User:Cornsnek/sandbox/List of rulers of Tenochtitlan

This is a list of the tlatoque of the pre-Columbian altepetl of Tenochtitlan and the later judges and governors of the Colonial-period Cabildo of San Juan Tenochtitlan.

Founder (1325–1350/1367/1375)

Picture	Name	Reign	Succession & notes	Death
	Tenoch Tenōch	1325 – 1350/1367/1375	Founder of Tenochtitlan, possibly legendary	1350, 1367 or 1375 Natural causes

Monarchical period

Tlatoque under Tepanec suzerainty (1373–1427)

No.	Name	Reign	Succession & notes	Death
1	Tlacoten^[1] Tlacotin	1373	Son of Tezozomoc. Appointed by his father.	1373 Ruled for 200 days, died of natural causes
2	Teuhtlehuatzin^[1] Teuctlehuac	1373	Son of Tezozomoc. Appointed by his father. May have been present in Tenochtitlan during the reign of Chimalpopoca, someone with the same name is noted as being killed along with Chimalpopoca.	Possibly 1427 Abandoned Tenochtitlan after he was unable to ensure stability
3	Ilancueitl^[2] Ilancueitl	1373 – 1383	Noblewoman from Coatlinchan or Culhuacan.	1383 Natural causes
4	Acamapichtli Ācamāpichtli	c. 1383 – 1403	Husband of Ilancueitl. First tlatoani of Tenochtitlans royal dynasty.	1387, 1395 or 1403 Natural causes
5	Huitzilihuitl Huītzilihhuitl	c. 1403 – 1417	Son of Acamapichtli.	1415 or 1417 (aged c. 38) Natural causes
6	Chimalpopoca Chīmalpopōca	1417 – 1427	Son of Huitzilihuitl.	1427 (aged c. 23) Conflicting accounts, strangled in captivity by Maxtla, or murdered by supporters of Itzcoatl
7	Xihuitl Temoc^[3] Xīhuitl Tēmoc	1427	Son of Chimalpopoca.	1427 Ruled for 60 days, deposed and killed by Itzcoatl

Tlatoque of the Triple Alliance (1427–1521)

No.	Name	Reign	Succession & notes	Death
8	Itzcoatl Itzcōhuātl	1427 – 1440	Son of Acamapichtli.	1440 (aged c. 60) Natural causes
9	Moctezuma I Motēuczōma Ilhuicamīna (He Shoots the Heavens) Chālchiutlatōnac (He Has Shone Like Jade)	1440 – 1466	Son of Huitzilihuitl.	1466 (aged c. 71) Natural causes (illness)
10	Atotoztli^[2] Atotoztli	1466 – 1472	Daughter of Moctezuma I.	1472 (aged c. 52) Natural causes
11	Axayacatl Āxāyacatl	1472 – 1481	Son of Atotoztli and Tezozomoc, a son of Itzcoatl.	1481 (aged c. 32) Natural causes (illness)
12	Tizoc Tīzocic Tlalchitonatiuh (Earthbound Sun)	1481 – 1486	Son of Atotoztli and Tezozomoc, a son of Itzcoatl.	1486 (aged c. 50) Unclear causes, possibly murdered
13	Ahuitzotl Āhuitzotl	1486 – 1502	Son of Atotoztli and Tezozomoc, a son of Itzcoatl.	1502 (aged c. 56) Natural causes
14	Moctezuma II Motēuczōma Xōcoyōtl (The Younger)	1502 – 1520	Son of Axayacatl.	1520 (aged c. 54) Conflicting accounts, killed accidentally or intentionally by a rock thrown by one of his subjects, or killed by the Spaniards
15	Cuitláhuac Cuitlāhua	1520	Son of Axayacatl.	1520 (aged c. 44) Unclear causes, possibly smallpox
16	Cuauhtémoc Cuāuhtēmoc	1520 – 1521	Son of Ahuitzotl. Last independent Nahua ruler of Tenochtitlan.	1525 (aged c. 28) Hanged on the orders of Hernán Cortés

Colonial period

Cuauhtlatoque (1521–1565)

The initial rulers of Tenochtitlan installed by the Spaniards were not part of the nobility and did not go through the traditional investiture ceremonies. As a result, they were not regarded as legitimate tlatoani by the local populace. Instead, they were titled as cuauhtlatoani, a term that literally meant "eagle ruler" and in pre-conquest times served to designate a non-dynastic interim ruler appointed when necessary.^[4] Hernán Cortés and the Spaniards initially preferred such less legitimate rulers, possibly as a way of ensuring that the colonial authorities would be able to maintain control.^[5]

Though the cuauhtlatoque appointed by the Spaniards were not legitimate dynastic rulers, they were noted in later chronicles as governing as if they were tlatoani.^[5] Codices made after the time of the cuauhtlatoque differ in how they are treated; some emphasize their illegitimacy as a rupture in the dynastic sequence whereas others do not comment on their lack of relation to previous rulers and instead depict them in the exact same way, as if they were genuine tlatoque.^[4]

No.	Name	Reign	Succession & notes	Death
16	Cuauhtémoc Fernando Cuauhtémotzín	1521 – 1525	Son of Ahuitzotl, allowed to retain his position as tlatoani by the Spaniards, baptized as Fernando Cuauhtémotzín.	1525 (aged c. 28) Hanged on the orders of Hernán Cortés
17	Tlacotzin Juan Velázquez Tlacotzin	1525 – 1526	Grandson of Tlacaelel, a son of Huitzilihuitl. Installed by Hernán Cortés.	1526 Died of an unknown disease
18	Motelchiuh Andrés de Tapia Motelchiuhtzin Huitznahuatlailótlac	1526 – 1530	Nahua warrior captain, serves as cuauhtlato ("interim ruler").	1530 Wounded by a Chichimecan arrow
19	Xochiquentzin Pablo Xochiquentzin	1530 – 1536	Nahua commoner, serves as cuauhtlato ("interim ruler").	1536 Natural causes

Reinstation of the Tenochca dynasty

The royal line of proper tlatoque was restored in 1538.^[3] The decision to restore dynastic rule was probably made by the Spanish viceroy Antonio de Mendoza (1535–1550) to preserve the veneer of legitimacy of Spanish rule.^[5] Since the Spaniards mainly wished local native rulers to be responsible, pay tribute and be legitimate in the eyes of the people they ruled, the tlatoani were from that point onwards most often appointed after being elected and suggested by the native Nahua nobility.^[5]

No.	Name	Reign	Succession & notes	Death
20	Huanitzin Diego de Alvarado Huanitzin	1539 – 1541	Son of Tezozomoctli Acolnahuacatl, a son of Axayacatl. Installed by the Spanish colonial authorities.	1541 Natural causes
21	Tehuetzquititzin Diego de San Francisco Tehuetzquititzin	1541 – 1554	Son of Tezcatl Popocatzin, a son of Tizoc. Installed by the Spanish colonial authorities.	1554 Natural causes
Interregent	Omacatzin Esteban de Guzmán Omacatzin	1554 – 1557^[5]	Nahua commoner from Xochimilco, served as judge-governor of Tenochtitlan.	Unknown
22	Cecetzin Cristóbal de Guzmán Cecetzin	1557 – 1562	Son of Huanitzin. Installed by the Spanish colonial authorities.	1562 Natural causes
23	Nanacacipactzin Luis de Santa María Cipactli/Nanacacipactli	1563 – 1565	Son of Acamapichtli, a son of Ahuitzotl. Installed by the Spanish colonial authorities. Last tlatoani and last hereditary ruler of Tenochtitlan.	1565 Natural causes

Judge-governors (1565-1688)

After 1565, the governors of Tenochtitlan ceased to be appointed under the principle of hereditary succession and ceased to be referred to as tlatoani. This change was partly a result of experiences with Spanish election principles making the denizens of Tenochtitlan view hereditary descent as less important for legitimacy.^[5] From the death of Nanacacipactli in 1565 until 1688, Tenochtitlan was instead placed under the control of Spanish-appointed governors; these governors continued to be of indigenous or mixed descent and many were descendants of Aztec nobility, though not of the royal dynasty.^[6]

No.	Name	Period	Notes
24	Francisco Ximenez	1568 - 1569	Nahua noble from Tecamachalco
Interregnum?
25	Antonio Valeriano	1573 - 1599	Nahua politician from Azcapotzalco, which he also governed at some point.

References

^ ^a ^b Santamarina Novillo, Carlos (2011). El Sistema de Dominacion Azteca: El Imperio Tepaneca (in Spanish). Editorial Académica Española. ISBN 9783845485096.
^ ^a ^b Klein, Cecelia (2001). Gender in Pre-Hispanic America. Washington: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection. ISBN 9780884022794.
^ ^a ^b Townsend, Camila (2019). Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0190673060.
^ ^a ^b Diel, Lori Boornazian (2009). The Tira de Tepechpan: Negotiating Place under Aztec and Spanish Rule. Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-78228-0.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Connell, William F. (2011). After Moctezuma: Indigenous Politics and Self-Government in Mexico City, 1524–1730. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0-8061-4175-6.
^ Lockhart, James (1992). The Nahuas After the Conquest: A Social and Cultural History of the Indians of Central Mexico, Sixteenth Through Eighteenth Centuries. Stanford: Stanford University Press. ISBN 9780804719278.

[:0-1] Santamarina Novillo, Carlos (2011). El Sistema de Dominacion Azteca: El Imperio Tepaneca (in Spanish). Editorial Académica Española. ISBN 9783845485096.

[:1-2] Klein, Cecelia (2001). Gender in Pre-Hispanic America. Washington: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection. ISBN 9780884022794.

[townsend2019-3] Townsend, Camila (2019). Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0190673060.

[diel2009-4] Diel, Lori Boornazian (2009). The Tira de Tepechpan: Negotiating Place under Aztec and Spanish Rule. Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-78228-0.

[connel2011-5] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Connell, William F. (2011). After Moctezuma: Indigenous Politics and Self-Government in Mexico City, 1524–1730. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0-8061-4175-6.

[lockhart1992-6] Lockhart, James (1992). The Nahuas After the Conquest: A Social and Cultural History of the Indians of Central Mexico, Sixteenth Through Eighteenth Centuries. Stanford: Stanford University Press. ISBN 9780804719278.

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