Editing Moctezuma II (section)

===Territorial expansion during his rule, military actions and foreign policy===
[[File:Fiestas de la coronación de Moctezuma II, en el folio 158v.png|thumb|Celebrations during Moctezuma's coronation according to the [[Diego Durán|Durán Codex]]]]
At the beginning of his rule, he attempted to build diplomatic ties with Tlaxcala, Huexotzinco (today, [[Huejotzingo]]), Chollolan ([[Cholula (Mesoamerican site)|Cholula]]), [[Tarascan Empire|Michoacan]], and [[Metztitlán]], by secretly inviting the lords of these countries to attend the celebrations for his coronation before the continuation of the [[flower war]]s, which were wars of religious nature arranged voluntarily by the parties involved with no territorial purposes, but instead to capture and sacrifice as many soldiers as possible. During this period, Mexico and Tlaxcala still were not at war, but the tension between these nations was high, and the embassy sent for this purpose was put in a highly risky situation, for which reason Moctezuma chose as members of the embassy only experts in [[diplomacy]], [[espionage]], and languages. Fortunately, his invitation was accepted, and Moctezuma used this opportunity to show his greatness to the lords who attended. However, because the invitation was secret to avoid a scandal for inviting his rivals to this ceremony, Moctezuma ordered that no one should know that the lords were present, not even the rulers of [[Tlacopan]] (today known as Tacuba) and Texcoco, and the lords saw themselves often forced to pretend to be organizers to avoid confusion.{{sfn|Durán|1867|pp=425–429}} Though Moctezuma would continue to hold meetings with these people, where various religious rituals were held, it did not take long for large-scale conflicts to erupt between these nations.

An important thing to note is that contrary to popular belief, Tlaxcala was not Mexico's most powerful rival in the central Mexican region in this period, and it would not be so until the final years of pre-Hispanic Mexico in 1518–19. In the opening years of the 16th century, Huejotzingo was Mexico's actual military focus, and it proved itself to be one of the most powerful political entities until these final years, as a series of devastating wars weakened the state into being conquered by Tlaxcala.{{sfn|Isaac|1983|pp=423–425}}

During his reign, he married the queen of [[Ecatepec]], [[Tlapalizquixochtzin]],{{sfn|Chimalpahin|1997|p=101}} making him king consort of this ''[[altepetl]]'', though according to the [[True History of the Conquest of Mexico|chronicle]] written by [[Bernal Díaz del Castillo]], very few people in Mexico knew about this political role, being only a few among his closest [[courtier]]s among those who knew.{{sfn|Díaz del Castillo|2011|p=283}}

====Early military campaigns====
[[File:Victorias militares de Moctezuma II, en los folios 15v a 16v.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.25|Moctezuma's military victories listed in [[Codex Mendoza]]]]
The first military campaign during his rule, which was done in honor of his coronation, was the violent suppression of a rebellion in Nopala and Icpatepec. For this war, a force of over 60,000 soldiers from Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, [[Tepanec]] lands, [[Chalco (altépetl)|Chalco]], and [[Xochimilco]] participated, and Moctezuma himself went to the frontlines. Approximately 5100 prisoners were taken after the campaign, many of whom were given to inhabitants of Tenochtitlan and Chalco as slaves, while the rest were sacrificed in his honor on the fourth day of his coronation. In Nopala, Mexica soldiers committed a massacre and burned down the temples and houses, going against Moctezuma's wishes.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|p=219}} After the campaign, celebrations for his coronation continued in Tenochtitlan.{{sfn|Durán|1867|pp=422–425, 430}} Moctezuma's territorial expansion, however, would not truly begin until another rebellion was suppressed in Tlachquiauhco (today known as [[Tlaxiaco]]), where its ruler, Malinalli, was killed after trying to start the rebellion. In this campaign, all adults above the age of 50 within the city were killed under Moctezuma's orders as he blamed them for the rebellion.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|p=223}} A characteristic fact about Moctezuma's wars was that a large portion of them had the purpose of suppressing rebellions rather than conquering new territory, contrary to his predecessors, whose main focus was territorial expansion.<ref name="Aragón 1931" />

====Rebellions====
[[File:Codex Magliabechiano (141 cropped).jpg|300px|right|thumb|Human sacrifice as shown in the [[Aztec codices#Codex Magliabechiano|Codex Magliabechiano]],  Folio 70.
Heart-extraction was viewed as a means of liberating the ''Istli'' and reuniting it with the Sun: the victim's transformed heart flies Sun-ward on a trail of blood.]]
During his reign, multiple rebellions were suppressed by the use of force and often ended with violent results. As mentioned previously, the first campaign during his reign, which was done in honor of his coronation, was the suppression of a rebellion in Nopallan (today known as [[Santos Reyes Nopala]]) and Icpatepec (a [[Mixtec]] town that no longer exists which was near [[Silacayoapam]]), both in modern-day [[Oaxaca]].{{sfn|Durán|1867|p=422}} The prisoners taken during this campaign were later used as [[Slavery in the Aztec Empire|slaves]] or for [[Human sacrifice in Aztec culture|human sacrifice]].

After Mexico suffered a humiliating defeat at [[Atlixco]] during a [[flower war]] against [[Huejotzingo]] ([[#Battle of Atlixco|''see below'']]), many sites in Oaxaca rebelled, likely under the idea that the empire's forces were weakened. However, Moctezuma was able to raise an army numbering 200,000 and marched over the city of Yancuitlan (today known as [[Yanhuitlan]]), a city which had been previously conquered by [[Tizoc]], and conquered Zozollan in the process. Abundant territorial expansion was carried out following this.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|p=299}}

Another notable rebellion occurred in [[Atlixco]] (in modern-day [[Puebla]]), a city neighboring [[Tlaxcala (Nahua state)|Tlaxcala]] which had previously been conquered by Ahuizotl.<ref name="Aragón 1931" /> This rebellion occurred in 1508, and was repressed by a prince named Macuilmalinatzin.{{sfn|de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl|1892|p=309}} This wasn't the first conflict that occurred in this region, as its proximity with Tlaxcala and Huejotzingo would cause multiple conflicts to erupt in this area during Moctezuma's reign.

A large series of rebellions occurred in 1510, likely as a result of [[astrological]] predictions halting some Mexica military operations to a degree. Moctezuma would try to campaign against these rebellions one at a time throughout the following years, campaigning against territories in Oaxaca, including Icpatepec again, in 1511 or 1512.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|p=231}} Some of these revolts occurred as far south as Xoconochco (today known as [[Soconusco]]) and Huiztlan (today, [[Huixtla]]), far down where the Mexican-[[Guatemala]]n border is today. These territories were highly important to the empire and had been previously conquered by his predecessor [[Ahuizotl]], thus Moctezuma had to maintain them under his control.<ref name="Berdan 2009">{{cite journal|first=Frances|last=Berdan|author-link=Frances Berdan|title=Metas y estrategias militares de Moctezuma II|trans-title=Military Goals and Strategies of Moctezuma II|journal=Arqueología Mexicana|year=2009|url=https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/metas-y-estrategias-militares-de-moctezuma-ii|language=es|access-date=18 December 2021}}</ref> These revolts occurred in so many locations that the empire was unable to deal with all of them effectively.

====Territorial expansion====
The empire's expansion during Moctezuma's rule was mainly focused on southwestern [[Mesoamerica]]n territories, in Oaxaca and modern-day [[Guerrero]]. The earliest conquests in this territory were held by [[Moctezuma I]].

The first important conquest during Moctezuma's rule occurred in the year 1504 when the city of Achiotlan (today known as [[San Juan Achiutla]]) was conquered. This war, according to some sources, was supposedly mainly caused by "a small tree which belonged to a lord of the place which grew such beautiful flowers Moctezuma's envy couldn't resist it", and when Moctezuma asked for it, the lord of the city refused to offer it, thus starting the war. After the conquest, this tree was supposedly taken to Tenochtitlan. The second conquest occurred in Zozollan, a place neighboring east of Achiutla, on 28 May 1506, during the campaign against the Yanhuitlan rebellion. This conquest had a particularly violent result, as a special sacrifice was held after the campaign where the prisoners captured in Zozollan were the victims. "The Mexicans killed many of the people from Zozola {{sic}} which they captured in war", according to old sources.{{weasel inline|reason=which sources? 1949 (the source below) is not old for this topic|date=June 2024}}<ref name="Barlow 2015">{{cite journal|first=Robert|last=Barlow|author-link=R. H. Barlow|title=Las conquistas de Moteczuma Xocoyotzin|trans-title=The Conquests of Moteczuma Xocoyotzin|journal=Estudios de cultura náhuatl|issn=0071-1675|volume=49|publisher=Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Investigaciones Históricas|year=2015|orig-year=1949|url=http://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0071-16752015000100007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211210064529/http://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0071-16752015000100007|archive-date=10 December 2021|language=es|access-date=10 December 2021}}</ref>

In the year 1507, the year of the [[New Fire Ceremony]], abundant military action occurred. Among the towns that are listed to have been conquered this year are: Tecuhtepec (from which multiple prisoners were sacrificed for the ceremony), Iztitlan, Nocheztlan (an important town northeast of Achiutla), Quetzaltepec, and Tototepec.<ref name="Barlow 2015" />

[[File:Códice Azoyú 1, 31-30 (siglo XVI).png|thumb|left|Folios 30 to 31 (right to left) of [[Codex Azoyú 1]] depicting the campaigns launched by Moctezuma II in Tlapanec lands.]]
[[File:Territorios de Tlachinollan a principios del siglo XVI.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Campaigns launched by the Mexica over the Tlapanec Kingdom of Tlachinollan, including the conquest of Tototepec by Moctezuma II. The map doesn't show his campaigns against Xipetepec, Acocozpan, Tetenanco, and Atlitepec.]]
The conquest of Tototepec formed part of the conquests of some of the last few [[Tlapanec people|Tlapanec]] territories of modern-day Guerrero, an area which had already been in decline since Moctezuma I began his first campaigns in the region and probably turned the Kingdom of Tlachinollan (modern-day [[Tlapa]]) into a tributary province during the rule of Lord Tlaloc between 1461 and 1467 (though the kingdom would not be invaded and fully conquered until the reign of Ahuizotl in 1486, along with Caltitlan, a city neighboring west of Tlapa). In between the years of 1503 and 1509, a campaign was launched against Xipetepec, and another was launched (as mentioned previously) in 1507 against Tototepec, which had previously been a territory conquered by Tlachinollan in the mid-14th century. The campaign in Tototepec occurred as the result of a large group of Mexica merchants sent by Moctezuma being killed after they attempted to trade for some of the resources of the area on his behalf.{{sfn|Durán|1867|pp=442–443}} During the conquest of Tototepec, two important Mexica noblemen, Ixtlilcuechahuac and Huitzilihuitzin (not to be confused with the [[Huitzilihuitl|''tlatoani'' of this name]]), were killed.{{sfn|de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl|1892|p=309}} All the population of Tototepec, except for the children, was massacred by the Mexica forces, and about 1350 captives were taken.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|p=227}} Another campaign was launched in 1515 to conquer Acocozpan and Tetenanco and reconquer Atlitepec, which had been previously conquered by Ahuizotl in 1493.<ref>{{cite journal|first=Constanza|last=Vega Sosa|title=The Annals of the Tlapanecs|year=1992|journal=Supplement to the Handbook of Middle American Indians|publisher=University of Texas Press|location=Austin|volume=5|pages=42–48, 51|isbn=0-292-77650-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yi6xDAAAQBAJ&dq=annals+of+the+tlapanecs&pg=PA34|access-date=15 December 2021}}</ref>

[[File:Matanza de comerciantes mexicas en Quetzaltepec, en el folio 165r.png|thumb|left|The massacre of Mexica merchants in Quetzaltepec. Durán Codex]]
Quetzaltepec was conquered on the same campaign as Tototepec, as both reportedly murdered the merchants sent by Moctezuma in the area. The Mexica managed to raise an army of 400,000 and first conquered Tototepec. Quetzaltepec was also conquered, but it rebelled along with various sites across Oaxaca soon after when the Mexica lost the [[#Battle of Atlixco|Battle of Atlixco]] against [[Huejotzingo]]. Being a fortified city with six walls, the Mexica put the city under siege for several days, with the each of groups of the Triple Alliance attacking from various locations and having over 200 wooden ladders constructed under Moctezuma's orders. The Mexica eventually emerged victorious, successfully conquering the city.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|pp=229–230}}

Several military defeats occurred in some of these expansionist campaigns, however, such as the invasion of Amatlan in 1509, where an unexpected series of snowstorms and blizzards killed many soldiers, making the surviving ones too low in numbers to fight.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|p=231}}

[[File:Conquista de Cuatzontlan durante el gobierno de Moctezuma II, en el folio 161v.png|thumb|War with Cuatzontlan. Durán Codex]]
[[File:Espías obteniendo información de un pueblo rebelde del Imperio mexica, en el folio 67r.png|thumb|left|''Tequihua'' spies gathering information on an enemy city during the night. Codex Mendoza]]
An important campaign was the conquest of Xaltepec (today known as [[Jaltepec]]) and Cuatzontlan and the suppression of the last revolt in Icpatepec, all in Oaxaca. This war started as the result of provocations given by Jaltepec against Moctezuma through killing as many Mexicas as they could find in their area, as some sort of way to challenge him, and the beginning of the revolt by Icpatepec as the result. The Xaltepeca had done this before with previous ''tlatoanis'' and other nations. Moctezuma and the recently elected ruler of Tlacopan themselves went to the fight, along with [[Tlacaelel]]'s grandson and ''[[Cihuacoatl (position)|cihuacoatl]]'' of Mexico in this period Tlacaeleltzin Xocoyotl.{{sfn|Chimalpahin|1997|p=37}} A large portion of the weapons and food was brought by [[Tlatelolco (altepetl)|Tlatelolco]], though they were initially hesitant to do so, but were ordered by Moctezuma to offer it as a tribute to Tenochtitlan, and they received multiple rewards as the result, including the permission to rebuild their main temple (which had been partially destroyed during the [[Battle of Tlatelolco]] which occurred during [[Axayacatl]]'s reign). This campaign had a highly violent result; Moctezuma, after receiving information on the cities gathered by his spies, ordered for all adults in the sites above the age of 50 to be killed to prevent a rebellion once the cities were conquered, similar to the war in Tlachquiauhco. The conquest was done by dividing the army that was brought in 3 divisions; one from Tlacopan, one from Texcoco, and one from Tenochtitlan, so that each one attacked a different city. The Tenochtitlan company attacked Jaltepec. Moctezuma came out victorious and then returned to Mexico through Chalco, where he received many honors for his victory.{{sfn|Durán|1867|pp=432–441}} This war likely happened in 1511, as a war against Icpatepec is recorded to have happened again in that year.<ref name="Barlow 2015" />

After the campaigns in the Oaxaca region, Moctezuma began to move his campaigns into northern and eastern territories around 1514, conquering the site of Quetzalapan, a [[Chichimec]] territory through the [[Huastec civilization|Huastec region]], taking 1332 captives and suffering minimal casualties, with only 95 reported losses. Likely around this time, many other territories in the region were also conquered. He also went to war against the [[Tarascan Empire]] for the first time since [[Axayácatl]] was defeated in his disastrous invasion. This war caused high casualties on both sides. The Mexica succeeded at taking a large amount of captives, but failed to conquer any territory.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|pp=232–233}}

Among the final military campaigns carried out by Moctezuma, aside from the late stages of the war against Tlaxcala, were the conquests of Mazatzintlan and Zacatepec, which formed part of the Chichimec region.{{sfn|Hassig|1988|p=235}}

[[File:Aztecexpansion.png|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Map showing the expansion of the Aztec Empire through conquest. The conquests of Moctezuma II are marked by the color green (based on the maps by Ross Hassig in ''Aztec Warfare'').]]
The approximate number of military engagements during his rule before European contact was 73, achieving victory in approximately 43 sites (including territories already within the empire),<ref name="Barlow 2015" /> making him one of the most active monarchs in pre-Hispanic Mexican history in terms of military actions.<ref name="Aragón 1931" />

However, his rule and policies suffered a very sudden interruption upon the news of the arrival of Spanish ships in the east in 1519 ([[#Contact with the Spanish|''see below'']]).