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hear that Tenochtitlan was awake. And the priests of the city blew conch shell trumpets (teuceiztli) and beat on the two-tone drum (teponaztli) during the night. Watch was also kept in the king's palace, in the houses of all the military orders, in the nobles' houses throughout the city, and in the temples.
41 In addition, scouts were dispatched to observe the advance of the enemy. If they were not alert or if they were thwarted, the city was at the enemy's mercy.42 |
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Political provocations could occur at any time, but Mesoamerican city-states did not always react to them immediately, because they could not mount effective military campaigns year round. Two factors influenced the timing of campaigns: the agricultural cycle and the rain cycle. |
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Since the army was largely composed of commoners who were agriculturalists, the availability of soldiers was determined by cultivation and harvest schedules. In the central highlands planting was done in the spring (usually beginning in late April or May), and harvesting, in the late summer or fall (as late as October or early November). Thus throughout the summer and early autumn the men needed for a major campaign were occupied in activities vital both to themselves and to the society as a whole. Moreover, this seasonal cycle also affected the supplies needed to mount a campaign. Grain was stored for use throughout the year, but the greatest surplus was available in the autumn just after harvest.43 As a result an army was best able to gather supplies for a campaign in the late autumn and winter. |
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The second event affecting the Aztec campaigns was the rainy season. Central Mexico's climatic cycle involves a dry season, stretching from around late September through mid May, followed by a rainy season through the summer. This pattern not only regulated the agricultural season but also affected the feasibility of moving large numbers of men and supplies.44 Such movements were significantly easier during the dry season, in terms of both the soldiers' physical comfort and the quality of the roads. Dirt roads used by large numbers of men during the rainy season (and for some time thereafter) quickly turned into quagmires. And streams that could be forded during the dry season often became swollen, impassable rivers during the rains. |
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