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alone was not the legitimating criterion of Aztec kingship. The system would not simply maintain itself: imperial Aztec kings embarked on military campaigns to validate their position and leadership qualities and to demonstrate a continuing willingness to consolidate the system and extend it. |
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Times of succession were dangerous in all Mesoamerican city-states, since there was no guarantee of continuity in policy or in ability. This consideration worked against the selection of older candidates for king, because frequent turnovers of leadership were to be avoided. There was the added danger of internal instability arising from succession disputes, particularly in city-states with hereditary succession, because unqualified rulers might emerge, and potential competitors would be created in the siblings. Tenochtitlan had a relatively stable system because selection was achieved by consensus among pretenders and power holders. But Tenochtitlan still faced external dangers, so the deaths of the Aztec kings had increasing significance for the empire over time, while those of the tributary kings decreased in importance. |
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The normal difficulties associated with succession created problems for Tenochtitlan in retaining control of the empire. A poor or inactive king threatened the empire, the nobles' economic welfare, and the possibility of advancement of the king's heir apparent. Maintaining the empire was a motivation for continued warfare, and the kings' self-preservation was an incentive to avoid defeat. This emphasis on success fostered a concentration on easier targets of conquest, which dovetailed with the Aztecs' logistically induced tendency to chip away at empires rather than to attack them directly. It also maximized the likelihood of military success, minimized the risk of failure, and thus strengthened the tlahtoani's position. The empire was required to at least maintain itself for imperial reasons, and it was impelled to expand for internal reasons. Although they contributed to this expansion, religious motivations were the hand-maidens of empire and not its impetus. |
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Despite their military power, vast political network, and motivations to conquer, the Aztecs nevertheless fell to the Spaniards, swiftly and finally. This was not the defeat of an inferior set of beliefs by a superior one: whatever their motivations, the Aztecs were a |
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