The Aztecs and Tenochtitlan

By tradition, the Mexica halt where they see an eagle on a cactus, and build their city on a marshy island in Lake Texcoco. Tenochtitlan is joined to the shore by causeways, fresh water is brought in by aqueduct, and the chinampa fields are heaped up in the water itself. By the early sixteenth century several tens of thousands of people live here; the great market of Tlatelolco does its trade, and the main temple serves two gods. Together with Texcoco and Tlacopan the Aztecs form an alliance that draws tribute from broad lands; some of the captives are offered in sacrifice.