Heart of the Empire- The Mesoamerican States of the Americas

(OOC: Yes you will hear the word 'Heart' alot and the metaphor going along with it tossed around here. Tossed around ideas within Shogun's adjacent thread "WI: Hernan Cortes and his men are Massacred by the Aztecs" are being formed into reality here. Now to kick things off, my favorite group of natives who are the most out of place within the heart of Mexico!)

Tzintzuntzan, Iréchecua Tzintzuntzáni
1520
"Caconzi. I bring news from the east, from the lands of the Sons of Huitzilopochtli...."

Caconzi Tangaxuan II yawned slightly as he sat upon his throne, this here was the heart of the mighty lands of the Purépecha! Nobles and Slave-Servents mingled amongst each other, some enjoying the music and prose of a flower poet in one corner of his throneroom while others enjoyed meals of fruits or cooked fish brought to them. Outside of this simple throneroom, the heart of the Purépechan lands was a buzz, as its namesake the 'Land of the Hummingbirds' Tangaxuan knew that on the shores of Lake Pátzcuaro his city was a in constant flapping of life! From the lowest of fisherman on the lake itself to the merchants like the man before him who brought goods from the north or minerals from the hills to the artisians who threaded together the beautiful feathers into headdresses for his ceremonies. The metalsmiths in the city delt blows to hot metals, crafting them into wodnerous likings that caught the eye of many a man and woman.

If Tangaxuan remembered correctly this man was the son of a jaguar or something, definitly a merchant to the Valley of the Mexica by the way he styled his hair with feathers of the eagle. Sitting up Tangaxuan looked down to the man as he knelt, eyes cast downward. "Very well. Tell me what news you bring from the....Mexica Tenochca"

Though of course as descendent of the fire god Curicaueri, not only did Tangaxuan have a passion for life, but a fiery passion to rip the heart out of the Mexica! Recently under the reign of his predescessor Zuangua, they had sent military expeditions to break through the line of fortifications that divided their lands and were beaten back! The Mexica had long been the ones to make offensives into his lands, perhaps it was abotu time to do differently and devourer the Mexica's heart, the Valley and Tenochtitlan....

"My lord..." the merchant began "Plague has begun to grip their lands, many are dieing but that is not all! Strange ones! Pale skinned men from the east! The lands around the Valley of the Mexica are rife with rumor that it is sicons of Quetzalcoatl returned....and the Tlaxcallans walk with him on Tenochtitlan!"

This was interesting, Tangaxuan let the man continue with everything that he had seen and heard, for a full minute afterwards the Caconzi contemplated these words and dismissed the man, granting him a gift of fine gold metal work for this information. He would have to consult his army leaders and spymasters in the Mexica's lands, but if he thought was true then perhaps the Heart of the Aztec Empire WOULD be his sooner then he thought....

(The Tarascan Civilization by Diego Rivera)
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The End of the Cortes Expedition-La Noche Triste
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(Bernal Díaz del Castillo sits and weeps for Hernan Cortes' folly)

The end for the Would-Be-Conquerer Cortes and many of his men came with the descision to put Alvarado in control of Tenochtitlan whereas Alvarado whether through fear of a Mexica uprising, disgust at the Pagan Rituals, or just plain Greed to loot the wealthy corpses of the Mexica Nobles and Priests initiated a massacre which immensely brought the opinions of the Mexica of the Spaindards to new lows and resulted in the killing of Alvarado by the vengful son of one of these nobles and lead to a somewhat besiegement of the Spaindards and their allies in one of the palaces with their hostage the Hueyi Tlatoani Moctezuma.

Meanwhile Cortes' rush to defeat Naravaez near Zemapola was successful but the much larger army had not been caught in as much surprise as Cortes had aimed for and both sides battered each other bloodily before the battle was over. Cortes' words of a City of Gold did manage to sway a number of the surviving Conquistadors but a number would go off to Vereacruz to see to the jailing of Naravaez. So on his return to Tenochtitlan Cortes was forced to break through into the city and link up with the remaining Spaindards and Native Allies in the city, and become besieged himself. In an attempt to convince the Mexica to let Cortes and his allies go, he sent the Hueyi Tlatoani out onto the balcony of the palace to speak to the Mexica people who had gathered in a angry crowd outside.

What neither knew that a surviving council of nobles had elected Cuitlahuac theHueyi Tlatoani, and who had earlier been let go from Spanish custody after Moctezuma had bargined with Cortes to do so, inorder to attempt to appease the angry crowd. So seeing their elected leader as betraying their people, the crowd pelted Moctezuma with stones and darts, causing the former leader to fall down which likely may have killed him (if it was not the Spanish themselves).

Deciding a few days later that Cortes and his men, and their native allies could not survive in the city it was decided a nighttime escape of the city would be undertaken. This is largely where the Conquistador erred as well, considering that his men were still somewhat battered from the battle at Zemapola, starvation beginning to weaken their ranks, and that they wanted to bring with them the vast amounts of plunder from the city! Four of the Eight causeway bridges out of the city had been removed by the Mexica, and it was claimed that a portable bridge could be devised if they could not make it to one open, none the less Cortes went through with this plan, desprate to escape the city.

Packing more then they could, and muffling the hooves of their horses, the Spanish and their allies moved out from their besieged palace at night and no sooner had they gone out of sight of their safe haven, they were ambushed! The Mexica were laying in wait! The Fighting through Tenochtitlan was bloody as Spanish Horses galloped through the streets followed by desprate Conquistadors and their allies who all knew full well what would happen to them if they did not escape. It was upon arriving at a seemingly unguarded bridge after many of his men had been killed or forced to leave behind that Cortes and his entourage made a rush for freedom with his foot soldiers and allies trailling behind when the next ambush of the Mexica was sprung and hundreds of canoes appeared on Lake Texcoco!

By accounts Cortes died when his horse was hit by multiple darts and arrows, his steed turning over and crushing his body underneath the bleeding horse. Others say he slipped into the water or went down fighting Mexica warriors. Whatever the true account, the Spanish and their allies fled like mad across the causeway enduring a cloud of arrows and darts raining upon them from all directions! A number of conquistadors slipped off the causeway and drowned in the Lake as their plunder and armor dragged them downward.

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Those who managed to reach the other side of the lake were a shadow of the force of Would-Be-Conquerers that had entered the city, less then a hundred Spainish survived and only a few thousand of the Tlaxcallans and other natives who make a hasty retreat from the Valley of the Mexica, being purused for some weeks by vengeful scouts of the Mexica.

Though only a few of the Conquistadors had escaped, their still were a number alive in Tenochtitlan where most were captured and knocked out by the Mexica-noble warriors and allies actually fought amongst themselves over who would claim a wounded Conquistador as a slave. A few seeing the end, committed suicide while others bowed down to the Mexica warriors and held up their swords or guns to their captors to save their lives.

Amongst the Spanish who had fled with their allies, after some days of traveling one of the conquistadors, Bernal Díaz del Castillo attempted to organize the surviving Spanish but it was when theyw ere safely out of the Valley of the Mexica did their 'allies' turn on them. Their lord Xicohtencatl ordered the capturing of the surviving Spanish, the Spanish were overcome as they slept in the night and were taken back to Tlaxcala with their arms bound, as a new kind of welcomed guest.

Thus the Cortes Expedition ended in dismal failure, but the effects of Cortes' actions were still ongoing which would become more apparent in the coming months.

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Ah, you mean Xicotencatl the Younger, right? I knew he was adverse to the Spanish, but I just read a little wiki summary that suggests he may have actually contacted Mexica emissaries to try to form an alliance. Are you going to have him do something similar? I have never heard this before, but it is intriguing and I'm going to look it up more.
 
Ah, you mean Xicotencatl the Younger, right? I knew he was adverse to the Spanish, but I just read a little wiki summary that suggests he may have actually contacted Mexica emissaries to try to form an alliance. Are you going to have him do something similar? I have never heard this before, but it is intriguing and I'm going to look it up more.

Well following the flight from Tenochtitlan, Xicotencatl the Younger had enfact been attempting to get his fellows to part with the Spanish, I have now with Cortes dead and the effectivness of the Spanish reduced as a fighting force, they would be more useful now in 'Other' ways....

http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-103381857/xicotencatl-rethinking-indigenous-mexican.html
Later, after Cortés and the other survivors of their flight from Tenochtitlan reached the Otomí town of Huei-Otlipan within Tlaxcallan, Xicotencatl urged the rulers no to re-ally with the Spaniards, but he was rebuffed (Díaz del Castillo 1977, 1:406)

and the next update will have something to do with your question on religion....
 
Tenochtitlan
"Madre de Dios...Madre de Dios....Oh Christ be with me..." Geronimo de Aguilar muttered to himself in his native tounge as he was lead up the steps of the great stepped pyramid of these...these Aztecs! The bearded fransiscan priest's bare feet were bleeding profusly, his shoes taken off at the foot of the pyramid. If it were not for the dozens of armed Aztec warriors and the crowd of Aztec nobles and commoners, Geronimo would have done his best to escape from the situation. He had lived with the Maya peoples and learned their language, infact he had been questioned for the last few days constantly by warriors and officials over the nature of his religion-they even stole his bible!

In what he himself was calling "La Noche Triesta" Geronimo had attempted to flee with the rest of the expedition but he had been knocked out from behind, having woken up in a cell of other captives of the Aztecs, but not long afterward he had been singled out and seperated from the rest of the survivors! God be with them! He thought now that he would no doubt meet the defiled corpses of his fellow Spaindards at the top of this pyramid.

Though on entering the city a few weeks hence, Geronimo if he recalled correctly, this pyramid-altar to the pagan gods had been empty of any kind of structure on the top. He had been about to ask one of the guards pushing him up the stone stairs when he and the crowd seemed to reach the summit, he felt a hand grab his hair and fiercly jerk his head upward and what he saw threatened to send his mind into insanity.

Their wasn't much, no large structure housing a altar, enfact the stone altars where these savages normally did their grusome sacrifices was absent. Instead their were four crosses.

Four Crosses with people nailed to them with spikes of wood, crucified! Geronimo's eyes bulged in his skull as he looked on, the arrangement of the crosses were arranged with one cross on a small podium in the back and above the others slightly-a old native man his skin caked in a white substance looked on at Geronimo. Below and to the front of him was a Spanidard, a young conquistador who looked like he might be dead, and ontop of his head he wore a crown of thorns..... Biting his lips Geronimo looked to his left and right, on his left their was a old woman a bird on a cord wrapped around her neck and to the right was a younger woman who wore...who wore a shawl over her head like he had seen many times in paintings and statues of the Virgin Mary!!!!!

Geronimo felt sick as he fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face, and this was when he noticed arrayed around the bodies of these crucified people were bowels where their blood was slowly pooling into, and to the side sat a small cooking fire.....

"Oh God....Oh God....."

His words were interupted by the speaking of another Aztec who stood arms raised to the assmebled crowd below him "People of Mexica! The foreigners from the east are defeated! The might and blood of the people of Huitzilopochtli have triumphed over these men who would seek to steal our wealth and defile our people!" he stops as a booming shout of cheers erupt around him, the man who Geronimo now notices is clutching his Bible tightly to his breast, "As right of our conquest! We have this day stolen the gods of the people of the east! Their mighty strength will now serve us! In their honor and to win them over the people of Tenochtitlan shall every First Tecpatl and Seventh Cuetzpalin give a dedication of devourering of the sacred flesh of the Son and drinking of his blood. So that the power of their divinity will give the Mexica PROSPERITY and VICTORY!!"

Geronimo de Aguilar's weeping cries of blasphemy was lost in the cheers echoing throughout Tenochtitlan.....

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Ha, that was excellently unique! Nice view on how they'd interpret what little they knew of Christianity. This might just be the best TL involving Aztecs I know of, even though there are only three passages so far.
 
Ha, that was excellently unique! Nice view on how they'd interpret what little they knew of Christianity. This might just be the best TL involving Aztecs I know of, even though there are only three passages so far.

Muwahaha. Yes I had a good time thinking of this one, and it will play some interesting roles in the future. It will not go away anytime soon.

Could you do a map of Mexico with the various states?
Here is a basic map of Mesoamerica at the current time...but this is about to change very soon


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Cracks in Tlaxcala

The Tlaxcala Confederacy was united by four cities, Ocotelolco, Quiahuiztlan, Tepeticpac and Tizatlan. Notably of these cities, it was Ocotelolco under the Tlatoani Maxixcatl which was the main economic power of the Tlaxcala Confederacy while it was Tizatlan under Tlatoani Xicohtencatl the Elder but due to becoming increasingly infirm in his age Tizatlanw as ruled by his son, Xicohtencatl the Younger and his city was the main military power of the Tlaxcala Confederacy. Each city-kingdom had its own ruler who each vied for power within Tlaxcala which had resulted largely from a defense pact against the growing powers of the Mexica Triple Alliance which eventually completely surrounded the the Tlaxcallan city-kingdoms and starved them economicly and politically in a series of 'Flower Wars' for mutal sacrifical offerings and trainning of their warriors.

It was the arrival of Cortes and the Conquistadors that totally upset the balance of power within the Tlaxcallan Confederacy as a sliding power contest bewteen Maxixcatl and Xicohtencatl II raged on, the later's star on the rise before the defeats by the Conquistadors and the former continuing to gain the Spaindard's favor, suffering a loss of face Xicotencatl rallied against trust the Spanish whose allegiance and ending aims were still largely unknown, but Maxixcatl manuvered around the Tizatlanian and even the young Xicohtencatl's father agreed to a eventual alliance of destroying the hated Mexica.



The utter defeat and massacre of many of the Tlaxcallans and the Spanish during 'La Noche Trieste' would spell the doom of the Tlaxcala Confederacy and the opportunity Xicotencatl needed and quickly took with both hands. Marching back to Tlaxcala, Xicotencatl soon ordered the capturing of the surviving Spanish and their equipment, and many of their camp followers (many of which being women given to them by Tlaxcallan nobles). This was met with protest by the leader of the force from Ocotelolco, but as Tlacochcalco or General of the Tlaxcallan's forces Xicotencatl stifled all protest and quickly drove the army back to Tlaxcala, the Mexica just on their heels when they crossed back into their home borders. Ordering a call up of military forces of the Confederacy to defend against the Mexica, who already with Aztec Garrissons in various tributary-states with tributary-warriors were beginning to encroach on the border of Tlaxcala.

The hardest of these forces came from the west, but luckily that the Mexica's force had spent itself of energy chasing down the Tlaxcallans, it was hastily gathered together, and the Tlaxcallans could rely on fresh troops from home. Narrowly defeating the Mexica, Xicotencatl tacticly commanded much of the beginning battles with the Mexica, where as the eastern city-kingdom Quiahuiztlan's ruler was most thankful. Though as soon as the Mexica treated to lick their wounds, Xicotencatl ordered and managed to get the majority of the surviving Conquistadors in custody to travel to Tizatlan where they were kept in confinement. This was met with outrage by Maxixcatl who called for a dividing of the captured Conquistadors, but with the losses from the expedition to Tenochtitlan a failure, Maxixcatl's position was falling fast.

Desprate Maxixcatl made a attempt to eliminate Xicotencatl, bribing guards in Tizatlan to assasinate Xicocencatl on his way to a meeting of the Tlatoni to decide what next should be done, but these men betrayed the betrayer and instead Xicotencatl allowed for a staged assasination attempt on his life to take place, and using this as a pretext seized Maxixcatl and invaded Ocotelolco with the elite of Tizatlan, as Ocotelolco's military forces were stealthily by Xicocencatl put to the front of defending against the Mexica's attacks and thus could do nothing.

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From there Xicotencatl put a puppet on the throne of Ocotelolco, and now he without a doubt controlled the internal politics of the Tlaxcallan Confederacy. When asked wheather to make peace with the Mexica or continue the war, in this Xicotencatl paused. EDIT: News was spreading throughout Mesoamerica of something terrible that was beginning to claim the lives of many, many Nahua and native peoples. It was too bad that this news often enough arrived on the heels of the source of this spreading death across the Americas, Smallpox.
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(OOC: I think by now were into a month's development after La Noche Trieste. Oh and next post is really going to suck for the Totonacs).
 
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Really liking this. As I said before, its very well written. The only criticism I have right now is that the last sentence could be a bit less awkward.

Looking forward to seeing how butterflies affect the Incas :).
 
Really liking this. As I said before, its very well written. The only criticism I have right now is that the last sentence could be a bit less awkward.

Looking forward to seeing how butterflies affect the Incas :).

Thanks, I just wish people were interested and would comment!

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1520-1521 Reign of Cuitlahuac

The immediate reprecussions of the Cortes Expedition were slowly but surely beginning to form cracks within the Triple Alliance as the lingering political and social effects of the arrival of the Europeans pulled the Triple Alliance apart, piece by piece. Though this was not seen at first, as immediatly after Cuitlahuac ascended as Tlatoani of the Triple-Alliance he ordered several actions immediatly be taken at once. The first being the attack on the fleeing Conquistadors and Tlaxcallans followed by sending runners throughout the Empire to gather Mexican troops and their subject-allies local troops to begin attacking Tlaxcala Confederacy on all sides.

Conquistadors!
As this went on though, several events began to transpire within Tenochtitlan itself. The first of which was the capture and interogation of the many Conquistadors who had failed to flee Tenochtitlan but had also survived (with various wounds and sicknesses). Much of the Conquistador equipment and the Conquistadors themselves had been divided up amongst those warriors who had captured them, also a number Conquistadors' porters and camp-followers had been taken as well though quickly these items and people changed hands quickly in Tenochtitlan as some were sacrificed while others were traded for goods or wealth or for wives. A notable curisoity was the number of 'Half-Children', babies born to Tlaxcallan and Mexica women with European followers, who became highly prized as some thought that these babies may retain the prowness of their fathers.

Cuitlahuac set about using his position and wealth to obtain a number of these slaves and equipment, sending out a order a few days after La Noche Trieste forbidding the trading of the Conquistadors and their associated people, so as they could be interogated by the state on anumber of things from the technology they possesed and to find out the truth of the full strength of Spain.

In many cases the lives of the Conquistadors depended on their abilites to either know of how they made steel or how their weapons worked; or to lie very, very well that they knew. The Mexica Tlatoani set to work a number of scribes, making a codex for each and every Conqusitador interogated to describe in drawings what they knew. For the most of Cuitahuac's reign thats just what he did with the Conquistadors, copy and attempt to understand the nature of their technological practices-it wouldn't be untill after his death that anyone began to reconstruct some of the European technology-of which crossbows would be the most popular with simple working mechanics. It would take much longer though to find the materials and the exact forumla for the creation of gunpowder and longer still for a basic handgun tube that would not explode in a warrior's face (not all the time at least).

The White Faced Gods of Blood
Religion of course was also something keenly itnerested by the Tlatoani and much of the Mexica, and in no time the Tlatoani via gleemed practices and characteristics of the Christian Religion through questioning of various Conquistadors (And notably the captured Fransiscan Geronimo de Aguilar) held a common ceremonial practice of the Mexica of 'capturing' the gods of their defeated foes. This was largely a moral boosting move done by Cuitahulac, to reinvigorate the spirits of the people as the losses against the Spanish, their allies, and Smallpox mounted throughout the city. By capturing the 'gods' of the Conquistadors, it was ment to show that the Mexica were still blessed and now could do more that they had the powerful dieties of the Conquistadors.

Surprisingly, the 'White Faced Gods' as the collective nature of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and Virgin Mary of Christianity became know soon spread throughout the Aztec territories where the Conquistadors had previously traveled through and once Geronimo de Aguilar could be convinced to translate sections of the bible, many took to the stories of the Old Testament rather well.

Cuauhtémoc's Retaliation!

As the months went on following La Noche Trieste, the Mexica's empire began to convulse as the effects of Smallpox ravaged through the Mexica's hard fought Empire, traveling on the extensive trade lanes to reach throughout most of Mexico, the only areas to be spared of the worst infections were the mountainous and poor regions of Metztitlan, Yoptzinco, and the Iréchecua Tzintzuntzáni of the P'urhepecha, where trade was scare with the Mexica, but with the P'urhepecha this was due to the Cacozoni's sudden closure of borders following news of events in the east.

The war with Tlaxcalla was still ongoing, as the forces of the Mexica and the Tlaxcallan battled each other, the Xicohtencatl the Younger being capable of halting the Mexica as both sides warriors sickened and became ill with smallpox. Witha combination of the smallpox and war with Tlaxcala, and the political events of Moctezuma's fall and the death of many Mexica Nobles the various Tributary-Kingdoms that had fallen sway to the Mexica were beginning to grow weary of Mexica rule, especially as Mexica garrisons in the various cities and urban centers died off, the plague of small pox causing a mass moving of peoples away from many traditional urban centers which formed new polities which just caused further havoc to the organization of the Mexica's tribute system.

The young Cuauhtémoc, nephew to the late Moctezuma II, looked past the lands of the Tlaxcala to the coastal Totoanacs, and to Vera Cruz where after interogation of the captured Europeans it was learned Cortes had first gained aide from and where still their were Conqusistadors int he region. Citing conditions that the north-eastern tributary states were starting to become too restful and a pretext for getting cold, hard revenge Cuauhtémoc took a force of Mexica warriors into the Totonac lands.

Making speed into the Totonac lands, Cuauhtémoc and his forces swept through their lands, still not having totally recovered from the loss of their warriors after La Noche Trieste. This caused a great upheavel of people, where many fled to the gates of one possible haven of safety: The fort-town of Veracruz!

The news of the death of Cortes and much of his expedition had slowly leaked back to the Conquistadors left at Veracruz and the neighboring Totonacs, the Tlaxcala abit too busy defending against Mexican assault on all sides and that most of the Totonac warriors had died during the flight from Tenochtitlan. When news of Cortes' death did reach Vera Cruz, the Coqnuistadors hastily freed the captured Pánfilo de Narváez!

Turning to him as their hopeful savior, the same soldiers who had imprisioned him following Cortes' victory over him, freeded Narvaez. Having had enough of the mainland, Narvaez ordered the immediate (and secret) gathering of supplies at Veracruz for a retreat from the mainland and back to Cuba without notifying the local Totonacs who looked to the Conquistadors for protection. As news of the venegful Cuauhtémoc reached Veracruz, Narvaez ordered supply gathering to go even faster, which was found out by the Totonacs who wailed at the Conquistadors wishing not to be abandonded. After a near account of bloodshed, Narvaez was convinced to stay at Veracruz a extra few days as the Totonacs were made room for.

This was a mistake, as the night before their depature, the Mexica stealthily surrounded Veracruz in the night, taking to hundreds of small canoes as well the Conquistadors were surrounded on land and sea. After a few days of besiegement, Narvez willingly gave himself up to Cuauhtémoc, seeing no choice of survival if the Mexica set fire to the ships, he agreeded to sit down with Cuauhtémoc, who out of him managed to obtain a 'Peace' treaty bewteen the Mexica and the Spanish in Cuba.

Narvez having NEVER having been inland (neither had most of the surviving Conquistadors having always been positioned as guards at Veracruz by Cortes), and that Cuauhtémoc had opted to not bring much of the gold and other jewelery because of the nature of his night ambush campaign, only saw a number of poor barbarians, alot of poor barbarians. In his return to Cuba, Narvaez would be very dismissal of Cortes' actions in Mexico seeking to discredit Hernan as having failed and found nothing; as well as the valuableness of sending a expedition for some time, though he did recommend the sending of missionaries to convert the heathen populace.

Having depopulated the Totonacs through reparation and carrying off many of their people as slaves, Cuauhtémoc made his way back to Tenochtitlan, where upon his arrival he learned of not only the death of Cuitlahuac by smallpox which had decimated Tenochtitlan, that he had been elected as the next Tlatoani, but also that the Empire of the Mexica was crumbling as the various Tributary-Cities either collapsed or began throwing off the Mexica yoke but also that the Tarascans were invading from the west!

Mesoamerica Circa 1523 (Very bad at maps, Personally.)


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http://img682.imageshack.us/img682/292/brave20new20world.png
http://img179.imageshack.us/i/brave20new20world.png/


Red- Tarascan State
Yellow- Aztec Triple Alliance
Blue- Tlaxcala Confederacy
Dark Green- Zapotecs
Green- Principality of Mixtec Tutupec
Purple- Yoptzinco
Orange- Teotitlan
Light Blue- Totonacs
Black- Metztitlan
Brown- Huastecs
Grey-Various Independent City-States
 
This is an interesting timeline so far. Unfortunately, I know very little about the mesoamerican cultures, but be assured, that I follow this!
 
Crumble the Empire of the Mexica

News had spread realativly quickly of the events of Cortes and the all out warfare with the Tlaxcala, and with the debilitating plagues that were by now afflicting just about every single group of Natives in Mesoamerica. Though if anyone it was for the most part afflicting the large empire of the Mexica the hardest because of the political upheavel of the elected Tlatoani dieing in relativly short amount of each other, the killing of many Mexica nobles during the Temple Massacre, and with the plague the disruption of the delicate tributary social order the Mexica's Empire was built upon.

Who was in the best situation to profit from this amounting disorder in the Triple Alliance?

Nearly everyone.

The Mixtecs of the City-State of Tutupec took advantage of the political disorder to expand their state in all directions, extending their influence over their fellow Mixitecs who paid tribute to the Mexica and extending westward along the coastline, and clashing with the Zapotecs in Oaxacan Highlands. Of which the Zapotecs also took advantage, several centers throwing off Mexica rule and ending their influence in the Oaxaca Valley.

The Mexica sent word to their ally Teotitlan to send warriors to aid them in putting down revolts, but the messangers were rebuffed by Teotitlan who joined in on extending its influence into neighboring areas. It turns out the Tlaxcala had sent a bribe to the Teotitlan who had also heard of these wonderous Spanish, a surviving horse and baskets of European goods as well as several captured Conquistadors, to not aid the Mexica.

Tlaxcala, under Xicotencatl the Younger expanded toward the coastline, finally free from the embargo placed upon them by the Mexica! Picking up the ruins of Vera Cruz and extending their influence into the Totonacs and to the border of Teotitlan.

Seeing the tottering of the Mexica, Tangaxuan send the full might of the relativly fresh P'urhepecha warriors along with Chichimecha auxillaries and Otomi warriors who he had bribed with goods from the Mexica. Looking to gain the wealth, Tangaxuan extended the Tarascan's influence through the southern coastal west all the way to the isolated Yopes before turning north-westward toward the Heart of the Mexica.

Taking his time, Coanacochtzin who was passed over as Tlatoani of Texacoco for his half-brother Cacama due to Moctezuma's influence took his time to call a revolt within the very heart of the Valley of Mexica, soon Texacoco one of the founding members of the Triple Alliance fell into civil war further complicating matters for Cuauhtemoc. Fighting wars on several fronts and from within, Cuauhtemoc had no choice but to do something a Mexica had never done before-make peace.

Sending envoys to the Tlaxcalans and the Tarascans, a hasty peace was set up in short order. Withdrawing the Mexica garissons from throughout the former Aztec Empire to a core area centered around and to the south of the Valley of the Mexica. The Tlaxcalans under Xicotencatl quickly accepted the peace, their men and resources were already on the downfall and this peace allowed them to catch their breath.

The Tarascans on the other hand were another matter, it took Cuauhtemoc to put down the revolt in Texacoco and march anumber of his remaining warriors west of the Valley of the Mexica to show that the Mexica still had force in them. With plague spreading into the Tarascans army, Tangaxuan agreeded to a peace with the Mexica but for a price! The P'purphepecha were curious of the Europeans and as apart of the peace pact recieved not only several baskets of European steel but also a dozen captured 'Conquistadors'. Cuauhtemoc had thought he had been quite smart, but his own misunderstanding of the Europeans caused him to introduce metalwork to Mesoamerica's best metalworkers. Of the captured 'Conquistadors' only one of them was an actual Conquistador who did know nothing of anything useful to the Tarascans, the remainder were cuban-porters and african slaves brought along by Cortes for servants and logistics. From interogations of the Spanish it had been misunderstood that these workers knew nothing, thinking it was of the Conquistadors who produced their own weapons, Cuauhtemoc handed the real blacksmiths and handymen of the Conquistadors over to his cheif rivals.

Meanwhile, events turned toward the rising sun, as Naravez and the surviving Conquistadors managed to land back in Cuba.....
 
Very interesting timeline. I'll surely be following it. I particulary liked the last update. The ending was very good. The tarascans just got a very good gift from the Aztecs while news from Cuba/Spain might arrive soon.
 
Now we are about to see the more global effects and butterflies of the TL
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Narvaez's Return

On his and the other survivors of the trip to mainland Mesoamerica, Narvaez looked on his coming report to the governor of Cuba, Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar who had dispatched the failed Conquistador to aprehend Cortes. Not only had he failed to bring back Cortes, but had managed to get himself imprisioned by his own mutinous soldiers and hundreds of Conquistadors were killed-a serious drain on the avaliable manpower of the Spanish in the Americas. Thus, Narvaez in a effort to save his own skin, when reporting back to Velazquez created a lie to the Governor of the Indies over what had happened, having previously threatened his formerly-mutinous conquistadors to share the same story.

Narvaez claimed that upon marching inland, his expedition ran afoul of a particularly crippling and deadly disease that ran through the ranks of his army rather quickly. He supported that he had met the forces of Cortes but these men were even worse decimated, Cortes having died fighting a large force of Heathen Natives (After attempting to set himself up as lord pf the native empire) thus Narvaez retreated back to a coastal settlement of Veracruz that Cortes had constructed and made sail for Cuba after a lengthy siege by a vast host of native warriors.

When asked on the nature and richness of these natives, Narvaez more or less told the truth of his own limited knowledge of the Mesoamericans. From encounters with Cuauhtémoc the natives had very few or no gold, preferring large and decorative feathers. Quickly, Narvaez also suggested that from earlier reports from the Balboa expedition to the Panama the true source of gold in the Americas lay farther south, propping up that the natives of mexico to the south recieved their gold trinkets from trade coming up from the south.

Disturbed and angered at the loss of much manpower and the still murkey borders to the west, Velazquez sent a letter to the Emperor Charles V on what should be done next, as well as halting all expeditions to the mainland, this coming off of the burning of Spanish settlements in the Panama.

Troubles in Europa-The Four Years War and the Revolutions of Spain and the Germanies

For his majesty Charles, Holy Roman Emperor the troubles for him in Europe on his homefront seemed to be building. In Castile, a very large democratic, peasent based revolt continued to rage across the bredth of Spain. Known as the 'Revolt of the Comuneros' this revolt stemmed from dissatisfaction of rule under Charles V, he being seen as not being a true Spaindard considering his education in the Netherlands and giving many positions to Flemish Ministers.

A Civil War within Castille had ever since been ravaging the countryside as the forces of the Comuneros and Royalists see-sawed in strength, the revolt was nearly crushed at (and OTL was) Villiar but the Comuneros army regrouped at Toro and went on the attack against the Royalists smashing their army at Penaflor.

Seeing the weaknesses of the Spanish and following the Royalists withdrawing from Navarre France joined in on the affair, King Francis, Charles' eternal rival had joined in support of the Comuneros. Successfully marching through Navarre, with the Comuneros army still strong Francis' army marched into the heart of Spain. Further the Revolt of the Brotherhood in Valencia, quite similar to the Comuneros revolt, were proving too much a burden for the Aragonese.

So by 1522 much of the authority of Charles V in Spain had been kicked out of the Iberia with his supporters in the region dwindling quickly. Not only that but a number of Peasent Revolts started by the Reformer Martin Luther were proving a serious problem, but at the same time allied the Pope hesitently with the Holy Roman Emperor against France. Henry VIII in England was somewhat hesitent to get involved with politics on the mainland, the last war in France being a disaster for him and frustrations at obtianing a male heir were starting to boil up within his mind.

With news of the letter from Velazquez reaching him, Charles V immediatly took into account his poor position in Europa as well as the fears that some other conquistador, or even Velazquez who was a Castillian, would revolt against his rule. Immediatly, Charles V dispatched his own loyal and Imperial forces to the Americas and declared a indefinite halt expansion in the Americas. Decalring any attempt to visit the mainlands would be treason to Charles V no matter what the outcome. Velazquez a supporter of Charles V was immediatly put off by the King's declaration and mistrust, with revolutions in Spain the Spanish majority population of the Americas began to grumble as well....

Military Technology Amongst the Mesoamerican States

With the departure of the Spanish and the passing of many Conquistadors as currency throughout the main Mesoamerican States the demand at some of the technology mastered by the Europeans after years of worka nd experimentation were beginning to take root by 1523. Of which the most widespread weapon was the crossbow, Mesoamerican artistians finding the mechanics of the weapon to be relativly easy to reproduce, with the Tarascans and their metalworking constructing the most powerful of them.

Speaking of metalworking, by the end of 1523 with the help of the VERY useful Cuban Porters and African slaves of whicha few were former blacksmith aides the secrets of ironworkings was conveyed to Tarascan artistians, Tangaxuan II keeping a tight lid on this discovery and incorportating of iron swords, arrows, joints and mechanisms of crossbows, and armor has begun for the Tarascans as well as other products. The wheel of the loading carts carried by the Europeans has also begun to become used.

The nature of the trade relationship within the Tarascan and the Nahuatl states of the Mexica and the Tlaxcalla play aimportant role. In the Tarascan state the trade is controlled directly by the state, the Caconzi having complete and centralized control. While in the Mexica and the Tlaxcalla the system is more decentralized under competing guild like socieites and the rulers have to coerce the spoils of European equipment from the warriors who have taken them by which many of these things are kept by the warriors strongly or traded away making the proccess much harder for either the Mexica or Tlaxcalla to incorporate these technologies and innovations as a whole.

The ways of war for the Mesoamerican States have begun to change as well, the Spanish fought for the destruction of the Mexica not for the sacrifice for their Gods, and witnesses of their battle cohesivness and formations have begun to experiment in these new purposes of warfare: One formerly bent on the prowness of a individual warrior for taking captives and spoils to a more group fighting formation with the aim of wiping out the enemy.

Lastly, several dozen horses have managed to survive, split bewteen the Mexica and the Tlaxcalla but these mounts have found very little use in acutal combat. Nobles preferring to ride these beasts for sport and fun, but amongst the Mexica use of these beasts as messangers is catching on. A Noble in Texacoco has managed to obtain a male and female horse, planning on beginning breeding sessions.

The Smallpox Spreads

From ancient trade routes amongst the many peoples of the America's, Smallpox would spread at various rates throughout the Americas, taking only a few years to spread in some areas while in others taking decades more.

Winding its way Northward, Smallpox would go through the various Chichimecha tribes of Northern Mexico causing a migration of these tribes to the south but also to the north. There the smallpox would travel into the American southwest amongst the Apache, Navajo, Pueblo, Zuni, and various other tribes of the area. To the northwest the Smallpox would take quite a few years to across the Great Plains and the Desert Basin of Utah and Nevada, in the late 17th century it would reach the Pacific Northwest and amongst the densely populated tribes of the area cause a 30% of the population to die and migrations of several groups. Of which the prominent Haida and Tlingit tribes would form the Totem Confederacy and migrate southwards bringing into domination Vancouver Island and much of the Columbia and Williamette Valley areas.

To the east Smallpox would spread to the dense Mississippi Area causing havoc along the Missisippi and a collapse of much of the civilization within the area. Traveling along the Mississippi it would reach up through the Great Lakes and as far as the Appalachia mountains over a period of a century.

Meanwhile to the South the disease would spread much quicker. Traveling along the western coast into the Andes Mountains where in 1528 Smallpox would kill the Huanya Capac, his designated heir Ninan Cuyochic, and his third son, Atahualpa, in Quito.

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Comments? Problems? Still Beating Hearts On Golden Platters?
 
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Tomb, could you do up a cast list of MesoAmericans and their home countries so I can better decipher who's who in the zoo?

Can I ask that you don't overplay disease. I've read that it took 150 years to reduce the native population by 95%, with a fresh epidemic ravaging Mexico every 20 years or so. With drastically reduced contact with the Spanish will come drastically reduced exposure to disease, which could stretch that 150 years out to 300 (eg) and therefore make that number meaningless.
 
Tomb, could you do up a cast list of MesoAmericans and their home countries so I can better decipher who's who in the zoo?

Can I ask that you don't overplay disease. I've read that it took 150 years to reduce the native population by 95%, with a fresh epidemic ravaging Mexico every 20 years or so. With drastically reduced contact with the Spanish will come drastically reduced exposure to disease, which could stretch that 150 years out to 300 (eg) and therefore make that number meaningless.

Hmm I don't think in this I am overplaying the OverKill of Smallpox but the Extensiveness of the Trade Routes the Pre-Columbian Americas had prior to disruption.

I am including that the death of 95% of the population took a period of many years, hence Smallpox taking 100years to reach the Applachians and the Pacific Northwest and noted that these people infected to spread the disease are living to pass it on.

For me I have some qualms with the figures and numbers though, if they take into account of populations ESTIMATES before and after the introduction of these diseases. If they take into account the warfare bewteen Europeans and Natives and other Natives, famine caused by disruption of social order, natural disasters, or say Spanish massacres of natives or overworking them (if a person has Smallpox and so has a much weakened bodily health and dies of overwork in a SIlvermine was he killed by the disease or terrible working conditions?).

Though for me and for survival and independence of certain Native Political Groups I think its best that they get the disease, have their dieoff and social disorder THEN reorder themselves prior to the Europeans coming in and exploiting their weakened state rather then the Europeans coming in and exploiting them as things are going crazy.

As for a Lexicon of people I'll put one up of major figures in my next update along with the decline of Mass Blood Sacrifices and the Chichimecha Raids.
 
I don't mean you are now, but its a cliche that disease will destroy the MesoAmericans regardless of other circumstances. From everything I've read disease is the partner of war and famine, but of course that means Spanish war because internecine war won't cause virgin-field disease epidemics. Without the Spanish to constantly bring in fresh diseases and destroy traditional society the MesoAmericans have more opportunity to rebuild and repopulate and are less vulnerable.
 
I don't mean you are now, but its a cliche that disease will destroy the MesoAmericans regardless of other circumstances. From everything I've read disease is the partner of war and famine, but of course that means Spanish war because internecine war won't cause virgin-field disease epidemics. Without the Spanish to constantly bring in fresh diseases and destroy traditional society the MesoAmericans have more opportunity to rebuild and repopulate and are less vulnerable.

The whole point of my TL is that the disease won't destroy Mesoamericans and other native cultures and that from the defeat of Cortes and with relative Chaos in Europa they can develop to resist the utter destruction of their culture.

That they will be 'Colonized' in the sense that Africa and Asia were is still a fate though they may or may not escape. I started this TL with the intention of them being put in a Protectorate-Tributary status (rather then the utter destruction of OTL) by the Spanish though with opportunities in Europa going on I may be able to butterfly the Spanish Empire.

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Mesoamerican Persone Dramatis-So Far
Mexica Triple Aliance
Moctezuma II- Aztec Tlatoani at the arrival of Hernan Cortes. Killed by either the Spanish or his own people for accepting the Spanish.
Cuitlahuac- Aztec Tlatoani Following Mocetzuma II. Initiated war with Tlaxcala and introduced 'White Faced Gods' to local pantheon. Died half a year later from smallpox
Cuauhtémoc Current Aztec Tlatoani. Lead much of the Mexica's military forces in retaliation against the Totonacs, Tlaxcala, and Narvaez.
Coanacochtzin-Half-Brother of current Tlatoani of Valley of Mexico city of Texacoco. Attempted Coup against brother and Mexica but was stopped and killed by Cuauhtemoc.

Tlaxcala Confederacy
Xicotencatl the Elder -Former Leader of the Tlaxcallan City-State of Tizatlan. Voted in favor of alliance witht he Spanish. Father of Xicotencatl the Younger.
Xicotencatl the Younger -Current leader of Tizatlan and the Tlaxcala Confederacy. War-Leader who first opposed Hernan Cortes and against the Tlaxcalan rival City-State Ocotelolco's support of Hernan Cortes for a alliance. Later after Mexica slaughter of the Spanish would counter-coup Maxixcatl and take over the Tlaxcala Confederacy.
Maxixcatl-Former leader of Ocoteloco, Economic center of the Tlaxcalan Confederacy. Supported Hernan Cortes for being politically oppositie of rival-city-state of Tizatlan. Attempted assasinationa nd coup against Xicotencatl but failed and was killed by the war leader.

P'urhepecha State/Tarascans
Tangaxuan II-Current leader of the Tarascan State west of the Valley of the Mexica.

Spanish
Hernan Cortes-Leader of the failed rouge Conquistador expedition to conquer all of Mexico and Mesoamerica. Killed by his falling horse during La Noche Trieste.
Bernal Diaz de Castillo-Leader of the Conquistadors following Cortes's death, current captive in Tizatlan in the Tlaxcalan Confederacy.
Panfilo de Narvaez - Conquistador sent by Governor Velazquez to capture Cortes for insubordination. Was captured and imprisioned by Cortes at Veracruz. Later freed, was besieged by the Mexica under Cuauhtémoc. Freed and returned to Cuba, told lies of the transpired events to save his own career.
Diego Velazquez-Conquistador conquerer of Cuba and current Governor of the West Indies for Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire. Was going to conquer Mexico for himself but Cortes left to conquer Mexico before he could. Sent Narvaez after Cortes, later placed under close watch by Imperial troops of Charles V under suspicion of his loyalties following the Castillian Revolution.
Gerónimo de Aguilar- Spanish Fransiscan Priest. Survived a shipwreck and captivity by the Maya, later freed by Cortes he joins the expedition as a translator. Captured by the Mexica during La Noche Trieste and pumped for information about the 'Pale Faced Gods'.

Holy Roman Empire
Charles V- Holy Roman Emperor, recenlty elected. Due to his favortism and background of the Flemish as well as funds for ongoing projects his actions united several revolutions throughout Spain, which with support of the French King Francis I threw out Royalist support. See's himself as protector of Christianity, recently dealing with also peasent revolutions in the Germanies.

Kingdom of France
Francis I- King of France, bitter toward Charles V for himself being passed over as Holy Roman Emperor.
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The Fall of Major Sacrifice
The massive rights of human sacrifice in Mesoamerica for the most part were conducted by the Mexica, and only in a few instances were those sacrificed did so very unwillingly. Sacrifice in the whole of Mesoamerican society was seen as a honorable act to maintain the fabric of society and the very universe itself, for the Gods had shed their blood multiple times for the creation and continuation of the Earth so, so did the humans in honor to the Gods.

Though with the introduction of Smallpox and mass death and disease throughout Mesoamerica as well as the reduction of the Mexcia's Empire their is a social change. At first at the beginning of the epidemics their is a notable increase but by 1530 this ebbs off into historic lows for the area. This is attributed to that for the Mexica the demand and shows of mass sacrifice were a political and social expression of their might and power as their emprie expanded greatly. With the death of many from the plague and the reduction of working population, the practice of these mass sacrifical rights of tens of thousands upon tens of thousands declines as living and taking care of the living world is seen as important.

Granted human sacrifice in Mesoamerica does not die out from this, still hundreds to thousands throughout Mesoamerica do sacrifice themselves to the gods but priests and rulers perhaps aware of the population decline facing during this period, before the 1530 population increase, advise on more auto-sacrifices, bloodletting through piercing of the earlobes or the penis or other extremity via a sharpened cactus needle. This is especially practiced by followers of the "Pale Faced Gods" as the acceptance of the European-brought 'dieties' makes headway, with crucifiction atop many of their altars lasting for three days with the supplicants being 'reborn' on the third day via a festival.
 
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