Mixcoatl's War of Restoration

Mixcoatl's War of Restoration
Steles depicting Mixcoatl IV (left) and Tlaltecuhtli I (right).
Date 1015BC – 7 February 999BC (approximately 16 years) Location Kingdom of Cuscatlán Result Mixcoatl victory
Belligerents
Tlaltecuhtli's loyalists	Mixcoatl's supporters
Commanders and leaders
Tlaltecuhtli I   Prince Tlaltecuhtli   Uaxaclajuun Cheen   Tiliw Yopaat † Kinich Janaab	Mixcoatl IV Prince Mixcoatl Xul Itzam Kinich Bahlam † Kinich Kan
Strength
Ancient sources: 500,000 Modern estimates: 20,000–25,000	Ancient sources: 75,000 Modern estimates: 18,000–21,000
Casualties and losses
Ancient sources: 400,000 Modern estimates: 15,000–18,000	Ancient sources: 40,000 Modern estimates: 12,000–14,000

Mixcoatl's War of Restoration (Cuscatleco: Միխցոատլ Իյաոյոուհ Խիտլաանիլիտի Կուիտլապանտլի; transliterated as: Mixcoatl Iyaoyouh Xitlaaniliti Kuitlapantli), alternatively referred to as the Mixcoatl Restoration or Mixcoatl's Restoration, was a 16 year-long civil war within the Kingdom of Cuscatlán which occurred during the end of the 11th century BC and beginning of the 10th century BC. The war was fought between loyalist forces of Tlatoani Tlaltecuhtli I and supporting forces of the deposed Tlatoani Mixcoatl IV.

The war began after Mixcoatl IV, who had been deposed as Tlatoani when he was an infant in 1040BC by Tlaltecuhtli I, began a revolt against his usurper in 1015BC in Iximche with the support of the city and foreign allies. Throughout 1014BC and 1008BC, he commanded campaigns throughout the southern domains of the kingdom, capturing cities and gaining the support of local leaders, culminating in the capture of Old Xichútepa. From 1007BC to 1002BC, Mixcoatl IV's campaigns moved north, and in 1001BC, he began marching up the Xichútepa River to the capital, Cuscatlán. The final battle of the war occurred outside of the city itself where Mixcoatl IV defeated Tlaltecuhtli I, capturing him and having him executed along with many of his army's leaders.

After his victory, Mixcoatl IV reestablished himself as the Tlatoani of Cuscatlán after approximately 41 years of being deposed. For the first few years of his reign, he focused on crushing final remnants of opposition to his reign by loyalists to Tlaltecuhtli I. He reigned until his death in 975BC, and after which, his descendants continued to reign as Tlatoanis of Cuscatlán for another 87 years until 888BC when his great grandson, Mixcoatl VII, was deposed and assassinated by Kukulkan I.

The conflict has become a popular "comeback" story within Creeperopolis, being the central topic of various films, poems, paintings, and novels. The most popular and well known romanticized version of the conflict is Pío Molina Pachán's 1612 play La'Tragedia del Jefe which portrays the fall of Tlaltecuhtli I. The most reliable source describing the conflict is Mixcoatl's Codex inscribed sometime during the 970sBC.

Background

Tlaltecuhtli I's seizure of power

A stele depicting Mixcoatl III.

In 1126BC, Mixcoatl I led a revolt against Tlatoani Tlacomihua II which resulted in Mixcoatl I defeating Tlacomihua II at the Battle of Cuscatlán, killing him during the battle and ending the 73 year-long Rule of the Generals which began in 1199BC. Mixcoatl I ruled for 44 years and was succeeded by his son Mixcoatl II upon his death in 1082BC. Mixcoatl II reigned until his death in 1060BC, upon which, he was succeeded by his son Mixcoatl III.

Mixcoatl III alienated many local leaders and generals during his reign as he repossessed much of their lands for his own personal use. He was assassinated in 1040BC by a group of soldiers on the orders of Yichaak Kahk, one of his generals, and Kinich Yuknoom, the Kinich of Cuscatlán. Upon Mixcoatl III's assassination, his infant son, Mixcoatl IV, was declared Tlatoani of Cuscatlán with Yichaak Kahk and Kinich Yuknoom serving as co-regents for the infant Tlatoani.

A month into Mixcoatl IV's reign, many generals and soldiers were not content with the co-regency of Yichaak Kahk and Kinich Yuknoom as they had not returned any of the land that Mixcoatl III had repossessed and that they even began using the repossessed land for themselves and their families. Angered with their co-regency, a group of generals staged an uprising against Yichaak Kahk and Kinich Yuknoom. Kinich Yuknoom was captured, tortured, and mutilated by a mob of soldiers, while Yichaak Kahk took Mixcoatl IV and fled from the city. After the success of the revolt, Tlaltecuhtli, one of the generals who led the revolt, declared himself regent of the kingdom, however, when he heard news that Mixcoatl IV fled from the city with Yichaak Kahk, declared himself as Tlatoani of Cuscatlán and the high priests of the city affirmed his proclamation.

After his proclamation, he ordered an army to march south and capture both Yichaak Kahk took Mixcoatl IV and to return them to Cuscatlán to be executed. The army, under Kinich Yat Ahk, Kinich Yuknoom's successor as Kinich of Cuscatlán, captured Yichaak Kahk after a week of fleeing the city. Kinich Yat Ahk demanded to know where Mixcoatl IV was, and Yichaak Kahk responded by stating that the infant king had died of disease just before he had been captured. He presented to Kinich Yat Ahk a grave which contained the remains of a child which convinced Kinich Yat Ahk that Mixcoatl IV had truly died. He returned to Cuscatlán where Yichaak Kahk was tortured, dismembered, and sacrificed by being disemboweled. Tlaltecuhtli I declared the fall of the House of Mixcoatl, stating that the dynasty had fallen out of favor with the gods due to their greed and inconsideration for the people. He had various monuments built by the Tlatoanis of the dynasty defaced and destroyed.

In 1034BC, he named his son, Prince Tlaltecuhtli, as his successor, establishing the House of Tlaltecuhtli as the next dynasty to rule the kingdom. The announcement quelled the ambitions of various generals and aspiring generals who believed that they would assume the title of Tlatoani after Tlaltecuhtli I's death, similar to the military dictatorship of the Rule of the Generals 86 years earlier. A conspiracy to assassinate Tlaltecuhtli I and his son was discovered in 1032BC and he had all those involved executed. Some of the generals alleged that Mixcoatl IV was still alive, but the allegations were dismissed by Tlaltecuhtli I as he had already believed that the deposed Tlatoani was already dead.

Mixcoatl IV's exile

In the days before Yichaak Kahk was captured by Kinich Yat Ahk, he managed to hide Mixcoatl IV with a family in a village on the edges of the kingdom's control. From there, the family smuggled him out of the kingdom and he was raised in secret by the village's leader. The village was out of the control of the kingdom and did not pay royalties or give hostages to the kingdom which ensured the safety of Mixcoatl IV for the moment. During his time there, he learned to speak the language of the community. Not much else is known about Mixcoatl IV's time in exile.

1001BC–999BC: March up the Xichútepa River

Battle of Cuscatlán

Main article: Battle of Cuscatlán (999BC)

After being driven out of all of his territories, Tlaltecuhtli I and his army were forced to make a last stand at Cuscatlán, the kingdom's capital city, against Mixcoatl IV and his advancing forces. Before the battle, Tlaltecuhtli I positioned his forces on a hill near the city in a strategic defensive position. When Mixcoatl IV arrived, he had his men set up a camp where they rested in preparation for what seemed to be the final battle of the war.

The following day, Mixcoatl IV engaged his men for battle, but Tlaltecuhtli I's army refused to engage in battle, as Tlaltecuhtli I's priests had interpreted that they could not attain any victory until the next full moon. For the next three days, Mixcoatl IV's men engaged for battle, while Tlaltecuhtli I's men refused to engage. On the fourth day, Mixcoatl IV sent a scout to Tlaltecuhtli I's position to attempt to determine why his forces refused to engage, and there, he scour overheard talk about the full moon. Returning to camp, the scout informed Mixcoatl IV that Tlaltecuhtli I was waiting for the next full moon, and upon hearing the information, he planned to launch an attack of Tlaltecuhtli I's men the following day.

A depiction of Tlaltecuhtli I's execution, c. 100sBC.

At night, Mixcoatl IV moved his forces out of the camp and positioned them around the hill, preventing any possibility of retreat by Tlaltecuhtli I's men. At daybreak, Tlaltecuhtli I's men saw that their position had been completely surrounded by Mixcoatl IV's men, and at 9 a.m., Mixcoatl IV ordered the northern and southern flanks of his army to march up the hill and engage Tlaltecuhtli I's army. As the fighting was ongoing for about an hour, the eastern and western flanks marched up the hill too, as some of Tlaltecuhtli I's soldiers began to attempt to flee from the battlefield.

At around 12 p.m., it is reported by Mixcoatl IV's scribes that "the Sun had been eaten by the Moon by the gods to show their disapproval of Tlaltecuhtli I's reign." Historians have interpreted the occurrence as most likely being a solar eclipse. Modern astronomers in 2013 determined that on 7 September 999BC at 12:12 p.m. at the site of Cuscatlán, a total solar eclipse indeed would have been observed, and as it was around the time of the battle, historians have dated the battle to an exact date, the only battle of the entire war whose exact date has been determined. According to Mixcoatl IV's scribes, Tlaltecuhtli I was captured during the eclipse and executed by Mixcoatl IV himself, causing the Sun to reemerge from the Moon. Historians have interpreted the account as Mixcoatl IV symbolically appeasing the gods by executing Tlaltecuhtli I, and as the gods were appeased, the gods restored the Sun and its light. Historians and astronomers, however, reject the idea that Tlaltecuhtli I was executed at the exact moment that the eclipse ended, as it would have only lasted two minutes. Historians instead believe that the account was embellished by the scribes to further legitimize Mixcoatl IV's claim to the throne.

After victory in the battle, Tlaltecuhtli I was executed, along with his son and Uaxaclajuun Cheen. Half of Tlaltecuhtli I's army was captured and enslaved, while the other half were either sacrificed or executed. Mixcoatl IV and his army marched into Cuscatlán and he proclaimed himself as the legitimate Tlatoani of Cuscatlán and the high priests of the city affirmed his claim, likely on the threat of execution if they refused to acknowledge his proclamation.

See also

Creeperopolis portal Terraconserva portal

• War of Creeperian Unification
• War of the Creeperian Succession