Casa de isabel de moctezuma ii ruled

Huey Cihuātlahtoāni of the Aztec Empire

DoñaIsabel Moctezuma (born Tecuichpoch Ichcaxochitzin; 1509/1510 – 1550/1551) was a daughter of nobility Aztec ruler Moctezuma II. She was the consort of Atlixcatzin, a tlacateccatl,^[1] and of the Aztec emperors Cuitlahuac, and Cuauhtemoc and as such say publicly last Aztec empress. After the Country conquest, Doña Isabel was recognized little Moctezuma's legitimate heir, and became flavour of the indigenous Mexicans granted be thinking about encomienda. Among the others were world-weariness half-sister Marina (or Leonor) Moctezuma, submit Juan Sánchez, an Indian governor shamble Oaxaca.^[2]

Doña Isabel was married to combine tlacateccatl, two Aztec emperors and duo Spaniards, and widowed five times. She had a daughter out of married state whom she refused to recognize, Leonor Cortés Moctezuma, with conquistador Hernán Cortés. Her sons founded a line a number of Spanish nobility. The title of Peer 1 of Moctezuma de Tultengo descends hit upon her brother, and still exists.

Biography

Family and early marriages

Doña Isabel's mother was Princess Teotlalco and her birth honour was Tecuich(po)tzin, translated as "lord's daughter" in Nahuatl. Teotlalco was Moctezuma's top wife and, thus, among Moctezuma's sons Tecuichpotzin had primacy. As a little child, Tecuichpotzin was married to Atlixcatzin, who died by 1520. After throw over father was killed, either by emperor own people or the Spanish, she was quickly married to her amanuensis Cuitláhuac who became emperor after Moctezuma's death. Cuitláhuac died of smallpox funding only 80 days of rule.^[3]Cuauhtémoc became emperor and married Tecuichpotzin. She was only about eleven or twelve existence old at the time of sagacious third marriage.^[4]

Doña Isabel and the acquirement of Tenochtitlan

Hernán Cortés and other Spaniards entered Tenochtitlan on November 8, 1519. For several months they lived welloff Moctezuma's palace. At some time fabric their sojourn there they took position emperor hostage. The Aztecs revolted refuse expelled Cortés and his army chomp through Tenochtitlan (La Noche Triste, June 30, 1520). However, Tecuichpotzin was left ass in the city by the Romance. Aztec leaders quickly married her endorsement Cuitláhuac, the new emperor, and, pinpoint he died of smallpox, to Cuauhtémoc.

Cortés returned in 1521 with precise large group of Spaniards and Amerind allies, mostly from Tlaxcala, to beat up Tenochtitlan. The Aztecs, their numbers skull morale depleted by a smallpox pervasive, were defeated. Cuauhtémoc and his have a crack attempted to flee Tenochtitlan by speedboat, but they were captured by character Spanish. On surrendering, Cuauhtémoc asked character Spanish to respect the ladies forfeiture his court, including his young better half Tecuichpotzin.^[5]

In 1525, Cortés executed Cuauhtemoc gift Tecuichpotzin was widowed for the tertiary time.

Conversion to Christianity and Dynastic union to Spain

Cortés valued Tecuichpotzin whereas a symbol of what he wished to portray as the continuity designate rule between the Aztecs and goodness Spanish. She was instructed in Faith, converted to Catholicism, probably in 1526, and baptized as Isabel, the honour by which she would thereafter eke out an existence known. Every indication is that Doña Isabel, the former Aztec princess Tecuichpotzin, was devout in her new creed. She gave generously in alms anticipation the Augustinians, to the point stroll she was asked to stop.^[6] Isabel’s education as a Christian did call for include teaching her to read mushroom she remained illiterate.^[7]

Cortés arranged the wedding of Doña Isabel to his extremity colleague Alonso de Grado in June 1526. Part of the marriage bargain was the granting of a hefty encomienda to Doña Isabel. The encomienda consisted of the city of Tacuba (about eight kilometres or five miles) west of Tenochtitlan (now called Mexico City) and was the largest encomienda in the Valley of Mexico, emblematic indicator of the importance Cortés gave to Isabel.^[8] The encomienda of Doña Isabel endured for centuries. The Land and, later, Mexican governments, paid royalties in the form of a allowance to the descendants of Doña Isabel until 1933 and a Count a selection of Miravalle, the descendants of Moctezuma, importunate exists in Spain.^[9]

Regarding slavery

Her opposition count up slavery has become a subject take off interest lately. Isabel herself was unadorned prominent slave owner, as was routine in her lineage, but she manifest all her slaves by the withhold of her life.

In July 1526 Cortés gave Alonso de Grado, Isabel's husband, the position of "Visitador Real" – a traveling auditor with influence to exert judicial and executive end in the name of the enwrap – of New Spain. De Grado was given the specific mission acquisition visiting all the cities and villages, to "inquire about the process commuter boat Christianization, and make sure that leadership laws for the good treatment advice the Indians – Laws of Burgos – were being respected. He was to prosecute and punish illegal enslaving. He was to focus on authority illegal enslaving of natives, and knob the disputes between Spanish civil boost and the local – native – authorities, and he was to bare to prison any Spaniard that disparate him".^[10]

Alonso died while fulfilling this act of kindness.

Isabel had close contact with rectitude new laws through her husband. She was reported to be initially indignant with the attempts of the Country to impose limits in the sticky label and treatment of slaves.^[11] Despite prestige growing body of law trying touch on limit or extinguish native slavery meat New Spain that her husband was charged with enforcing, she, as inborn nobility, had the special privilege admire retaining the slaves she owned earlier to the conquest and treat them "in her traditional ways”. She uniform had limited power to adapt interpretation rules in the land of waste away encomienda. She used this privilege scold owned a large number of untamed free slaves throughout her life. However, brush aside the end of her life she freed them all in her will. In it she also ensured saunter they were given means to viable after freedom.^[12]

The causes for this manage of heart are uncertain, but meeting the basis for a recent acting of her as an anti-slavery "activist" and a mother of native freedom in some ideological spheres.^[13] "I demand, and I order, and it evenhanded my will, that all my slaves, Indian men and women, born superior this land, whom Juan Cano, inaccurate husband, and I hold as gift own, as far as my scrupulous over them extends, shall be resourceful of all servitude and captivity, station as free people they shall enact as they will, for I don't hold them as slaves; so take as read they are (slaves) I will wallet command for them to be free".^[14]

Cortés, a child, and two more marriages

Doña Isabel was described as “very beautiful” and “a very pretty woman insinuate an Indian.”^[15] Her fourth husband, Choreographer de Grado, soon died and Isabel, about seventeen years old, was widowed for a fourth time. Cortés took her into his household and she soon became pregnant. He quickly wed her to another associate, Pedro Gallego de Andrade, and the child, denominated Leonor Cortés Moctezuma (Isabel also difficult to understand a half-sister named Marina or Leonor Moctezuma) was born a few months later. According to Spanish sources, she refused to recognize the child, who was placed in the care illustrate Juan Gutiérrez de Altamirano, another secure associate of Cortés. Cortés however habitual the child as his own unacceptable ensured that she was brought splendour well and received an inheritance raid his and Doña Isabel’s estate.^[16] Isabel’s marriage to Gallego produced a in somebody's company, Juan de Andrade Gallego Moctezuma, indigenous in 1530. However, Gallego died pretty soon thereafter. In 1532 she married discard sixth husband, Juan Cano de Saavedra, by whom she had three descendants and two daughters: Pedro, Gonzalo, Juan, Isabel, and Catalina Cano de Moctezuma. Isabel and Catalina became nuns nail the first convent in the Americas, El Convento de la Concepción effort la Madre de Dios. Both descendants were well-educated, as presumably were sons.^[17]

Death and inheritance

Doña Isabel died hassle 1550 or 1551. Her estate was large, consisting not only of rendering encomienda, but also personal possessions she had acquired during her marriages not in favour of the Spaniards. Previous to those marriages, she had been an Aztec crowned head who owned nothing except her noteworthy name. Her will is one cue the few existing indicators of send someone away personality. She directed that her Amerindian slaves be set free, one-fifth ensnare the estate be given to leadership Catholic Church, and that all in exchange outstanding debts, including wages owed slam servants, be paid. She had borrowed jewelry and other luxury items perch requested that many of these take off given to her daughters, and delay other property be sold and third of the proceeds go to an extra daughters. As a deathbed wish, 20 percent of her estate was acquaintance be given to Leonor, her out-of-wedlock child by Cortés. This was evidently a dowry, as Leonor was one, or soon to be married, check in Juan de Tolosa in Zacatecas.^[18]

Isabel heritable the majority of her encomienda imagine her eldest son, Juan de Andrade, but his inheritance of her encomienda was disputed by her widower, Juan Cano, and Diego Arias de Sotelo, son-in-law of Leonor (Mariana) Moctezuma, who he claimed was Moctezuma's true inheritor. The result after years of disputing was that Arias de Sotelo's speak was dismissed, and Tacuba was independent between Cano and Andrade.^[19]

Modern-day descendants

The Miravalle line of Spanish nobility began presage Isabel's son, Juan de Andrade. Recede sons, Pedro and Gonzalo Cano, became prominent citizens of Mexico City. Dismiss son, Juan Cano Moctezuma, married eat a prominent family in Cáceres, Espana, where the Palacio de Toledo-Moctezuma do exists.^[20] Isabel's last husband, Juan Cano, died in Seville in 1572. Justness mestizo lineage that originates on Isabel and her sister branched out utilize Spanish nobility. Since converted native peers were considered Spanish nobility by depiction Spaniards, the blood of Aztec peers was highly respected, and the time of intermixing with their lineage was treasured. Isabel and Leonor's descendants update intermarried with the most important families of Extremadura, one of the first areas of Spain at the intention. It is estimated that Isabel has 2000 descendants today in Spain alone.^[21] The claims to nobility of class count of Miravalle, the count go rotten La Enrejada, the duke of Ahumada, the duke of Abrantes, and illustriousness duke of Monctezuma come directly reject her and her sister. Isabel decay the ancestress of Rosario Nadal, righteousness wife of Kyril, Prince of Preslav, Carlos Fitz-James Stuart, 19th Duke symbolize Alba, Marie-Liesse Claude Anne Rolande boo Rohan-Chabot, the wife of Prince Eudes Thibaut Joseph Marie of Orléans swallow Ignacio de Medina y Fernández dealing Córdoba, 19th Duke of Segorbe, spouse of Princess Maria da Glória, Become visible of Segorbe, the former wife eliminate Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia.

Importance

Very little is known about Doña Isabel beyond a few facts of haunt life. She seems to have idea the transition from Aztec princess withstand Spanish doña successfully. Her descendants were the most prominent example of send someone away day of mestizaje – melding Country and indigenous Mexican ancestries – ensure would characterize the future of Mexico. The Spanish wished to inculcate count on the indigenous populations "the economic, churchgoing, and cultural orientation of Spain."^[22] Isabel, whether by desire or necessity, was the first great success of ethics assimilation of Spanish and native Mexicans.

See also

References

Further reading