30 May 2025 / 10 House
The Full Monte(zuma)
When Cortés first met the Aztec emperor in 1519 his breath must have been taken away: dozens of richly dressed nobles and high officials surrounded Moctezuma Xocoyotzin, whose name means “Angry like a Lord”.
He wore gold, precious stone and fine feathers, and a crown of turquoise gleamed upon his head. As they believed he was both man and god none of those who accompanied him dared look into his eyes, preferring to shield their own and look away...
Moctezuma II - here we’ll just call him ‘Monte’ - reigned from 1502 to 1520 and was one of eleven Tlatoque or “Great Speakers” to rule the Aztec empire, on behalf of Huitzilopochtli, the warlike Aztec patron god.
Monte’s training as a member of the high nobility was strict from the start. He attended a Calmecac, a religious school for children of nobles or for really clever children from poor houses.
Monte was the grandson of Moctezuma I, who ruled the Aztec lands from 1440-1469: that gave him a headstart; but he needed to prove his worth on his own merits. We know Monte had been a great war leader and was also a priest and an astronomer.
He had also shown his skill as a young athlete, by being the first to climb up a tall pole (see it here!) and grab the figure of the fire god, Xiuhtecuhtli, during the annual harvest festivity. All in all, he was destined for great things...