History on Fire

Episode 20 - The (Mesoamerican) Godfather

Added 2017-09-16 00:28:22 +0000 UTC

“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer” — Mario Puzo

“Grant me revenge!” — Conan the Barbarian, 1982

“I am immortal” — Nezahualcoyotl

As I was researching the Spaniards’ invasion of the Mexica (aka Aztec) empire, I run into this little nugget of a story, which predates the arrival of the Spaniards. This is basically a real historical version of what would happen if we were to mix the plot of The Godfather with the plot of The Lion King in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. Our key characters include Tezozomoc, a ruthless, Machiavellian genius power-player who ruled over much of the Central Valley of Mexico, and his nemesis Nezahualcoyotl, the poet-king of Texcoco. This episode features political intrigue, Mafia-style hits, the surprise of seeing a beheaded enemy show up with a head on his shoulders, human sacrifice, an unyielding quest for revenge, and a glimpse at the early days of the Aztecs. With characters named Angry Stone Face and Hungry Coyote, you know this has to be a good story…