Ixtlilxochitl II

Ixtlilxochitl II (c. 1500–c. 1550) was the son of Nezahualpilli, king of Texcoco.[1] In 1516 Nezahualpilli died, and the succession was contested by two of his sons, Cacamatzin and Ixtlilxochitl. The former was supported by Moctezuma II, emperor of Mexico, but the latter, appealing to the patriotic sentiment of his nation, would have persuaded them that his brother was too much in the Mexican interest to be true to his own country. A civil war ensued, and ended by a compromise, by which one half of the kingdom, with the capital, remained to Cacamatzin and the northern part to his brother. Ixtlilxochitl became from that time the enemy of Montezuma.

Baptism of Ixtlilxochitl by José Vivar y Valderrama, 18th century.

On the arrival of the Spaniards, the young chieftain sent an embassy to Hernán Cortés while he was at Tlaxcala, offering him his services and asking his aid in return. Through the influence of Cortés, Cacamatzin was deposed and Ixtlilxochitl finally placed on the throne. He was faithful to the Spaniards, and fought with them during the time of the conquest. As years passed he became more and more the friend of the conqueror and the enemy of his country and race. His important services have been commemorated by the Spanish historians, who have given him the credit of contributing more than any other chieftain of America to the conquest of the Aztecs.

After the submission of Mexico he was baptised and took the name of Hernan Cortés, after that of the conqueror, who was his godfather on this occasion. Afterward he took great interest in the propagation of Christianity, and brought in a bag the first stones to build the church of the convent of San Francisco in the city of Mexico. He accompanied Cortés on his expedition to Hibueras in 1525.

He threatened the people of Texcoco, including his mother Yacotzin, to convert to Christianity or be killed.[2]

In the 17th century, Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl, one of his descendants, defended Ixtlilxochitl and his actions in the 13th relation of the Historical Compendium of the Kingdom of Texcoco.

References

  1. ↑  Wilson, James Grant; Fiske, John, eds. (1900). "Ixtlilxochitl II.". Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography. New York: D. Appleton.
  2. ↑ León-Portilla, Miguel (2006). The Broken Spears (Expanded and updated ed.). Boston: Beacon Press. p. 60. ISBN 978-0-8070-5500-7.


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