KMPIRE S CHILDREN: THE PEOPLE OF TZINTZUNTZAN FOSTER 



15 



fortified cities and garrisons was maintained to 

 hold off the counterraids of the Aztecs. Best 

 described is Zitacuaro, which had a stockade of 

 stout oak poles more than 3 m. high and nearly 

 2 m. wide, so well built that, in the words of 

 Beaumont, it could not have been better if 

 made of stone (Beaumont, 1932, vol. 2, p. 6). 

 Master carpenters and peons were charged with 

 the work of constantly replacing old and dry 

 wood with green posts. The old wood was then 

 ceremonially burned in the temples as an offer- 

 ing to the gods. 



Conquered peoples paid tribute, depending 

 on the products of their country, in the form of 

 cloths and clothing, gold dust and nuggets, salt, 

 cotton, painted and unpainted gourd containers 

 (jicaras), dried bananas, honey, maize, turkeys, 

 and chiles. 



FIRST SPANISH CONTACT 



The Relacion speaks of unusual omens - — • 

 comets, burning temples, and dreams — which 

 warned the Tarascans of the arrival of a strange 

 people. Nevertheless, the first concrete infor- 

 mation came with the arrival of a mission of 

 10 Aztecs, sent by Moctezuma II to Michoacan 

 to ask the aid of the Tarascans against the new 

 enemy. In spite of the fact that the Aztecs were 

 his traditional antagonists. King Zuangua re- 

 ceived the emissaries with hospitality and listen- 

 ed to their accounts of a people who came 

 mounted on a type of deer, who wore garments 

 of an unknown metal, and who carried "things" 

 which sounded like thunder and which killed 

 at a great distance. Greatly impressed, but fear- 

 ing treachery, Zuangua sent several messengers 

 with the emissaries to see for themselves, and 

 at the same time secretly sent out a small war 

 party which captured three Otomi Indians. Ask- 

 ed if they knew of unusual events in Mexico, 

 the Otomis replied that the Mexicans had been 

 conquered by unknown people, that Tenochti- 

 tlan was piled high with corpses, and for this 

 reason they were seeking allies to help throw 

 off the foreign yoke. 



Zuangua was greatly puzzled that his gods 

 and ancestors had not warned him of these hap- 

 penings. The returning Tarascans confirmed the 

 news of the Otomis, and brought a new plea 

 for aid. Still undecided, Zuangua suspected 



treachery on the part of the Aztecs, that they 

 would sell his warriors to Cortes or kill them. 

 The arrival of the Spaniards, reasoned Zuan- 

 gua, must be due to the will of a god for unsus- 

 pected sins or oversights on the part of the Ta- 

 rascans. He gave orders that more and more 

 wood be brought for the temple fires that their 

 gods might pardon their sins. While trying to 

 make up his mind, smallpox and dysentery 

 brought by the returning messengers struck the 

 town, and the king and his chief priests died. 

 The eldest son, Tangaxoan, also called Zincicha, 

 succeeded him, and fearing his two younger 

 brothers, put them to death uj)on the pretext that 

 they were intriguing with his wives and that they 

 wished to take the kingdom from him. Mean- 

 while, just after the death of Zuangua, 10 more 

 messengers came from Moctezuma asking aid. 

 The weak and cowardly emperor told them that 

 they must go to the infernal regions and ask the 

 advice of the dead king. They were prepared in 

 the manner of all captives and sacrificed in the 

 temples of Curicaveri and Xaratanga. Thus 

 was destroyed the only hope which the Mexicans 

 had of defeating Cortes, and postponing the 

 conquest of Mexico. 



The first news the Spaniards had of Michoa- 

 can was accidental: a soldier named Parrillas 

 in search of provisions arrived at Taximaroa 

 (Ciudad Hidalgo) on February 23, 1522, and, 

 possibly awed by his white horse, the Tarascans 

 treated him well. Cortes, intrigued by the ac- 

 counts of the fertility of the land and of gold 

 and silver, sent the soldier Montafio, accompa- 

 nied by 3 Spaniards and 20 Aztecs, with direct- 

 ions to see and speak with the Tarascan king. 

 Their instructions told them to treat the king 

 well, to inform him about the Pope, the king 

 of Castile, and to enlighten the people about 

 many things to which they were blind. They 

 were to remind the Tarascans that the Christian 

 Cod had permitted them to destroy the Aztecs, 

 because they had not received the Spaniards 

 well, and that they would do the same to all 

 who imitated Moctezuma, including the king, 

 who must recognize the sovereignty of the Span- 

 iards. Montafio and his men were well received 

 in Taximaroa, and shortly thereafter set out 

 for Tzintzuntzan where their coming was an- 

 nounced by painted cloths of metl, maguey fiber, 

 which showed how they dressed and what they 



