.

Bibliography

Deeds, M. Susan. The Course of Mexican History, 7th Ed. New York Oxford. Oxford University Press. 2003 Hassig, Ross. Mexico and the Spanish Conquest. London. Longman. 1194 Kirkwood, Burton. The History of Mexico. Westport, Connecticut. Greenwood Press. 2000. Thomas, Hugh. Conquest; Montezuma, Cortes, and the fall of Old Mexico. New York. Simon and Schuster.1993.