Tlacaelel I (1397 – 1487) ( nci, Tlācaēllel , "Man of Strong Emotions," from "tlācatl," person and "ēllelli," strong emotion) was the principal architect of 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 hence the Mexica (Aztec) empire. He was the son of Emperor

Huitzilihuitl Huitzilihuitl or Huitzilihuitzin (Nahuatl language; English: ''Hummingbird Feather'') (1370s – ''ca.'' 1417) was the second ''Tlatoani'' or king of Tenochtitlan. According to the Codex Chimalpahin, he reigned from 1390 to 1415, according to t ...

and Queen Cacamacihuatl, nephew of Emperor

Itzcoatl Itzcoatl ( nci-IPA, Itzcōhuātl, it͡sˈkoːwaːt͡ɬ, "Obsidian Serpent", ) (1380–1440) was the fourth king of Tenochtitlan, and the founder of the Aztec Empire, ruling from 1427 to 1440. Under Itzcoatl the Mexica of Tenochtitlan threw off t ...

, father of poet Macuilxochitzin, and brother of Emperors

Chimalpopoca Chimalpopoca ( nci-IPA, Chīmalpopōca, t͡ʃiːmaɬpoˈpoːka for "smoking shield," ) or Chīmalpopōcatzin (1397–1427) was the third Emperor of Tenochtitlan (1417–1427). Biography Chimalpopoca was born to the Emperor Huitzilihuitl and ...

and

Moctezuma I Moctezuma I (–1469), also known as Moteuczomatzin Ilhuicamina (), Huehuemoteuczoma or Montezuma I ( nci, Motēuczōma Ilhuicamīna , nci, Huēhuemotēuczōma ), was the second Aztec emperor and fifth king of Tenochtitlan. During his reign, th ...

. During the reign of his uncle Itzcoatl, Tlacaelel was given the office of

Tlacochcalcatl Tlacochcalcatl ( "The man from the house of darts") was an Aztec military title or rank; roughly equivalent to the modern title of field marshal. In Aztec warfare the ''tlacochcalcatl'' was second in command only to the ''tlatoani'' and he usual ...

, but during the war against the

Tepanec The Tepanecs or Tepaneca are a Mesoamerican people who arrived in the Valley of Mexico in the late 12th or early 13th centuries.The dates vary by source, including 1152 CE in Anales de Tlatelolco, 1210 from Chimalpahin, and 1226 from Ixtlilxochi ...

s in the late 1420s, he was promoted to first adviser to the ruler, a position called '' Cihuacoatl'' in Nahuatl, an office that Tlacaelel held during the reigns of four consecutive ''Tlatoque'', until his death in 1487. Tlacaelel recast or strengthened the concept of the Aztecs as a

chosen people Throughout history, various groups of people have considered themselves to be the chosen people of a deity, for a particular purpose. The phenomenon of a "chosen people" is well known among the Israelites and Jews, where the term ( he, עם ס� ...

, elevated the tribal god/hero Huitzilopochtli to top of the pantheon of gods, and increased militarism. In tandem with this, Tlacaelel is said to have increased the level and prevalence of

human sacrifice 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 ...

, particularly during a period of natural disasters that started in 1446 (according to

Diego Durán Diego Durán (c. 1537 – 1588) was a Dominican friar best known for his authorship of one of the earliest Western books on the history and culture of the Aztecs, ''The History of the Indies of New Spain'', a book that was much criticised in hi ...

). Durán also states that it was during the reign of Moctezuma I, as an invention of Tlacaelel that the

flower war A flower war or flowery war ( nah, xōchiyāōyōtl, es, guerra florida) was a ritual war fought intermittently between the Aztec Triple Alliance and its enemies from the "mid-1450s to the arrival of the Spaniards in 1519." Enemies included th ...

s, in which the Aztecs fought

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 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 60 municipaliti ...

and other Nahuan city-states, were instigated. To strengthen the Aztec nobility, he helped create and enforce sumptuary laws, prohibiting commoners from wearing certain adornments such as lip plugs, gold armbands, and cotton cloaks. He also instigated a policy of burning the books of conquered peoples with the aim of erasing all memories of a pre-Aztec past. When he dedicated the seventh reconstruction of the

Templo Mayor The (Spanish: Main Temple) was the main temple of the Mexica people in their capital city of Tenochtitlan, which is now Mexico City. Its architectural style belongs to the late Postclassic period of Mesoamerica. The temple was called ' in ...

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 ...

, Tlacaelel had brought his nation to the height of its power. The dedication took place in 1484 and was celebrated with the sacrifice of many war captives. After Tlacaelel's death in 1487, the Mexica Empire continued to expand north into the

Gran Chichimeca La Gran Chichimeca was a term used by the Spanish Empire, Spanish ''conquistadores'' of the 16th century to refer to an area of the northern Mexican Plateau, central Mexican ''altiplano'' (plateau), a territory which today is encompassed by the mode ...

and south toward the

Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popul ...

lands.

In popular culture

Inspiration for the main character in the novel, "Tlacaelel, El Azteca entre los Aztecas", by Mexican author Antonio Velasco Piña.

References

{{S-end Tenochca nobility 15th-century indigenous people of the Americas Indigenous leaders of the Americas 1397 births 1487 deaths Book burnings Nobility of the Americas