* Blogmanac | June 27, 1520 | Death of Moctezuma II
Moctezuma II (or, Montezuma II) was killed by the troops of Spanish conqueror Hernando Cortés in the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan (Mexico).
In the decade leading up to Cortés’s conquest of the Aztec empire, the Aztecs noticed many omens.
An incredibly bright light burned in the heavens for a year; a mysterious fire was seen in the temple of Huitzilopochtli, god of war. The temple struck by lightning; a comet hit earth in three pieces. The water boiled in Lake Texcoco, and undermined residences. A woman’s voice heard at night wailing “O my beloved sons, now we are about to go!”
The seventh omen was a crane with a mirror on its head. Montezuma II saw the heavens in the mirror, and knew it to be an evil omen. He then saw warriors approaching in the mirror and became alarmed when people brought him a number of two-headed creatures.
He believed that the leader of the pale-skinned warriors was Quetzalcoatl, a Toltec god. He sent gold to them and asked them to leave; he then sent food and captives so they could feast on their blood and leave happily. Montezuma next engaged sorcerers to cast spells on the invaders. When the conquistadors entered the city he invited them to his palace, but they imprisoned him and he died mysteriously. In 1521 Cortes’s band levelled the city.
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Moctezuma II (or, Montezuma II) was killed by the troops of Spanish conqueror Hernando Cortés in the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan (Mexico).
In the decade leading up to Cortés’s conquest of the Aztec empire, the Aztecs noticed many omens.
An incredibly bright light burned in the heavens for a year; a mysterious fire was seen in the temple of Huitzilopochtli, god of war. The temple struck by lightning; a comet hit earth in three pieces. The water boiled in Lake Texcoco, and undermined residences. A woman’s voice heard at night wailing “O my beloved sons, now we are about to go!”
The seventh omen was a crane with a mirror on its head. Montezuma II saw the heavens in the mirror, and knew it to be an evil omen. He then saw warriors approaching in the mirror and became alarmed when people brought him a number of two-headed creatures.
He believed that the leader of the pale-skinned warriors was Quetzalcoatl, a Toltec god. He sent gold to them and asked them to leave; he then sent food and captives so they could feast on their blood and leave happily. Montezuma next engaged sorcerers to cast spells on the invaders. When the conquistadors entered the city he invited them to his palace, but they imprisoned him and he died mysteriously. In 1521 Cortes’s band levelled the city.
Pip Wilson's articles are available for your publication, on application. Further details
Receive similar items free each day with a free subscription to Wilson's Almanac ezine. Send a blank email
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