Cuauhtémoc
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- This article is about the Aztec Emperor named Cuauhtémoc. For the Mexican Naval training ship or the brewery of the same name, please see Cuauhtémoc (ship) or Cervecería Cuauhtémoc.
Cuauhtémoc (c. 1502–February 28, 1525) (also Cuauhtemotzin or Guatimozin; also written Cuauhtemoc without the diacritical mark) was the last Aztec ruler (Tlatoani) of Tenochtitlán and the last "Aztec Emperor". The name means "descending eagle", from Nahuatl cuauhtli (eagle) and temoc (descent); by extension it can be interpreted as "setting sun".
Cuauhtémoc took power in 1520 as successor of Cuitláhuac and was a nephew of the emperor Moctezuma II, and his young wife was one of Moctezuma's daughters. He ascended to the throne as his city was being besieged by the Spanish and devastated by an epidemic of smallpox. He was about 18 years of age at the time. Probably after the killings in the main temple, there were few Aztec captains available to take the position.
On August 13, 1521, Cuauhtémoc went to call for reinforcements from the countryside to aid the falling Tenochtitlán, after eighty days straight of urban warfare against the Spanish. Of all the Nahuas, only Tlatelolcas remained loyal, and the surviving Tenochcas looked for refuge in Tlatelolco where even women took part in the battle. Cuauhtémoc was captured while crossing Lake Texcoco in disguise. He surrendered to Hernán Cortés along with the surviving pillis (nobles), and offered him his knife and asked to be killed.
At first, Cortés treated his foe chivalrously. "A Spaniard knows how to respect valor even in an enemy," he declared. However, he allowed Aldrete, the greedy royal treasurer, to have Cuauhtemoc tortured to make him reveal the whereabouts of hidden treasure. Cuauhtemoc, insisting that there was no hidden treasure, heroically stood up under the ordeal.
Cuauhtémoc was tortured by having his feet put to a fire, along with Tetlepanquetzal, the Tlatoani of Tacuba and the Cihuacóatl (counselor) Tlacotzin, but even so they refused to divulge information about the treasures the Spanish coveted. It is said that during the torture, Tetlepanquetzal asked him to reveal the location of the treasures in order to stop the pain given to them, and Cuauhtémoc is quoted to say "Do you think I am in a bath or pleasure?". This would be popularized in the 19th century as "Do you think I am in a bed of roses?". The date and details of this episode are unknown. In the end, a shamed Cortés delivered Cuauhtémoc from Aldrete's hands.
In 1525, Cortés took Cuauhtémoc on his expedition to Honduras, perhaps because he feared Cuauhtémoc would lead an insurrection in his absence. Some Indian chronicles record that Cuauhtémoc had tried to warn other towns of the intentions of the conquerors along the way to Honduras, but he was denounced because they were also afraid of the Aztecs.
Bernal Díaz del Castillo described a more elaborate version of a conspiracy. Convinced by an Indian convert to Christianity that Cuauhtemoc was conspiring against him, Cortés had him tried for treason. Although even some of the Spaniards -- notably Bernal Diaz de Castillo -- believed the former emperor innocent, the sentence was carried out. Cuauhtemoc's last words to Cortés demonstrate his unconquerable spirit: "I knew what it was...to trust to your false promises; I knew that you had destined me to this fate since I did not fall by my own hand when you entered my city of Tenochtitlan."
Cortés eventually ordered Cuauhtémoc hanged on 28 February 1525 along with Teltepanquetzaltzin. Tlacotzin became a puppet tlatoani under the Spanish, but eventually he also was executed.
The modern-day Mexican town of Ixcateopan in Guerrero state is home to an ossuary purportedly containing Cuauhtémoc's remains.
Many places in Mexico are named in honour of Cuauhtémoc. These include Ciudad Cuauhtémoc in Chihuahua and the Cuauhtémoc borough of the Mexican Federal District. There is also a Cuauhtémoc station on the Mexico City metro and the Monterrey Metrorrey. Cuauhtémoc is also a popular given name for Mexican boys, one of the few non-Spanish given names to be so. Template:Start box Template:Succession box Template:End boxda:Cuauhtémoc de:Cuáutemoc es:Cuauhtémoc fr:Cuáutemoc it:Cuauhtémoc nl:Cuauhtemoc ja:クアウテモック pl:Cuauhtemoc pt:Cuauhtémoc