Aztec Wars of Flowers

 The "Flower War" among the Aztecs refers to a way of fighting to capture as many prisoners as possible, not to kill enemies or occupy territory, but to use them as sacrifices for religious ceremonies. Sometimes the rulers of the city made their own people wage war to make sacrifices. Even after Astec occupied most of the licensed countries in Nahuatl, the Tlaxkala settlement was not occupied, but they always had to fall victim to Astec's war of flowers.  Eventually, Tlaxkala becomes the first ally of Hernan Cortes to destroy Astec.      For this reason, Astec fighters were trained to capture their enemies with wounds to their arms and legs rather than kill them instantly on the battlefield, and their ceremonial way of fighting against the Congestadors from Espanya across the sea was devastating. Unlike Astec warriors, who were trained to capture enemies rather than kill them, the Congestadors were trained and fought to kill as many enemies as possible rather than capture them on the battlefield. Astec's fighting style did not change easily, and at the end of the war they attempted to change their strategy, but the situation was already late.   The ceremonial battle of the Flower War, with its poor weapon system, is one of the reasons why Astec rarely overpowered the Spanish army despite its enormous numerical superiority.         The Astec warriors' weapons were wooden bodies and sharp-split obsidian blades with serrated rods, spears, and arrowheads fired using a spearhead. Although the blade is razor-sharp (some modern surgeons use a scalpel made of pyroxene, not metal).In the end, because it was only a piece of stone, it was broken like glass when it hit the helmet, armor, and shield of the Kongquistador made of steel.   The prisoners to be sacrificed were well served and fed. There were 18 human sacrifices a year, but prisoners were not always used as offerings. Most prisoners of war were used as sacrifices for the annual Uichilopottlee festival, and the priest tore the prisoners' hearts out. The brave of the prisoners were used as a gladiatorial offering to fight a fully armed warrior, with one foot bound and a fake weapon (a feathered club instead of a black stone blade) at a festival serving Tescatlifoca. If the prisoner was alive against seven warriors, he had to fight the left-handed warrior again. And if the prisoner survives, he is released honorably.    There is a legend about the valiant Tlakskalteka warrior named Tlahui Colera. He was captured, but thanks to his reputation as a warrior, he was released and given the opportunity to fight the Astecs. He was released honorably but chose to be sacrificed instead of returning to Tlaxkala. During the eight days of celebrating his honor, Tlaghui Kole killed eight warriors. He demanded that he be sacrificed and continued to fight, injuring more than 20 warriors before being defeated and sacrificed.     This sacred war was founded by Emperor Tlaquel in the process of revising the Astec religion. Tlakael was the last Nauatlaka tribe to settle in the Anahuak Valley and was despised by other tribes in the early days of settlement. Astec wanted to instill a sense of purpose in the people to change this. He maintained the sacrificial rites consistently and gave honor and wealth to the warriors who captured many prisoners. To maintain this situation, continuous war was required, which had the effect of showing off Astec's military power. The new view of religion has become a means of political control. Emperor Tlacael combined the characteristics of Nowatl's god Teskatlifoka with Uichilopotli, the god of their region, to establish a new religious view away from the old Mesoamerican faith.   Tlakael (1397-1487), nephew of Itzkoatl (1427-1440), brother of Montesuma I (1440-1469), was the first emperor of Mexico. Blood has a very important meaning in all Mesoamerican cultures. Blood is not only offered for human sacrifice, but also for God by wounding one's body. Tlacael established a religious view that human blood must be supplied continuously in order for the sun to win the battle against darkness and rise again every morning. Every 52 years, the world comes to an end. The Aztecs believed that human sacrifices could delay the sun's destruction. The Aztecs thought it was their duty to maintain the world in this way. For the Astec warriors, offering blood to God was a sacred duty and an important task. Flowers and feathers are the most important objects in Astec society, so 'flower' is used as a word to describe the dynamics of war. The blood flowing from the wound is described as the flower of war. The text below is part of the Astec War. Flowers of sacred wine. Flowers of fire. Only you can be our clothes. Flowers of war. Oh, my friends, noble friends. You vultures and jaguar warriors. Get dressed. God will cut up the enemies and put them in the flower bed of war.    Artec shields of various patterns, quilted neck vests that Astec warriors wore in their clothing, feathered shields, and paintings depicting Astec warriors capturing gold and jade jewelry captives. Many of the Congestadors fought in these cotton vests instead of heavy, stuffy body armor.  Captured by the commanders of the Astec army, the enemy soldiers wear wooden swords around their necks and are taken with the Astec army to the capital, Tenochtitlan. Jaguar and Eagle fighters are classified as special forces among the Astec forces. Jaguar warriors were the object of terror to their enemies on the battlefield. The warriors wore jaguar leather combat suits to give them a sense of fear. The name of the Jaguar was given to the fighters who captured four to five prisoners at a time in battle. Flesh prisoners were the most important medals that could be obtained in battle. In order to capture the prisoners, the soldiers used a method of neutralizing them by hitting their legs rather than killing them.