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Cuauhtémoc (, also known as Cuauhtemotzin, Guatimozin or Guatemoc; c. 1495) was the Mexica ruler (''tlatoani'') of Tenochtitlan from 1520 to 1521, making him the last Aztec Emperor. The name Cuāuhtemōc means "one who has descended like an eagle", and is commonly rendered in English as "Descending Eagle," as in the moment when an eagle folds its wings and plummets down to strike its prey. This is a name that implies aggressiveness and determination. Cuauhtémoc took power in 1520 as successor of Cuitláhuac and was a cousin of the late emperor Moctezuma II. His young wife, who was later known as Isabel Moctezuma, was one of Moctezuma's daughters. He ascended to the throne when he was around 25 years old, while Tenochtitlan was being besieged by the Spanish and devastated by an epidemic of smallpox brought to the New World by the invaders. After the killings in the Great Temple, there were probably few Aztec captains available to take the position. ==Early life and rule== Cuauhtemoc's date of birth is unknown and he does not enter the historical record until he became emperor.〔Paul Gillingham, ''Cuauhtemoc's Bones: Forging National Identity in Modern Mexico''. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press 2011, 11〕 He was the eldest legitimate son of emperor Ahuitzotl〔Gillingham, ''Cuauhtemoc's Bones'', p. 14 and footnote 8, p. 242. Gillingham discusses the sources for this contention, including Tezozomoc, Fernando Alva Ixtlilxochitl, Juan de Torquemada, and Bernardino de Sahagún.〕 and may well have attended the last New Fire ceremony marking the beginning of a new 52-year cycle in the Aztec calendar.〔Miguel León-Portilla, "Cuauhtémoc" in ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures'', David Carrasco, ed. New York: Oxford University Press 2001, vol. 1, p. 289〕 Like the rest of Cuauhtemoc's early biography, this is inferred from knowledge of his age, and the likely events and life path of someone of his rank.〔Gillingham, ''Cuauhtemoc's Bones'', 14-15.〕 Following education in the calmecac, the school for elite boys, and then military service, he was named ruler of Tlatelolco, with the title ''cuauhtlatoani'' ("eagle ruler")〔León-Portilla, "Cuauhtemoc" ibid.〕 in 1515.〔Gillingham, ''Cuauhtemoc's Bones'', p. 19〕 To have reached this position of rulership, Cuauhtemoc had to be a male of high birth, and a warrior who had captured enemies for sacrifice.〔Gillingham, ''Cuauhtemoc's Bones'', p. 19.〕 When Cuauhtemoc was elected tlatoani in 1520, Tenochtitlan had already been rocked by the invasion of the Spanish and their indigenous allies, the death of Moctezuma II, and the death of Moctezuma's brother Cuitlahuac, who succeeded him as ruler, but died of smallpox shortly afterwards. In keeping with traditional practice, the most able candidate among the high noblemen was chosen by vote of the highest noblemen, Cuauhtemoc assumed the rulership.〔León-Portilla, "Cuauhtemoc", ibid.〕 Although under Cuitlahuac Tenochtitlan began mounting a defense against the invaders, it was increasingly isolated militarily and largely faced the crisis alone, as the numbers of Spanish allies increased with the desertion of many polities previously under its control.〔 Cuauhtémoc called for reinforcements from the countryside to aid the defense of Tenochtitlán, after eighty days of warfare against the Spanish. Of all the Nahuas, only Tlatelolcas remained loyal, and the surviving Tenochcas looked for refuge in Tlatelolco, where even women took part in the battle. Cuauhtémoc was captured on August 13, 1521, while fleeing Tenochtitlán by crossing Lake Texcoco with his wife, family, and friends. He surrendered to Hernán Cortés along with the surviving ''pipiltin'' (nobles) and, according to Spanish sources, he asked Cortés to take his knife and "strike me dead immediately".〔Diaz, B., 1963, The Conquest of New Spain, London: Penguin Books, ISBN 0140441239〕 According to the same Spanish accounts, Cortés refused this offer and treated his foe magnanimously. "You have defended your capital like a brave warrior," he declared, "A Spaniard knows how to respect valor, even in an enemy."〔William H. Prescott, ''History of the Conquest of Mexico'' (New York, 1843), vol. 3, p. 206.〕 At Cuauhtémoc's request, Cortés also allowed the defeated Mexica to depart the city unmolested. Subsequently, however, when the booty found did not measure up to the Spaniards' expectations,〔Prescott, vol. 3, p. 211.〕 Cuauhtémoc was tortured in an unsuccessful attempt to discover its whereabouts.〔Prescott, vol. 3, pp. 234-235.〕 On the statue to Cuauhtemoc on the Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City, there is a bas relief showing the Spaniards' torture of the emperor.〔(Bas-relief on statue to Gautamozin )〕 Eventually some gold was recovered, though far less than Cortés and his men expected. Cuauhtémoc continued to hold his position under the Spanish, keeping the title of tlatoani, but he was no longer the sovereign ruler.〔 He ordered the construction of a renaissance-style two-storied stone palace in Tlatelolco, in which he settled after the destruction of Mexico City; the building survived and was known as the Tecpan or palace. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cuauhtémoc」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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