A small but historically important city in central Mexico which served as the junior partner of the Aztec Empire.
The city’s origins are somewhat obscure, but by 1400 it had become a wealthy, influential city. Tacuba was located on the shores of Lake Texcoco, directly across from the Aztec city of TENOCHTITLAN, and had enjoyed stable trade relations with the AzTECS for many years. Both Tenochtitlan and Tacuba were vassals of the Tepanecs, a powerful kingdom based in the city of Azcapotzalco. Relations between the Tepanecs and the Aztecs became strained, and in 1427 the Aztec king ITZCOATL rose up in rebellion against his overlords. Unhappy with Tepanec rule and sensing the rising power of their longtime trading partner, residents of the city of Tacuba sided with Tenochtitlan and its ally Texcoco in the war against the king at Azcapotzalco. The three allies were victorious and set up the so-called Triple Alliance to govern their newly conquered territories. This alliance formed the basis of the Aztec Empire, which by 1519 controlled most of Mexico.
Although formally an equal partner in the alliance, Tacuba was clearly its weakest member. For example, Tacuba was allotted one-fifth of the annual tribute taken in by the alliance, while Tenochtitlan and Texcoco each took in two-fifths. Also, its troops were the last to be mobilized and usually were placed away from the main fighting, allowing few chances for earning glory or war booty. During the centralizing reforms of MoCTEZUMA II, Tacuba lost many of the rights and privileges it had formerly enjoyed, becoming little more than a subject city.
Tacuba also played a substantial role in the Spanish conquest. During Hernan CoRTES’s disastrous retreat from Tenochtitlan, he fled along the causeway to Tacuba because it was the shortest escape route from the city. In the final siege of Tenochtitlan, Cortes occupied Tacuba and used it as his base to direct military operations against the Aztecs.
Further reading: Peter Gerhard, A Guide to the Historical Geography of New Spain, rev. ed. (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1993); Ross Hassig, Aztec Warfare: Imperial Expansion and Political Control (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1988); Miguel Leon-Portilla, ed., The Broken Spears: The Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico (Boston: Beacon Press, 1992).
—Scott Chamberlain
World History
