Chapter 5: Early History of the Americas; 500 BCE-CE 1537
Chapter 5, Section 1: The Maya; pages 118-123 11/4/13
Geography and the Early Maya
Mesoamerica-central part of today’s Mexico and Northern part of
Central America, lowlands and thick forests
 Around 1000 BCE Maya settled, cleared land, in present day
Guatamala
 Mayan crops: beans, squash, avocados and maize(corn)
 Early Mayan houses: Made from vines, poles and mud
 Lived in isolated villages, then began trading with other villages
By CE 200, the Maya had begun to build large cities in Mesoamerica.
Mesoamerica map; pg 119
On the map given, complete the following
1. Draw all the Mayan civilization trade routes
2. Label the Chichen Itza, Palenque
3. Label 4 bodies of water that surround the Maya Civilization
4. In the bottom right hand corner, list the 4 natural resources
important to the Mayan civilization.
5. Draw the boundaries of the Mayan civilization and shade lightly,
Label: Maya Civilization, CE 900
The Classic Age
CE 250 to CE 900
Maya territory grew into 40 large cities
 Each had their own government and king
 Exchanged goods using trade routes
 Through trade, Maya got supplies to build stone palaces, pyramids
and temples.
 City of Palenque, built by King Pacal had a temple built to record
his achievements.
Palenque, Mayan capital city
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Canals
Large Plazas
Flat terraces-to grow crops
Stone court; special ball game played
Using only their shoulders, heads and hips, players tried to bounce a
rubber ball through stone rings attached high on the court walls
 Winners- received jewels and clothing
 Losers- were often killed
Name_______________________GS__________Date_______________
Use the diagram of Palenque to answer the following questions. Pgs 120-121
1. Who had the city of Palenque?
2. Describe where the city was located.
3. What was the purpose of flat terraces?
4. Why were Mayan temples shaped like mountains?
5. How old was King Pacal when the city of Palenque was built?
6. How long was King Pacal a Mayan king?
7. Who led religious ceremonies?
8. List 2 Mayan community events.
9. Where was Pacal buried?
10. Did the Mayan people take pride in their cities? Explain your answer.
Maya Culture
Maya culture was based on social structure and religion
Social Structure
 King had the highest power/thought to be related to the gods
 Mayan upper class-priests, rich merchants and noble warriors
 Mayan lower class-most people
-Farming families- Women cared for children, cooked and made yarn
and cloth. Men farmed, hunted and made tools
- had to pay their rulers with crops and goods
-had to help build temples and other buildings
-men had to serve in the army
 Slaves worked for the upper class, carried goods along trade
routes
Religion
Maya worshipped many gods
 Feared the gods, Maya tried to please them
 Believed gods needed blood
 Made human sacrifices (usually prisoners captured in battle)
Achievements
Maya’s religious beliefs led them to make impressive advancements
in science.
 Observatories-buildings used to study the sky
 Developed 2 calendars
- 365 days based on farming, planting and harvesting
- 260 days, used to keep track of religious events
 Skilled mathematicians
-among first to use a symbol for zero
 Developed a writing system
 Art and architecture, jewelry(jade and gold) and tool makers
Decline of Maya Civilization
When?
 Began in CE 900s, happened gradually over a long period of
time
Why? Maybe. . .
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Lower class rebelled against the king
Increased warfare between Maya cities
Could not produce enough food to feed everyone
Climate change
Chapter 5, Section 2; The Aztecs 11/13/13
(CE) AD 1325-1521
The Aztecs build an Empire
 Farmers who migrated from the north to Central Mexico
 Settled on swampy island in the middle of Lake Texcoco
 1325, began building their capital and conquering nearby
towns
Three key reasons for rise of the Aztec into a rich, strong Empire
 War
 Tribute- demanded payments for those they conquered
 Trade-Aztecs controlled a huge trade network
By 1400, the Aztec empire was the most powerful in Mesoamerica
On the map, complete the following about the Aztec Empire
1. Draw and label Lake Texcoco
2. Label the mountain range: Sierre Madre Del SUR
3. Label the Aztec capital city
4. Label the Isthmus of Tehuantepec
5. Draw the boundaries of the Aztec empire and shade. Label it as; The
Aztec Empire, 1519
Symbol for the Aztec empire’s greatness was the capital city:
Tenochtitlan
 Built 3 causeways-raised roads across water or wet ground
 Built canals for travel and trade
 Chinampas-floating gardens
-Piled soil on top of large rafts which were anchored to the trees that
stood in water
 Home to 200,000 people
 Included huge temple, a busy market, and a grand palace
Shopping at the Aztec Market/ In-class activity
1. Using ws 23, create shopping list of items you would find at a typical Aztec
marketplace. You must have 10 items on your list, 5 of which you must purchase
more than one of.
2. After you make your list, total up your purchases using the list of actual prices
from about AD 1520. Circle your total.
3. Lastly, write the list below of other items you might find at the market, and
with a partner decide how much to charge for each item in Cacao beans.
Sandals, jackal, deer skin, maize(24), torch, pottery, salt cake, tobacco, feathers,
medicine, shells, basket, precious stones(5), gold (oz6), silver (oz6)
4. Total your price list and circle the answer.
Name__________________GS_______Date_________________
Using pate 126, answer the following questions about the Aztec capital
Tenochtitlan
1. Describe the land area, using 2 words, where The Aztec decided to build their
capital city.
2. Where did Aztec farmers grow their crops?
3. What is the name of the building that stood at the heart of the city?
4. What was the purpose of the blue shrine?
5. What was the purpose of the red shrine?
6. List 4 things that were sold at the Aztec market?
7. What is the most important building in the picture?
8. What is the purpose of the network of canals?
9. Was Tenochtitlan considered a large city or small city for it’s time?
10. What information was given on page 126 to support your answer for number
9?
Life in the Empire11/15/13
Aztec Society
 Aztec emperor most important person
-Attended to law, trade, tribute and warfare
 Nobles
-Tax collectors, judges and other government officials
 Warriors and priests
-Priests led religious ceremonies, kept the calendars, decided when to plant
and harvest
 Merchants and artisans
 Lower class-farmers and laborers
 Slaves
Religion and Warfare
 Worshipped many gods
 Performed human sacrifices (10,000 a year), victims were captured
people from warfare
Cultural Achievements
Aztecs appreciated art and beauty
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Architects, sculptors; created stone pyramids and statues
Artisans; used gold and gems to make jewelry and masks
Women; embroidered beautiful cloth
Aztecs created a calendar like the Mayan, kept records of historical
events, and enjoyed fine speeches and riddles
Cortes Conquers the Aztecs 11/18/13
In late 1400’s, the Spanish arrived in the Americas looking for gold
 Conquistadors-Spanish conquers, 1519
-Hernan Cortes, leader of the conquistadors
-Looking for gold, claim the land, spread Christianity
 Moctezuma II welcomed the Spanish (believed they were sent by the gods)
-Gave them gold, but Cortes wanted more
 The Spanish took Moctezuma prisoner, enraged the Aztec and they
attacked the Spanish
-Aztecs won the battle, Spanish fled, but Moctezuma was killed in battle.
-The Aztecs were without a strong leader.
 Within a year, Cortes returned with weapons and horses (Aztec never saw
horses before and were terrified)
 Spanish also unknowingly brought disease with them (smallpox)
-Disease weakened or killed thousands of Aztecs
 1521, Aztec Empire came to an end
Chapter 5, Section 3; The Incas
Began as a small tribe in the Andes mountains in South America during
the same time as the Aztecs
The Incas Create an Empire
 Capital city was Cuzco in what is now Peru
 By the early 1500s, the Inca Empire was huge (Pachacuti, ruler in
mid 1400s expanded the empire)
-Stretched from what is now Equador south to Central Chile
 About 12 million people lived in the empire
 Geography of the Area
-Coastal deserts, snowy mountains, fertile valleys and thick forests
Central Rule
 Pachacuti created a strong central government of the Inca Empire
-Did not want conquered people to have power
-Removed their leaders, and placed his own in control
-Children of conquered lands were sent to Cuzco to be educated about
the Inca government, religion and traditions
-Sent back to villages when grown and taught about Incas way of life
 A common language united the empire
Quechua the official language (still spoken by some today)
A Well Organized Economy 11/20/13
 Government controlled economy
-Told each household what work to do
-Farmers tended their own land and government land
 Villager jobs
-Made cloth, served as soldiers, worked in mines, built roads and bridges
 People paid their taxes in the form of labor, not money- mita
 Incas had no market or merchants
 Government distributed goods collected through the mita
-Extra kept for emergencies, if a natural disaster struck, the government gave
them supplies to help them
Life in the Inca Empire
Society controlled by the government, common people had little freedom
Social Divisions
Two main social classes
 Upper class/The emperor, government officials and priests
-Lived in stone houses, wore the best clothes, did not pay taxes and enjoyed the
Inca retreat; Machu Picchu
 Lower class/farmers, artisans and servants
-No slaves because the Incas did not believe in slavery
-Most were farmers, grew crops of maize and peanuts
-Mountain areas, grew potatoes on carved out terraces
-Raised llamas for wool and meat
Religion
 Inca thought their rulers were related to the gods and never died
-Mummies of former kings were brought by priests to religious ceremonies
 Incas rarely sacrificed humans-instead; llamas, cloth or food was offered
 Incas believed that certain mountains, rocks and springs had magical
powers
Achievements 11/25/13
 Masonry (stonework)
-Cut stone blocks so precisely that cement was not needed to hold together
 Built a major network of roads
 Artisans made pottery, jewelry, made a life size cornfield out of gold,
crafting each cob, leaf and stalk individually
 Weaved textiles (cloth)
 No writing system, kept records using a quipus-Knots in different colored
cords that represented info about crops, land and
other important topics
-Passed information down through stories (oral history)
-Inca records were written in Spanish and Quechua (after the Spanish arrived)
Pizarro Conquers the Incas
 In the 1520s, civil war began in the Inca Empire after the death of their
leader
 His two sons fought for the throne (Atahualpa and Huascar)
 1534, Atahualpa won the war, left Inca army weakened
 180 Spanish soldiers, led by Francisco Pizarro-Were greatly outnumbered but attacked
-Captured Atahualpa
-Killed thousands of Inca soldiers
 To win Atahualpa’s freedom, Pizarro was offered over 24 tons of gold
-The Spanish killed Atahualpa
-By 1537, Pizarro defeated the last of the Incas
-Spain controlled the entire Inca Empire for the next 300 years.