OCR Text |
Show HISTORY OF ME X I C 0. q6 BOOK nr. huan, apj ointed by the king of Acolhuacan. The. rivalihip which ' " fubfifted between the Mexicans and Tlatelolcas contnb.uted greatly to the aggrandizement of their refpettiv~ cities. ! .he M~xicans ~ad formd fo many alliances, by marriage, With the neighbounng natiOns ; had . ;0 greatly improved their agriculture, and increafed the number of their floating gardens upon the lake; and had. built fo many more veifels to fupply their extended commerce and .fi fhu~g, that they were enabled to celebrate their fecular year 1. 1:ochtlt, which anfwers to the year I 402 of our era, with greater magnifi cence than any of the four which had Sr T . vm. .] .1 t lil xnch itl, ki11g of Acollwacan. elapfed fince their firfr leaving of the co~mtry of A~tlan: . · At this time T echotlala, far advanced m years, frill reigned 111 Acolhuacan; who perceiving his end approach, called to him his fon and fucce!for Ixtlilxochitl, and, among many infrruCl:ions, particularly recommended to him the conciliating of the minds of his feudatory lords ; leO: the crafty and ambitious Tezozomoc, who, till that time, h ad only been rcftrained by the uncertainty of fuccefs, fl1ould attempt any thing againft the empire. Nor were the fears of T echotlala without foundation, as will appear from the fequel. He died, at latl, in the year 1406, after a very long reign, though not quite fo long as fome authors have imagined (t). . After the funeral rites were performed with the u(hal folemnity, and the attendance of the princes and lords, the feudatories of the crown, they proceeded to celebrate the acceffion of Ixtlilxochitl. Among the princes was the king of A,zcapozalco; who, by his conduCt, foon juftified the fufpicions entertained of him by. the deceafed Techotlala ; as, without making the ufual fubmiffions to the new king, he fet out for his own ftate with an intention to fiir up the other feudat01;ies to rebellion againO: the empire. He called together the kings of Mexico and Tlatelolco, and told them, that Techotlala, who had fo long tyrannized over that country, being dead, his purpofe was to procure freedom to the princes, fo that each might rule his own frate with entire independence upon the king of Acolhuacan: but in order to ob- • (t) Torqucmnda and Betancourt give one hundred and four yearJI to the reign of Techot• ~ala; and although it is no~ irnpoffible that a prince lhould reign fo Jo.ng, yet it is ex tremely ~rnpl'obahle, and would ~equ1re t~e fi.rol'\gc fl evidence to authenticate it; efpecially if we con· llder the general abfurd1ty of the1r chronology. But fcc our Dilfertations. tain H I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0 . . ta~n. fo glorious an objeCl:, he needed their affiftance ; and, upon their fpmt, ~o we~l k?own among all the nations, he relied for their taking pa~·t with. h1m 111 the great enterprife. H~ added, that in order to ftrike their blow with the greater fecurity, he would undertake to unite in their confederacy fome other princes whom he knew to be animateJ with the fame defigns. The two kings, either through fear of the great power of Tezozomoc, or to increafe the reputation of their arms engaged to affifr him with their troops, as did alfo the other chief; whom he folicited. · . In the ~ean time Ixtlixochitl was employed in putting the affairs of Jus co~rt mto order, and in gaining the minds of his fubj eCl:s; but he {o?n d1fcovered, to his great difappointment, that already many had Withdrawn themfelves fi·om their obedience to him, in order to place themfelves under the con~mand of the perfidious Tezozomoc. To ~ppofe the progrefs of the enemy, he commanded the princes of Coatllchan, Huexotla, and fome other neighbouring il:ates, to arm all the troops they could without delay. The king himfelf wifhed to lead his army in perfon, but he· was diifuaded from it by fome of his courtiers, ~ho re~refented the neceffity of his prefence at the court, left in the ~1fhaetwn of affairs, fome concealed etlemy, or friend of wavering fidelity fhouid be tempted, by the opportunity of his abfence, to make him{ el~ maft~r of the capital, and drive the king ftom his throne. 'lo{ iJmteuCllt). fon of th~ prince of Coatlichan, was made general of the army, and m cafe of hts death, or any other accident, ~auhxi'lotl, prince o_f Iztapa11ocan _was appointed· to fucceed him. The plain of ~lauhtltlan) fifteen rmles north of Azcapozalco, was chofen for the theatre of the war. The troops of the rebels were more numerous but thofc of the ~ing better difcipli:ned. The royal army, before .i/fet out for <~auhhtlan, ravaged fix of the revolted il:ates, in order both to weaken the enemy, ami to leave behind them none who fhould be able to dG tbem. mu~h ~nj~ry. The war was fupported with great eb.tl:inacy; the f~tpcnor dif<:lphne of the Tezcucans being counterac:ted by the [uperionty of numbers on the fide of the Tt;panecas, who would certainly h~ve b~n quickly over.come if they had not been conftantly fupplied .wit~ frelh trobps. The allies of the rebels• frequently fen:t out large ibodJes to n1ake i~euntiens i.n the k>yal fiates, where.they met with .little Vo. .1 . • I~ T .refiftance .. BOOK Ur. ~ |