Tlacaelel

Tlacaelel

Tlacaelel I (1397 – 1487) (Classical Nahuatl: Tlācaēllel Nahuatl pronunciation: [tɬaːkaˈeːllel], "Man of Strong Emotions," from "tlācatl," person and "ēllelli," strong emotion) was the principal architect of the Aztec Triple Alliance and hence the Mexica (Aztec) empire. He was the son of Emperor Huitzilihuitl and Queen Cacamacihuatl, nephew of Emperor Itzcoatl, father of poet Macuilxochitzin, and brother of Emperors Chimalpopoca and Moctezuma I. During the reign of his uncle Itzcoatl, Tlacaelel was given the office of Tlacochcalcatl, but during the war against the Tepanecs in the late 1420s, he was promoted to first adviser to the ruler, a position called Cihuacoatl in Nahuatl, an office that Tlacaelel held during the reigns of four consecutive Tlatoque, until his death in 1487. Tlacaelel recast or strengthened the concept of the Aztecs as a chosen people, elevated the tribal god/hero Huitzilopochtli to top of the pantheon of gods, and increased militarism. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Tlacaelel has received more than 92,331 page views. His biography is available in 19 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 18 in 2019). Tlacaelel is the 1,509th most popular religious figure (down from 1,480th in 2019), the 114th most popular biography from Mexico (up from 125th in 2019) and the 5th most popular Mexican Religious Figure.