Causes of the Tepanec War

The Tepanec War transformed the Aztecs into a major player in the politics of Lake Texcoco then throughout Central America. The War brought together where various tribes and people united to topple down a tyrannical hegemony of the Tepanecs. But what were the causes and tyranny that brought the war in the first place?

Map of Lake Texcoco in Aztec Warfare by Ross Hassig

A Grandfather's Love and the Rise of the Aztecs

Messengers from a nascent city of Tenochtitlan arrived in the sumptuous palace of Tezozomoc in the city of Azcapotzalco, the great power that dominated the lands around Lake Texcoco, the area now known as Mexico City. The messenger brought a request from Tezozomoc’s favorite grandson, the leader of Tenochtitlan, the teenager Chimalpopoca, asking for his grandfather to allow his people to build an aqueduct. Tezozomoc agreed to his grandson’s request, an agreement and a relationship that changed a region’s political landscape.

A Joke that Left Thousands Without a Nose

32,000 Voldemort-like looking people, without a nose and only a hole in the middle of the face thanks to a “jest” by a Nahuatl-King. Such was the sheer result of the Aztecs’ fight for their survival during their migration years. An episode that displayed their ruthlessness, resilience, and martial prowess which later turned them from nomads to overlords.

Xochimilco Prisoners in Aubin Codex