For the Good of the People

The Social Hierarchy (p.172) 1. Emperor 2. Nobility & Priests 3. Merchants, Artists, Soldiers 4. Farmers, Fishers, Women 5. Slaves

1. Emperor Called the “Great Speaker” Treated like a god The Chief Priest, commander-in-chief, and “head of state” A. Army Commander: Had to be a good warrior to be able to lead the army B. Head of State: Made the final decisions for the empire

Family Clans Society was divided into units called calpolli: either groups of people who did the same job, or groups of families Each calpolli had it’s own small government to take care of its part of the empire

1. Merchants The richest calpolli Travelled to other parts of Mexico to trade and spy Knew the geography well Helped make the empire rich

2. Farmers Grew crops, hunted, and fished Paying taxes was very important Fed the entire empire

3. Artisans Created clothes and works of art Mask makers, goldsmiths, and feather workers were very respected Used feathers from birds to make beautiful clothes, such as headdresses (p.175) Only the rich were allowed to wear feathers Feathers from the quetzal bird were sacred (like eagle feathers to our First Nations) Their god Quetzalcoatl was the “feathered serpent”

Signs of Status Every culture has status symbols: ways to tell the difference between people The Aztecs based their status on clothing, jewellery, and size/location of your house

Warriors The main way to move “up” was through battle Killing wasn’t the goal; you were meant to capture your enemy for sacrifices A warrior could instantly move from a common person to the nobility by capturing prisoners Do questions 1 (a), (c)

Education Home schooled until about years old Very strict discipline Goal was to turn people into citizens with “a stone heart and a stone face” Education was very important There was 2 types of schools 1. Calmecac – for nobles 2. Telpochcalli – for common people

1. Calmecac – for nobles Religion was very important Other subjects: page 180 Only these students learned to read and write They “read” using a system of pictures called “glyphs” Math: our way of counting is based on “10s” because we have 10 fingers Aztec counting was based on “20s” because they used fingers and toes

2. Telpochcalli – for commoners All instruction was spoken Students had to learn by memorization History, religion, and “how to be a good citizen” were taught They learned music too Boys did lots of hard labour

Women’s education Women had very little power, but they were still educated At about 16, girls would be married and start a family Many women served in the army as doctors and healers Others became priestesses Others were midwives

Military Training All boys were taught at school how to fight and defend Boys would follow the soldiers to battles to watch and see how things went They became official warriors when they were 15 Eagle and Jaguar were the most important military positions P. 181 – “conscription”