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A flower war or flowery war ( nah, xōchiyāōyōtl, es, guerra florida) was a ritual war fought intermittently between the
Aztec Triple Alliance The Aztec Empire or the Triple Alliance ( nci, Ēxcān Tlahtōlōyān, �jéːʃkaːn̥ t͡ɬaʔtoːˈlóːjaːn̥ was an alliance of three Nahua city-states: , , and . These three city-states ruled that area in and around the Valley of Mexi ...
and its enemies from the "mid-1450s to the arrival of the Spaniards in 1519." Enemies included the
city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...
s of
Tlaxcala Tlaxcala (; , ; from nah, Tlaxcallān ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tlaxcala ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tlaxcala), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is ...
,
Huejotzingo Huejotzingo ( is a small city and municipality located just northwest of the city of Puebla, in central Mexico. The settlement's history dates back to the pre-Hispanic period, when it was a dominion, with its capital a short distance from where th ...
, and Cholula in the Tlaxcala-Pueblan Valley in central
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
. In these wars, participants would fight according to a set of conventions. During the
Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Conquest of Mexico or the Spanish-Aztec War (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the eve ...
, Tlaxcala allied with the Spaniards against the
Aztecs The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl ...
, being eager to see their longtime flower war enemies overthrown.


Origins

Texcocan nobleman Ixtlilxochitl gives the "fullest early statement concerning the origin as well as the initial rationale" of the flower war. From 1450 to 1454, the Aztecs had suffered from crop failure and severe
drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D.  Jiang, A.  Khan, W.  Pokam Mba, D.  Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
; this led to
famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompan ...
and many deaths in the central Mexican highlands. Ixtlilxochitl reports that the flower war began "as a response" to the famine: "the priests ... of Mexico enochtitlansaid that the gods were angry at the empire, and that to placate them it was necessary to sacrifice many men, and that this had to be done regularly." Thus,
Tenochtitlan , ; es, Tenochtitlan also known as Mexico-Tenochtitlan, ; es, México-Tenochtitlan was a large Mexican in what is now the historic center of Mexico City. The exact date of the founding of the city is unclear. The date 13 March 1325 was ...
(the Aztec capital), Texcoco,
Tlaxcala Tlaxcala (; , ; from nah, Tlaxcallān ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tlaxcala ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tlaxcala), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is ...
, Cholula, and
Huejotzingo Huejotzingo ( is a small city and municipality located just northwest of the city of Puebla, in central Mexico. The settlement's history dates back to the pre-Hispanic period, when it was a dominion, with its capital a short distance from where th ...
agreed to engage in flower war for the purpose of obtaining
human sacrifices Human sacrifice is the act of killing one or more humans as part of a ritual, which is usually intended to please or appease gods, a human ruler, an authoritative/priestly figure or spirits of dead ancestors or as a retainer sacrifice, wherein ...
for the
gods A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater ...
. However, scholars such as Frederic Hicks disagree with using Ixlilxochitl's writings as the origin story of the flower war, due to Ixtlilxochitl not specifically mentioning "flower war" and being the only known source to record these events.


Practice

Flower wars differed from typical wars in a number of important aspects. While engaging in a flower war, competing armies would meet on a "preset date at a preselected place".Tuerenhout 2005, p. 172. These places became sacred sites and were called ''cuauhtlalli'' or ''yaotlalli.'' Combatants signaled the start of war by burning a large "pyre of paper and
incense Incense is aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also b ...
" between the armies. Actual battle tactics also differed from typical warfare. In typical warfare, the Aztecs used
atlatl A spear-thrower, spear-throwing lever or ''atlatl'' (pronounced or ; Nahuatl ''ahtlatl'' ) is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in dart or javelin-throwing, and includes a bearing surface which allows the user to store ene ...
darts, stones, and other ranged weapons to weaken enemy forces from afar. However, in flower wars, the Aztecs neglected to use ranged weapons and instead used weapons such as the macuahuitl that required skill and close proximity to the enemy. The use of these kinds of weapons allowed the Aztecs to display their individual combat ability, which was an important part of the flower war.Hassig, Ross (1988). ''Aztec Warfare: Imperial Expansion and Political Control''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 130. . Flower wars involved fewer soldiers than typical Aztec wars did. A larger proportion of the soldiers would be drawn from nobility than during a typical war.Hassig, Ross (1988). ''Aztec Warfare: Imperial Expansion and Political Control''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 54. . These characteristics allowed the Aztecs to engage in flower wars during any time of the year. In contrast, the Aztecs could fight larger wars of conquest only from late autumn to early spring, because Aztec citizens were needed for
farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...
purposes during the rest of the year. Additionally, flower wars differed from typical wars in that there were equal numbers of soldiers on each side of the battle; this was also related to the Aztecs wanting to show off their military prowess. Flower wars were generally less lethal than typical wars, but a long-running flower war could become increasingly deadly over time. For example, in a long-running flower war between the Aztecs and the Chalcas, there were few battle deaths at the start. After time had passed, captured commoners started to be killed, but captured nobles were frequently released; sacrifice was not always the fate of captives. However, after further time had passed, captive nobles were killed along with the commoners.Hassig, Ross (1988). ''Aztec Warfare: Imperial Expansion and Political Control''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 139. . This increased the cost of the flower war for both the Aztecs and the Chalcas. The Aztecs considered flower war death to be more noble than dying in a typical war; this can be seen in the word for a flower war death, ''xochimiquiztli'', which translates to "flowery death, blissful death, fortunate death". Further, the Aztecs thought that those who died in a flower war would be transported to the heaven where Huitzilopochtli (the supreme god of sun, fire, and war) lived.


Purpose

There appear to be a variety of reasons that the Aztecs engaged in flower wars. Historians have thought that flower wars were fought for purposes including combat training and capturing humans for religious sacrifice. Historians note evidence of the sacrifice motive: one of Cortez's captains, Andres de Tapia, once asked
Moctezuma II Moctezuma Xocoyotzin ( – 29 June 1520; oteːkˈsoːmaḁ ʃoːkoˈjoːt͡sĩn̥), nci-IPA, Motēuczōmah Xōcoyōtzin, moteːkʷˈsoːma ʃoːkoˈjoːtsin variant spellings include Motewksomah, Motecuhzomatzin, Montezuma, Moteuczoma, Motecu ...
why the stronger Aztec Empire had not yet conquered the nearby state of Tlaxcala outright. The emperor responded by saying that although they could have if they had wanted to, the Aztecs had not done so because war with Tlaxcala was a convenient way of gathering sacrifices and training their own soldiers.Hicks, Frederic. "Flowery War" in Aztec History" ''American Ethnology'' Vol 6 No 1 (1979) p. 88 However, scholars such as Frederic Hicks question that the main purpose of the flower war was to gain sacrifices. Tlaxcalan historian Muñoz Camargo noted that the Aztecs would often besiege Tlaxcalan towns and cut off trade, which was uncharacteristic of a typical flower war.Hicks (1979), p. 89 For this reason, proponents of Hicks' idea believe that the Aztecs did want to conquer the Tlaxcalans, but that they simply could not for some reason. Despite many scholars' doubts about the sacrifice motive of the flower war, Hicks asserts that Moctezuma II's explanations of the flower war (gaining sacrifices and combat training) were logical,Hicks (1979), pg. 90. given that the Aztecs did place a heavy importance on both sacrifice and martial ability. Fighting in actual warfare was a mandatory part of training for warriors of the noble class, and it was heavily encouraged for warriors of lower classes as well. Given these factors, Hicks suggests that Moctezuma II's stated reasons may have been genuine and not just an excuse for military failure. However, some scholars have suggested that the flower war served purposes beyond gaining sacrifices and combat training. For example, Hassig states that for the Aztecs, "flower wars were an efficient means of continuing a conflict that was too costly to conclude immediately." As such, a purpose of these wars was to occupy and wear down the enemy's fighting force. By requiring an equal number of soldiers on each side, the Aztecs made the battle seem balanced at first; however, the side with fewer overall troops suffered more because the losses comprised a greater percentage of their total forces. Through this, the Aztecs used the flower wars to weaken their opponents. Furthermore, since fewer soldiers took part in flower war as compared to a traditional war, the practice of flower war allowed the Aztecs to hold a potential threat at bay while focusing the bulk of their forces elsewhere. Another purpose of the flower war, according to Hassig, was to show the superiority of Aztec troops. This was another reason that equal numbers of troops were used. If the Aztecs tried to use numerical superiority, their enemy would resort to the kind of defensive tactics that the Aztecs had trouble fighting against. With equal numbers, the enemy would fight the Aztecs on the open field, where individual soldiers had a greater chance of showing off their martial ability.Hassig, Ross (1988). ''Aztec Warfare: Imperial Expansion and Political Control''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 254-255. . Finally, according to Hassig, “propaganda was perhaps the most significant purpose of flower wars." By engaging their opponents in the flower war, the Aztecs were able to continuously showcase their force, which warned other city-states about their power. If the Aztecs made enough of a show of force, it could encourage the allies of the Aztecs' enemies to change their allegiance.


See also

* Star war


Notes


References

* * * * * {{refend History of the Aztecs Aztec warfare Human sacrifice History of Puebla