By Randy Jackson
At the time of the Spanish Conquest of Mexico, the Aztec civilization was highly stratified, with social classes ranging from nobility and merchants to commoners and enslaved people. The conquest devastated the Aztec civilization and social order through disease, warfare, and the imposition of Spanish rule. Yet, like the Aztecs, Spanish society was organized under a monarchy and a noble class. Intermarriages allowed some members of the Aztec nobility to integrate into the Spanish elite in what was then called New Spain. Today, several Mexican families can trace their lineage back to the ruling Aztec nobility at the time of the conquest. One notable lineage is that of the descendants of Moctezuma II, the Aztec ruler at the time of the arrival of the Spanish.
Moctezuma’s Captivity and the Aztec Rebellion
On November 8, 1519, Hernán Cortés entered Tenochtitlán, the capital of the Aztec Empire, with 400 Spanish soldiers and cavalry. The Spaniards were welcomed by the Aztec ruler, Moctezuma, in a display of pageantry, marking the historically momentous meeting of the two civilizations. However, the Spaniards quickly wore out their welcome. Within a week, Cortés had Moctezuma under a form of house arrest. Soon, the Aztec noble class began planning to rid themselves of the Spanish.
By June 1520, a full-blown Aztec uprising against the Spanish had erupted. On June 29, 1520, Moctezuma was killed, possibly by a rock thrown from within an Aztec mob. The next day, the uprising, known as “La Noche Triste” or “The Night of Sorrows,” drove the conquistadors out of the capital, forcing them to retreat to Tlaxcala with significant loss of life and almost all of their precious treasure. Among the surviving Spaniards in Tlaxcala were some of Moctezuma’s children, likely taken against their will.
Moctezuma’s Children
Polygamy was a common practice in Aztec society. Although less common in the lower classes, it was prevalent among the nobility, in part to strengthen alliances between families. For the Aztec leader, political alliances through marriage were essential for maintaining power. Moctezuma II had numerous wives and concubines and fathered many children. Historical sources vary on the exact number of his children, but they often cite around 19. Many of these children died during the tumult of the conquest and its aftermath. However, a few survived to continue the bloodline of Moctezuma. Although historical records for most surviving children are poor or nonexistent, there are better records for two children, one son and one daughter, whose stories provide a glimpse into the partial legacy of the Aztec emperor.
Tecuichpotzin / Doña Isabel Moctezuma
Tecuichpotzin, later known as Isabel Moctezuma, was the daughter of Moctezuma II and his principal wife, Teotlalco of Tlacopan, a city-state of the Aztec Empire. Born in 1509 or 1510, Tecuichpotzin was about ten years old when the Spaniards arrived in 1519. At this young age, she was already married to Atlixcatzin, the ruler of Tlatelolco, another city-state within the Aztec Empire. Atlixcatzin died in 1520. Following his death, she was quickly remarried to her uncle Cuitláhuac, who became emperor after Moctezuma II’s death. Cuitláhuac, however, succumbed to smallpox only 80 days later. She was then married to the next emperor, Cuauhtémoc, whom Cortés had executed when the Conquistadors returned to defeat the Aztecs of Tenochtitlán in 1521.
By 1526, at the age of 17, Tecuichpotzin was converted to Christianity and baptized. Henceforth she was known by her Spanish and Christian name, Isabel. Cortés then had Isabel married for the fourth time to Alonso de Grado, a close colleague. With this marriage came a grant of a large encomienda (land and slaves), the largest encomienda in the Valley of Mexico. Within about a year of this marriage, Alonso de Grado died. Cortés took Isabel into his household, and she became pregnant with Cortés’s daughter. Cortés had the child raised separately, and Isabel was married to another of Cortés’s colleagues, Pedro Gallego de Andrade. Together, Isabel and Pedro had a son in 1530; shortly after, Pedro Gallego died. In 1532, Isabel was married for the sixth (and last) time to Juan Cano de Saavedra. Together, they had five children.
In 1550 or 1551, Isabel died at the age of about 42. The children of Doña Isabel Moctezuma became prominent members of Mexican and Spanish societies, and her lineage continues to have a flourishing presence in both countries today.
Tlacahuepan / Don Pedro Moctezuma
Tlacahuepan, later known as Pedro Moctezuma, was born in 1520 or 1521, at the time of the Spanish conquest of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan. He was born to Moctezuma’s wife Miahuaxchotzin, the Empress of Tula’s city-state, the Toltec Empire’s ancient capital. Sometime before the Spanish siege and final conquest of the Aztec capital, Pedro and his mother relocated back to her home city of Tula. Although Pedro was too young to have witnessed the fighting and collapse of his father’s empire, for the majority of his adult life, he was involved in fighting in Spanish courts to prove his entitlement as a son of Moctezuma.
In 1522, the King of Spain appointed Hernán Cortés as governor and captain general of New Spain. Although Cortés was instructed to limit the granting of encomiendas and respect the indigenous people’s land rights, he largely ignored these directives. Cortés argued that granting encomiendas was essential for civilizing the territory and rewarding the loyalty of his followers. Additionally, he used the system to incorporate the Aztec ruling class into the emerging colonial administration. One notable encomienda was granted in Tula to Don Pedro Moctezuma.
In 1528, Hernán Cortés returned to Spain to appeal directly to King Charles I regarding conflicts with various colonial authorities and to defend himself against accusations of abuse of power and inappropriate granting of lands. In the 1530s, Spanish courts revoked Don Pedro’s encomienda, converting it to Royal Crown property. Don Pedro subsequently spent his life embroiled in legal battles in Spanish courts over his noble entitlements as a son of Moctezuma.
Don Pedro Moctezuma traveled to Spain to appeal directly to the King. In 1539, he was granted a coat of arms in recognition of his status as the son of Moctezuma II. Later, he was also granted annual sums from the crown. Don Pedro Moctezuma died in 1570, still struggling with land entitlements. However, the Spanish Crown firmly recognized his noble lineage. His grandson, Pedro Tesifón Moctezuma, was granted the title of “Count of Moctezuma de Tultengo,” which was later upgraded to “Duke of Moctezuma de Tultengo” in 1865, a title that still exists today. Holders of this title have been prominently involved in Spanish society over the centuries. Although historical records vary regarding the number of children of Don Pedro Moctezuma, it is known that two prominent sons carried on the noble lineage in Spain and with descendants also in Mexico.
Despite the collapse of the Aztec Empire and the challenges posed by colonial rule, Moctezuma’s noble lineage managed to endure and integrate into the new societal structure and carry on over the centuries. Through strategic marriages and legal battles, Moctezuma’s descendants preserved their noble status and secured recognition from the Spanish crown. The Spanish noble titles and the prominence of some of the descendants of families in Mexico testify to the legacy of Moctezuma II.
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