The center of the Aztec civilization was the Valley of Mexico, a huge, oval basin about 7,500 feet above sea level. The Aztecs were formed afterthe Toltec civilization occurred when hundreds of civilians came towardsLake Texcoco. In the swamplands there was only one piece of land to farmon and it was totally surrounded by more marshes. The Aztec families somehowconverted these disadvantages to a mighty empire known as the Aztec Empire.People say the empire was partially formed by a deeply believed legend.As the legend went, it said that Aztec people would create an empire ina swampy place where they would see an eagle eating a snake, while perchedon a cactus, which was growing out of a rock in the swamplands. This iswhat priests claimed they saw when entering the new land. By the year 1325their capital city was finished. They called it Tenochtitlan. In the capitalcity, aqueducts were constructed, bridges were built, and chinapas weremade. Chinapas were little islands formed by pilled up mud. On these chinapasAztecs grew their food. The Aztec Empire included many cities and towns,especially in the Valley of Mexico. The early settlers built log rafts,then covered them with mud and planted seeds to create roots and developmore solid land for building homes in this marshy land. Canals were alsocut out through the marsh so that a typical Aztec home had its back toa canal with a canoe tied at the door. In the early 1400s, Tenochtitlanjoined with Texcoco and Tlacopan, two other major cities in the Valleyof Mexico. Tenochtitlan became the most powerful member of the alliance.Montezuma I ruled from 1440 to 1469 and conquered large areas to the eastand to the south. Montezuma's successors expanded the empire until it extendedbetween what is now Guatemala and the Mexican State of San Luis Potosi.Montezuma II became emperor in 1502 when the Aztec Empire was at the heightof its power. In 1519, the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes landed on theEast...
