Why were the Aztec's So Obsessed with Blood?

Uncover the dark secrets of the Aztec Empire in our latest video! From ruthless conquest to blood-soaked rituals, explore the rise and fall of a civilization shrouded in mystery.

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[lauriepenner]

I was at the ceremonial ball courts at Chichen Itza with a tour group. Someone asked if they sacrificed the losers. "Oh, no, " the tour guide said. "They sacrificed the WINNERS." Because the gods only get the best.

[ScentlessSun]

I bet the Aztecs had a storyteller like Simon but with cool piercings, tattoos, and scars. Rest in peace Aztec Simon.

[lauriepenner]

Imagine being Aztec after the fall of your civilization and finding out that the world just kept on going even when the rituals and sacrifices stopped.

[tychoMX]

Thanks Simon - as a Mexican that grew up with all these mythologies and stories, this is all largely consistent with the facts as understood today.

The Aztec believed Tenochtitlan to be literally the center of the world - not just in the middle of the earth but also in the crossways between heavens and the underworld. And the current era - 5th Sun - was indeed (as reported) initiated by the sacrifice of the gods to put the sun in motion - and sacrifice was required to keep the celestial bodies moving.

Makes you realize the magnitude of insane power religions have, and how easy is for political, economical and religious powers to combine.

[Hadar]

Tlaxcalans hated Aztecs so much that they became the most loyal allies of Spaniards for centuries. Even during Mexican war of independence most of the Tlaxcalans supported the Spanish. So yeah, Tlaxcalans oversaw the fall of their enemies and were soldiers that build Spanish colonial empire (they even fought for Spain to conquer Philippines). :D

[chrislott]

One of the best story tellers of all time, Simon.

[keiththorpe]

I once read an essay in which it was theorized that ancient societies which grew obsessed with blood sacrifice became so based on nothing more than coincidence. A bad harvest, harsh weather, or some other less-than-optimum climatic period or episode came to an end after a random blood sacrifice which might have been performed in desperation. It seemed to work, and thus blood sacrifice became an integral, indispensable part of their theology.

[Baddy]

Aztecs did not have pack-animals and so for warfare, they could only take what they could carry. This limited their ability to do wars further away, since the jungle also doesn't offer much food. This is a huge factor in them deciding to keep enemies alive.

Their "limited" use of warfare made them unprepared for the European way of concluding wars. They thought the Spanish would just go away after a while, like they did so many times themself.

[crepinsterve]

Is it just me or does Simon's narration breathe life into every topic??

[albatross]

6:54 "the more the child cried, the greater the offering"

(Nervous Aztec baby noises)😳

[iguiste]

The Aztecs were by far one of my top subjects in history. Alongside the ancient Greeks, Egyptians, Romans and Vikings. I loved learning about the Aztecs, but my they were brutal.

[harrisonmiller]

This video came out today on the 505th anniversary that Hernán Cortés arrived in Mexico which is today by the way.
Also great video Simon!

[getnohappy]

Wow, Aztecs were about as close as we'll (hopefully) get to a Chaos cult

[stphn_alpharius]

DJ Peachcobbler has an excellent set of videos on the fall of the aztecs, with great analysis of the biases of the sources

[thesis]

Some years ago historians questioned the validity of spanish accounts as propaganda, "there's no way the aztects were that bloodthirsty...", and then they found the mass graves for ritual sacrifices lol, they did indeed perform mass sacrifices.

[shadeitplease]

Chichen Itza is incredible.If you ever get the chance to go you absolutely should. Truly fascinating stuff.

[WilliamHaisch]

This is the video I send people when they ask me _“What people do before television?”_ 😂

[AeroGuy]

Once again, Simon reminds us that the past really was the worst.

[wtfpwnzred]

Not me realizing that eagle warriors, jaguar knights, and garland wars are historically accurate 😮

[NicoleZXO]

You have so many channels. Just now re finding this one. But you and the why files are the best informational channels about older stuff and debunk it. Thanks for your hard work!