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Why Did Montezuma Fall

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Why Did Montezuma Fall
Moctezuma II was the Aztecs ninth ruler and one of the greatest rulers known in the Aztec Empire. Montezuma II succeeded his uncle Ahutizotl, in 1502, minus the fact that he was a great ruler for having a strong amount of pride and superstition, he lacked some major qualities including the harsh realism of his forerunners and was greatly influenced by the ancient prophecies and the mysterious omens of his people. In today’s society, historians say that he is one of the most controversial topics that lead up to the Aztec Empire to fall. Personally I believe that he wasn’t the reason the Aztec Empire fell. He was “thrown into the position”; and the position was only setup for him to eventually fall to a high power, The Conquistadors. For those who agree, they would strongly debate the fact that he did indeed dismiss all plebeians from his court and increased taxation. “Although his advisers warned him that his actions would depreciate the empire, he requested numerous new things such as heavier tribute from conquered tribes and that he requested an absurd amount of outings to find said sacrificial victims.”(Haggard, 93) As I went into further research, I found that Montezuma wanted to change the empire to what he felt was right. He denied the elders and what they knew was right, to only decide on …show more content…
First, killing thousands of people, the loss of people in a loss that can't be calculated (war). Although the Aztecs certainly weren't the first people ever to sacrifice humans, the fact that they did and the incredible number they sacrificed led to the hatred of some of the surrounding peoples. The powerful city-state of Tlaxcala was one of these. Many of their own had been sacrificed, and in the end they joined the Spaniards to fight the Aztecs. It may be that the Spanish simply was an excuse to start what was already an inevitable civil

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