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Fig. 24.
Axayacatl ("Water-mask"). Tovar erroneously recorded Axayacatl as the
eighth king rather than the sixth. (Tovar 113; courtesy of the John Carter
Brown Library, Brown University) |
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quihuaztli, Cuetlachtlan revolted with the support of Tlaxcallan and killed the Aztec governor installed after their earlier conquest. Consequently, the Aztecs sent an army and reconquered them.
7 |
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Heretofore, conquered rulers had generally been retained in office after their defeat. The few exceptions involved the placement of Aztec governors over the local political system, but even then the local nobility still controlled much of the business of government. However, Cuetlachtlan's revolt marked a departure. Aztec accounts state that Cuetlachtlan's commoners came forward, saying the revolt was the fault of their lords, not of the people. When the rulers tried to flee, they were captured by the commoners, bound, and turned over to the Aztecs, who executed them. Not all of the local nobles were eliminated, since someone had to exercise local control in the absence of Aztec willingness to accept an expanded administrative role. So new leaders were selected, and a new Aztec governor was placed over them.8 |
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These new rulers lacked the traditional tie to the commoners, |
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