Aztec Triple Alliance

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles
available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. The Aztec Triple
Alliance, or Aztec Empire began as an alliance of three Nahua
city-states or "altepeme": Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan. These
city-states ruled the area in and around the Valley of Mexico from 1428
until they were defeated by the Spanish conquistadores and their native
allies under Hernán Cortés in 1521. The Triple Alliance was formed from
the victorious faction in a war between the city of Azcapotzalco and its
former tributary provinces. Despite the initial conception of the empire
as an alliance of three cities, Tenochtitlan quickly established itself
as the dominant partner. By the time the Spanish arrived in 1520, the
lands of the Alliance were effectively ruled from Tenochtitlan, and the
other partners in the alliance had assumed subsidiary roles. The
alliance waged wars of conquest and expanded rapidly after its
formation. At its height, the alliance controlled an empire that covered
most of central Mexico as well as some more distant lands. Aztec rule
has been described by scholars as "hegemonic" or "indirect".