Why Is The Aztec Army Important

The Aztec Army

The Aztecs, considered to be the most powerful people back in their time, were a very established civilization that worked as a group to get things done. The Aztecs (in their eyes) were very approachable people. On the other hand, in the eyes of the Spanish and the Spanish priests, they were seen as cannibals and savages due to their practices and their religious beliefs. Although, when the time came, the Aztec army was a force to be reckoned with. With hundreds of thousands of trained soldiers at the ready, it seemed as if the Aztecs were invincible when it came to warfare, but with this many troops there had to be organization within the battle, enough training prior to ensure success, enough hand-held weapons, and advanced

Their training, in a sense, starts when they are born. Babies who are born to become warriors would be given a shield in their left hand and an arrow in their right at birth. ("Aztec Warrior Training"). These items were specially crafted for the child and would symbolize their family and their god. All boys were trained to be warriors (except nobles). When being trained, once commoner boys had reached the age of 15, the father of the boy would hand the responsibility of the rest of the training to the Telopochcalli, who were accountable for training boys between the ages of 15-20. ("Aztec Warrior Training"). The youth were tested on how physically fit they were for actual battle by providing company with their leaders on campaigns. Young soldiers following would carry their leaders shield for them along the journey. Now, the noble warriors would receive more elite training then the commoners. They received training from the most battle-hardened warriors of the army, as well as receiving courtly subjects such as astronomy, rhetorics, poetry, calendrics, and religion.("Aztec Warrior Training"). In most cases, these boys would start their training at a younger age than the commoners, which would provide more experience and knowledge to these soon-to-be elite

Now the battle consisted of bloody hand-to-hand combat and continued until one side has surrendered or it became night. ("Aztec Battle Tactics"). The main goal of the Aztec army was to break through the enemy 's formation then attacking the remainders from all sides which can be seen as a primitive form of flanking. Another tactic the Aztecs were known for was to engage in battle, pretend to run away, the enemy would follow them right into a trap of many hidden soldiers and would be flanked from all angles.("Aztec Battle Tactics"). The Aztecs had used a very, very large variety of war tactics, but to sum it all up most Aztec tactics revolved around the tactic of flanking and wits. ("Aztec Battle Tactics"). The Aztec army was feared by many, their training, organizational structure, and weapons were the main idea of why most opposing empires and enemies were to be crushed by the overpowering Aztec empire. They were to be outsmarted, outmanned, and outgunned which, in battle, is basically how battles are won. These men were trained, some of them were very trained in a very elite manner. They were notorious for being feared in