Engineering an Empire - The Aztecs 3/5

Engineering an Empire - The Aztecs Part 3

In less than 200 years the Aztec's transformed themselves from a band of wandering nomads to the greatest civilization the New World had ever known. What records remain of this amazing feat indicate they did it through brilliant military campaigns and by ingeniously applying technology to master the harsh environment they faced. They built their capital city where no city should have been possible: in the middle of a lake. The Aztec also practiced human sacrifice on an unprecedented scale and made many enemies. By the time the Spaniards landed they had no trouble recruiting tribal allies to destroy the Aztecs. Watch with host Peter Weller as we examine the architecture and infrastructure behind the New World's greatest, and last, indigenous society.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Engineering
• Empire
• Aztecs
• Mexico
• Documentary

[Armando2012102]

AT 5:54, LOL Peter Weller actually walks like RoboCop in real life! No wonder he was cast for the part!

[franksters08]

I want Aztec postal service.... FUCK UPS

[bieberlicious1436]

lol there naked tee hee

[chronius9]

@HaNeul0805 Well if believe some historians it was way to get nutrients for semi-vegetarian society like aztecs(they had no or very little domesticated animals). Really I don't know if it is just speculation or real hypothesis.

[Graham6762]

Think of how detailed this would be if those Friars didn't burn those scrolls. This is why you never burn a book. So much lost knowledge.

[jabbakaku]

still such sacrifices, but in other parts of the world

[HaNeul0805]

Sacrificing human to the gods is a nice way of controlling human population. LOL!!

[VobisPacem]

@housemusicc100 no, it's pretty obvious. one person is an Aztec human sacrifice.

[zillajratomicray]

1:52  LOL Modern day Swaziland's life expectancy is only 31 years. They got owned by an empire that existed around 300 years ago.

[housemusicc100]

one dislike? they were probably Spaniard

[TheLegendJKil]

exactly, which is why I question their motivations in those circumstances--standing between two paradigms--one that leads to commerce and trade, and another leads to a martial state, where sacrifice wasnt just symbolic of the appeasement of gods but it also demonstrated the Aztec superiority in an aggressive way. Progression, then, to the Aztecs, could be defined as the assimilation and integration of nearby societies through war or the war economy. Ultimately, aggression led to destruction.

[CSATexan]

@TheLegendJKil

Oh yes they would have been much better off.

Trade is far better than force.

Granted the priest that was doing the sacrifice was highly educated, the temples where very well constructed and the system itself was very complex.

But what did it produce? The priest could have used his training to spread compassion

The temples could have been used as centers of learning, storage or just for roads.

The system could have been one of trade and commerce