STARTER
Complete the Definition box below neatly.
Founded
Established
Sacrifice
culture
Use the dictionaries on your desks to find out what the
words mean and write them in to your books.
LO
To place the Aztecs
within the correct period
of history.
WHERE WERE THE AZTECS?
Click the map to show where in the world we would find
the Aztecs.
Well done
The Aztecs were a group of
American Indian people who
ruled a mighty empire in
Mexico during the 1400s and
1500s. You can see this below.
Oh dear that’s not correct
You would find a variety of
North American Indian
tribes here but not the
Aztecs
Oh dear that’s not correct
Close – but you
found the Incas not
the Aztecs.
Oh dear that’s not correct
Nope – you found
Renaissance Europe.
That’s when King
Henry VIII lived.
Try again.
Oh dear that’s not correct
Not here either. Try going west
instead of east next time.
Oh dear that’s not correct
You found the
Mesopotamian
civilizations not
the Aztecs.
Try harder.
Oh dear that’s not correct
You’re on the wrong
continent – this is
Africa!
Oh dear that’s not correct
You’re on the wrong
continent – this is an
Aborigine in Australia.
The Aztecs who entered the land we
call Mexico came from the North.
In 1325 they founded a huge city on
an island in the middle of Lake
Texcoco – this became Tenochtitlan.
Today Tenochtitlan is Mexico City.
The Aztecs had one of the most advanced
civilizations in the Americas. Their cities
were as large as any in Europe. They built
towering temples and huge sculptures.
They held impressive
ceremonies featuring
bloody human sacrifices
to appease their gods.
In 1519 the Spanish attacked and the Aztec Empire.
By 1521 they had conquered and destroyed it.
WHEN WERE THE AZTECS?
The Aztec empire existed during the 1300s, 1400s and 1500s. Here
are some European events that took place during that time.
In the 1300s jousting was
popular and the Black Death
Plague ravaged Europe
In 1492 Christopher Columbus set
off to find India and found the
Americas instead.
In 1531 Henry VIII made himself
Head of the Church.
How do we know about the Aztecs?
Archaeologists know something
about how Aztecs lived from ruins
of buildings, and remains of pottery,
jewellery, and other artefacts
which have been found buried deep
under the ground.
We can also find out a lot
from the Aztec Codices.
These are books written by
the Aztecs recording events
in picture format.
Main task
By now you should have completed your worksheet by
filling in the gaps.
Now add on the main events to your timeline neatly.
Finally go back and colour your title page.