There were many complex human societies in the Americas in the years between 1200 and 1450 CE. This short essay introduces several major examples.

Haudenosaunee

Around 1200, a group of indigenous people held a meeting. It was attended by chiefs of the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk tribes. These five Iroquois tribes had been fighting with each other for years. During their meeting, the five tribes pledged to live in peace and to unite together. Their new confederation, or union, was known in the Iroquois language as the Haudenosaunee.

The five tribes that made up the Haudenosaunee were all based in different areas of what is now New York State. Each tribe relied on a matriarchal hierarchy, meaning women held the positions of power. These women worked with the men’s council to govern the tribe. Around 1720, the Tuscarora nation was admitted into the league as the sixth member.

The Haudenosaunee Confederation was the most powerful force in North America for centuries. Its power only lessened with the expansion of European colonialism during the 1700s.

Aztec

While they did not join together in a confederation, other peoples of the Americas shared beliefs and ways of life that made them somewhat similar to each other. Of these, the three major cultural groups were the Aztecs, the Incas, and the Mayas. All three created extraordinary societies, full of complex beliefs. Each developed calendars, weaving, record-keeping, and elaborate ceremonies.

According to their own history, the Aztec people left their ancestral home, Aztlan. Then, they traveled south seeking a sign that they had arrived at their new home. As the Aztecs traveled over the years, they moved through other communities, such as that of the Toltecs. From the Toltecs, the Aztecs borrowed beliefs, crops, weapons, and the legend of Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent. The Aztecs fled from the Toltecs to an island in one of the three lakes in the Valley of Mexico. There they received the sign they had been waiting for: an eagle on a cactus with a snake in its mouth. In 1325, they began to build their home, Tenochtitlan.

The Aztecs built huge pyramids, some of which still stand today. They created cities with zones for priest-leaders, craftsmen, families, and merchants, and set up major markets. Their religion included a belief in an impending apocalypse, or world-ending event. They believed that the apocalypse could be delayed by offering the blood of human sacrifices.

Religious beliefs were among the reasons that the Aztecs wanted to conquer neighboring peoples. They took prisoners and also collected payments, or tribute, in the form of food or precious items. The Aztecs made little attempt to integrate conquered people into their culture. Within a century, the Aztec capital had a larger population than any city in Europe.

Mayapan

To the south, in Yucatán, most of the Classic Maya cities had collapsed by 1200. In some Maya cities such as Mayapan, invaders arrived. These were the Toltec, who were neighbors of the Aztec state. Their arrival brought new practices, culture, and even new gods, such as Quetzalcoatl. Mayapan was built with a plaza, pyramids, and ball courts. Over time it became increasingly important as a trading power. Between 1250 and 1450, Mayapan served as the cultural and political center of the Yucatecan Maya civilization. Maya cultural achievements continued in Mayapan, in areas like mathematics, calendar-making, astronomy, writing, and the arts. Despite its high level of civilization, the city was abandoned around 1450.

Inca

The most successful and significant empire in the Americas in this period was established by the Incas around 1100. The legend of their origin begins with the god Viracocha, who came from the Pacific Ocean to Lake Titicaca, where he created the Sun, the gods, and the different peoples. The Incas believed they were created at Tiahuanaco by the Sun god called Inti, so they were his children. The first children were Manco Capac and Mama Oqllu. Their family went to the Valley of Cusco to create the Inca capital, Cusco.¹

The ruler of this society, called Sapa Inca, was Inti’s representative on Earth. Around 1250, the Incas began to expand through military conquest. They invaded villages and set up new Inca colonies. The Inca forced conquered people to worship Inca gods and to pay tribute.

This system relied on a network of well-constructed roads. Messengers called chasqui ran the roads carrying information and instructions. They ran up to 250 kilometers in one day. Knotted strings called quipu were used to keep a record of important events. Eventually the Inca ruled the Andes from today’s Colombia into Argentina, from the Pacific coast into the Amazon rainforest.

Religious and agricultural festivities marked daily life. The Incas built magnificent temples to honor Inti. Cusco’s best temples were only for the wealthiest and most powerful members of society. Priests maintained these buildings and made sacrifices to the gods. Young women served as priestesses, wove clothes for the Sapa Inca and prepared food for the gods. Various rocks, streams, mountains, and trees were identified as holy places, called huacas, and people left offerings beside them.

Inca spiritual leaders performed cures and warned communities of natural disasters. Their knowledge of healing practices has survived to the present. Today, the Inca heritage is central to the identity of modern Peru.

Connections

The communities of the Americas were very varied before 1450. No “single story” can cover the history of this vast area during this period. Overall, it was a time of increasing connections between societies. It was also a period in which some very large states emerged in several separate regions.

1 If you’re thinking about the animated movie The Emperor’s New Groove right now, yes that was set in sort of the same place, but historically speaking, the movie creators may have taken a few liberties.