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The Third Tikal–Calakmul War was the third in a series of wars between
Though Quiriguá was to a certain extent a vassal of Calakmul it was never directly under Calakmul's control. At the same time Copán never attempted to re conquer Quiriguá because its leaders were afraid of the military power of Calakmul. The alliance was mutually beneficial to Quiriguá and Calakmul. Quiriguá's importance was mainly due to its position on several major trade routes.
in 743 El Peru was taken by Tikal and in 744 Naranjo was taken, destroying Calakmuls once powerful and extensive network of allies vassal states and trade networks.
After 790, Calakmul lost most of its northern territories to nations on the Yucatán Peninsula.Martin & Grube 2000, p.115.
In 810, three stele were raised in Calakmul. March 20 829 is 9.19.19.0.0 on the Maya calendar, the beginning of a new ''Winal''. Normally, new stele would have been raised on this date, but none were. In 899 (possibly 909) the last stele record was raised in Calakmul. After this, a few more stele were raised, but these don't appear to include actual writing. Instead, they appear to be imitations from people trying to keep Maya tradition from disappearing. This was part of the Maya Collapse: Tikal and most of the other major cities of the time similarly experienced an extreme population decrease.
Tikal
Tikal (; ''Tik'al'' in modern Mayan orthography) is the ruin of an ancient city, which was likely to have been called Yax Mutal, found in a rainforest in Guatemala. It is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centers of the Pre-Col ...
and Calakmul
Calakmul (; also Kalakmul and other less frequent variants) is a Maya civilization, Maya archaeological site in the Mexican state of Campeche, deep in the jungles of the greater Petén Basin region. It is from the Guatemalan border. Calakmul w ...
, (Tikal–Calakmul wars
The Tikal–Calakmul wars were a series of wars, mainly between Tikal and Calakmul on the Yucatán Peninsula, but also with vassal states in the Petén Basin such as Copán, Dos Pilas, Naranjo, Sacul, El Petén, Sacul, Quiriguá, and briefly Yaxch ...
) two of the Major superpowers of the Maya Civilization during the classic period.
During the third war, the vassal state of Quiriguá
Quiriguá () is an ancient Maya civilization, Maya archaeological site in the Departments of Guatemala, department of Izabal Department, Izabal in south-eastern Guatemala. It is a medium-sized site covering approximately along the lower Motagua ...
played an important role when it declared independence from Copán
Copán is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization in the Copán Department of western Honduras, not far from the border with Guatemala. It is one of the most important sites of the Maya civilization, which was not excavated until the ...
, Tikal's closest ally in the south, and then allied itself with Calakmul.
Before Quiriguá
After Calakmul's defeat in 695 (9.13.2.14.19 on theMaya calendar
The Maya calendar is a system of calendars used in Pre-Columbian era, pre-Columbian Mesoamerica and in many modern communities in the Guatemalan highlands, Veracruz, Oaxaca and Chiapas, Mexico.
The essentials of the Maya calendar are based upon ...
) violence continued between it and Tikal but for the most part died down. Then again in 720 (9.14.8.3.9) conflicts slowly started up.
Despite Tikal being more prosperous, Naranjo
Naranjo (Wak Kab'nal in Mayan) is a Pre-Columbian Maya city in the Petén Basin region of Guatemala. It was occupied from about 500 BC to 950 AD, with its height in the Late Classic Period. The site is part of Yaxha-Nakum-Naranjo National Park. ...
, Dos Pilas
Dos Pilas is a Pre-Columbian site of the Maya civilization located in what is now the department of Petén, Guatemala. It dates to the Late Classic Period, and was founded by an offshoot of the dynasty of the great city of Tikal in AD 6 ...
, and El Peru remained under Calakmul's control.
Between 733 and 736 Tikal imprisoned a noble from Calakmul after a victorious battle. His capture was commemorated by the building of an altar that has a sculpture of him bound by Tikal soldiers.
Quiriguá's revolution
Quiriguá was a small city in the south of the Maya area, which slowly grew to house 16,000 people. The city had long been a vassal of the larger Copán. In 724 (9.14.12.4.10), Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil, Ajaw of Copán, installed K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat as regional ruler of Quiriguá. In 734 at Altar M in Quiriguá, K’ak Tiliw Chan Yopaat gave himself the title k’uhul ajaw, thus declaring Quiriguá’s independence from Copán. This led to a four-year revolutionary war. During this, in 736 (9.15.4.7.13), Wamaw K'awiil and several ambassadors from Calakmul met with K’ak Tiliw Chan Yopaat. On April 27, 738, Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil was captured by K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat. Due to there having been no major battles around copán or Quiriguá it has been concluded that he was probably not captured in battle. On 3 May, 738 (9.15.6.14.6), after a public trial and during a ritual, Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil was decapitated by an axe, recorded as an "axe event".After Quiriguá's revolution
Though Quiriguá was to a certain extent a vassal of Calakmul it was never directly under Calakmul's control. At the same time Copán never attempted to re conquer Quiriguá because its leaders were afraid of the military power of Calakmul. The alliance was mutually beneficial to Quiriguá and Calakmul. Quiriguá's importance was mainly due to its position on several major trade routes.
in 743 El Peru was taken by Tikal and in 744 Naranjo was taken, destroying Calakmuls once powerful and extensive network of allies vassal states and trade networks.
Aftermath
After 790, Calakmul lost most of its northern territories to nations on the Yucatán Peninsula.Martin & Grube 2000, p.115.
In 810, three stele were raised in Calakmul. March 20 829 is 9.19.19.0.0 on the Maya calendar, the beginning of a new ''Winal''. Normally, new stele would have been raised on this date, but none were. In 899 (possibly 909) the last stele record was raised in Calakmul. After this, a few more stele were raised, but these don't appear to include actual writing. Instead, they appear to be imitations from people trying to keep Maya tradition from disappearing. This was part of the Maya Collapse: Tikal and most of the other major cities of the time similarly experienced an extreme population decrease.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Third Tikal-Calakmul War 8th-century conflicts Tikal-Calakmul Wars 8th century in the Maya civilization