K'iche' Kingdom of Q'umarkaj
Encyclopedia
The K'iche' Kingdom of Q'umarkaj was a state
in the highlands of modern day Guatemala
which was founded by the K'iche' (Quiché) Maya in the thirteenth century, and which expanded through the fifteenth century until it was conquered by Spanish
and Nahua forces led by Pedro de Alvarado
in 1524.
The K'iche' kingdom reached its height under the king K'iq'ab who ruled from the fortified town of Q'umarkaj (also called by its Nahuatl
name Utatlán) near the modern town of Santa Cruz del Quiché
. During his rule the K'iche' ruled large areas of highland Guatemala extending into Mexico
, and they subdued other Maya peoples
such as the Tz'utujil, Kaqchikel and Mam
, as well as the Nahuan Pipil people.
. Important sources include the Popol Vuh
which, apart from the well-known mythology, also contains a history and genealogy of the Kaweq lineage such as the Título de Totonicapan. Information from these can be crosschecked with the Annals of the Cakchiquels
recounting the history of the Kaqchikel vassals and later enemies of the K'iche'. A number of other títulos such as those of Sacapulas, the C'oyoi, Nijaib and Tamub titles each recount K'iche' history from the viewpoint of a specific K'iche' lineage. Other sources include those written by conquistadors and ecclesiastics, and administrative documents of the colonial administration.
, Tz'utujil
peoples, and a seventh tribe called the Tepew Yaqui. Not much is known about the ethnicity of the invaders: the ethnohistoric sources state that they were unable to communicate with the indigenous K'iche' when they arrived, and that they were yaquies, meaning that they spoke Nahuatl
. J.E.S. Thompson
identified them as Mexicanized Putún
merchants. But Carmack
(1968) is of the opinion that they were probably bilingual Nahuatl
and Chontal Maya
speakers who were influenced by Toltec
culture and arrived as conquerors rather than merchants. It is well documented that Nahuan influence in the K'iche' language
already occurs in this period, and the names of the "forefathers" are better understandable as coming from Chontal and Nahuatl than from K'iche'. The K'iche' forefathers brought with them their tribal Gods: the Patron God of the K'iche' tribe was the sky god Tohil
.
in the Chujuyup valley. During this period the Kaqchikel, Rabinal and Tzjutujil tribes were allies of the K'iche' and subordinate to K'iche' rulership. In these days the languages of the four peoples were largely similar but as contact between the groups waned, and finally became enmity, the languages diverged becoming the distinct modern languages.
The K'iche' people itself was also composed of three separate lineages, the K'iche', the Tamub' and the Ilok'ab'. Each lineage served a different function, the Nima K'iche' were the ruling class, the Tamub were probably traders and the Ilok'ab warriors. Each lineage was further divided into sublineages which also each had their specific functions: The K'iche' sublineages were Ajaw K'iche', Kaweq, Nijaib and Sakiq. The Tamub sublineages were Ekoamak' and Kakoj. The Ilok'ab sublineages were the Siq'a and Wanija.
After conquering and settling Jakawitz under Balam Kitze, the K'iche' now ruled by Tz'ikin expanded into Rabinal territory and subdued the Poqomam
with the help of the Kaqchikel. Then they went southwest to found Pismachi where a large ritual center was built.
At Pismachi, both K'oqaib and K'onache ruled, but soon internal conflicts between the lineages erupted, and finally the Ilok'abs left Pismachi and settled in a nearby town called Mukwitz Chilok'ab. During the rule of the ahpop ("man of the mat" - the title of the K'iche ruler) K'otuja the Ilok'abs revolted against the leadership of the Nima K'iche' lineage but were soundly defeated. K'otuja expanded the influence of the K'iche's and tightened the political control over the Kaqchikel and Tz'utujil peoples by marrying his family members into their ruling lineages.
Under K'otujas's son Quq'kumatz the Nima K'iche lineage also left Pismachi and settled nearby at Q'umarkaj, "place of the rotten cane". Quq'kumatz became known as the greatest "Nagual
" lord of the K'iche' and is claimed to have been able to magically transform himself into snakes, eagles, jaguars and even blood. He could fly into the sky or visit the underworld, Xibalba
. Q'uq'umatz greatly expanded the K'iche' kingdom, first from Pismachi' and later from Q'umarkaj. At this time, the K'iche' were closely allied with the Kaqchikels. Q'uq'umatz sent his daughter to marry the lord of the K'oja, a Maya people based in the Cuchumatan mountains
, somewhere between Sacapulas
and Huehuetenango
. Instead of marrying her and submitting to the K'iche'-Kaqchikel alliance, Tekum Sik'om, the K'oja king, killed the offered bride. This act initiated a war between the K'iche'-Kaqchikel of Q'umarkaj and the K'oja. Q'uq'umatz died in the resulting battle against the K'oja.
With the death of his father in battle against the K'oja, his son and heir K'iq'ab swore vengeance, and two years later he led the K'iche'-Kaqchikel alliance against his enemies, together with the Ajpop K'amha (king-elect). The K'iche'-led army entered K'oja at first light, killed Tekum Sik'om and captured his son. K'iq'ab recovered the bones of his father and returned to Q'umarkaj with many prisoners and all the jade and metal that the K'oja possessed, after conquering various settlements in the Sacapulas area, and the Mam people
near Zaculeu
. During the reign of K'iq'ab, who was particularly warlike, the K'iche' kingdom expanded to include Rabinal
, Cobán
and Quetzaltenango
, and extended as far west as the Okos River, near the modern border between the Chiapas coast of Mexico and Guatemalan Pacific coast. With Kaqchikel help, the eastern frontier of the kingdom was pushed as far as the Motagua River
and south as far as Escuintla
.
In 1470 a rebellion shook Q'umarkaj during a great celebration that saw a great gathering that included representatives of all the most important highland peoples. Two sons of K'iq'ab together with some of his vassals rebelled against their king, killing many high ranking lords, Kaqchikel warriors and members of the Kaweq lineage. The rebels tried to kill K'iq'ab himself but he was defended by sons loyal to him in Pakaman, on the outskirts of the city. As a result of the rebellion, K'iq'ab was forced to make concessions to the rebelling K'iche' lords. The newly empowered K'iche' lords turned against their Kaqchikel allies, who were forced to flee Q'umarkaj and found their own capital at Iximche
.
After the death of king K'iq'ab in 1475 the K'iche' were engaged in warfare against both the Tz'utujils and the Kaqchikels, perhaps in an attempt to recover the former power of Q'umarkaj.
), the K'iche' didn't achieve the same level of hegemony as they had experienced in earlier times. From around 1495 the Aztec
empire which was then at its height in central Mexico
began asserting influence on the Pacific coast and into the Guatemalan highlands. Under the Aztec Tlatoani
Ahuitzotl the Soconusco province which was then paying tribute to the K'iche' was conquered by the Aztecs, and when Aztec pochteca
(long distance traders) later arrived at Q'umarkaj the K'iche' ruler 7 Noj was so embittered that he ordered them to leave his kingdom, not to return. However in 1510 when Aztec emissaries from Moctezuma II
arrived in Q'umarkaj to request tribute from the K'iche they saw themselves forced to accept vassalage to the Aztecs. From 1510 to 1521 Aztec influence at Q'umarkaj increased and the K'iche lord 7 Noj also married two daughters of the Aztec ruler, further cementing the Aztec lordship, by becoming his son in-law. During this period Q'umarkaj also became known as Utatlán, the Nahuatl translation of the placename. When the Aztecs were defeated by the Spanish in 1521 they sent messengers to the K'iche' ruler that he should prepare for battle.
Before the arrival of the Spanish led army, the K'iche' were struck by the diseases the Europeans had brought to the Americas. The Kaqchikels allied themselves to the Spaniards in 1520, before they had even arrived in Guatemala, and they also told of their enemies the K'iche and asked for assistance against them. Cortés sent messengers to Q'umarkaj and requested their peaceful submission to Spanish rule and a cessation of hostilities towards the Kaqchikel. The K'iche denied and made ready for battle.
In 1524 conquistador
Pedro de Alvarado
arrived in Guatemala with 135 horsmen, 120 footsoldiers and 400 Aztec, Tlaxcaltec
s and Cholultec allies. They were quickly promised military assistance by the Kaqchikels. The K'iche knew all about the movements of the Spanish forces through their network of spies. When the army arrived at the K'iche' town of Xelaju Noj (Quetzaltenango
) the K'iche' steward of the town sent word to Q'umarkaj. The K'iche' chose Tekum Uman
, a lord from Totonicapan
, as their commander against the Spanish, and he was ritually prepared for the battle. He and his 8,400 warriors met the Spanish/Aztec/Kaqchikel army outside of Pinal south of Quetzalteango and were defeated. After several more defeats the K'iche' offered the Spanish vassalage and invited them to Q'umarkaj. By way of deceit Alvarado then seized the lords of Q'umarkaj and burned them alive. He instated two lower K'iche leaders as his puppet rulers and continued to subdue the other K'iche' communities in the area. Q'umarkaj was razed and levelled to hinder the K'iche' in reestablishing themselves at the well fortified site, and the community relocated to the nearby town of Santa Cruz del Quiché
.
descendants of the founding warlords who appear to have entered as conquerors from the Gulf coast
around AD 1200 and who eventually lost their original language and adopted that of their subjects. The nobles were regarded as sacred and bore royal imagery. Their vassals served as foot-soldiers and were subject to the laws laid out by the nobility, although they could receive military titles as a result of their battlefield prowess. The social divisions were deep seated and were equivalent to strictly observed caste
s. The merchants were a privileged class, although they had to make tributary payments to the nobility. In addition to these classes, the population included rural labourers and artisans. Slaves were also held and included both sentenced criminals and prisoners of war.
There were twenty-four important lineages, or nimja, in Q'umarkaj, closely linked to the palaces in which the nobility attended to their duties; Nimja means "big house" in K'iche', after the palace complexes that the lineages occupied. Their duties included marriage negotiations and associated feasting and ceremonial lecturing. These lineages were strongly patrilineal and were grouped into four larger, more powerful nimja that chose the rulers of the city. At the time of the Conquest, the four ruling nimja were the Kaweq, the Nijaib, the Saqik and the Ajaw K'iche'. The Kaweq and the Nijaib included nine principal lineages each, the Ajaw K'iche' included four and the Saqik had two. As well as choosing the king and king elect, the ruling Kaweq dynasty also had a lineage that produced the powerful priests of Q'uq'umatz, who may have served as stewards of the city.
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
in the highlands of modern day Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
which was founded by the K'iche' (Quiché) Maya in the thirteenth century, and which expanded through the fifteenth century until it was conquered by Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Nahua forces led by Pedro de Alvarado
Pedro de Alvarado
Pedro de Alvarado y Contreras was a Spanish conquistador and governor of Guatemala. He participated in the conquest of Cuba, in Juan de Grijalva's exploration of the coasts of Yucatan and the Gulf of Mexico, and in the conquest of Mexico led by Hernan Cortes...
in 1524.
The K'iche' kingdom reached its height under the king K'iq'ab who ruled from the fortified town of Q'umarkaj (also called by its Nahuatl
Nahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
name Utatlán) near the modern town of Santa Cruz del Quiché
Santa Cruz del Quiché
Santa Cruz del Quiché is a city in Guatemala. It serves as the capital of El Quiché department and the municipal seat of Santa Cruz del Quiché municipality.The city is located at , at an elevation of 2,021 m above sea level...
. During his rule the K'iche' ruled large areas of highland Guatemala extending into Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, and they subdued other Maya peoples
Maya peoples
The Maya people constitute a diverse range of the Native American people of southern Mexico and northern Central America. The overarching term "Maya" is a collective designation to include the peoples of the region who share some degree of cultural and linguistic heritage; however, the term...
such as the Tz'utujil, Kaqchikel and Mam
Mam people
The Mam are a Native American people in the western highlands of Guatemala and in south-western Mexico.Most Mam live in Guatemala, in the departments of Huehuetenango, San Marcos, and Quetzaltenango...
, as well as the Nahuan Pipil people.
Historical sources
The history of the Quiché Kingdom is described in a number of documents written in postcolonial times both in Spanish and in indigenous languages such as Classical K'iche' and KaqchikelKaqchikel language
The Kaqchikel, or Kaqchiquel, language is an indigenous Mesoamerican language and a member of the Quichean–Mamean branch of the Mayan languages family. It is spoken by the indigenous Kaqchikel people in central Guatemala...
. Important sources include the Popol Vuh
Popol Vuh
Popol Vuh is a corpus of mytho-historical narratives of the Post Classic Quiché kingdom in Guatemala's western highlands. The title translates as "Book of the Community," "Book of Counsel," or more literally as "Book of the People."...
which, apart from the well-known mythology, also contains a history and genealogy of the Kaweq lineage such as the Título de Totonicapan. Information from these can be crosschecked with the Annals of the Cakchiquels
Annals of the Cakchiquels
The Annals of the Cakchiquels , is a manuscript written in Kaqchikel, by Francisco Hernández Arana Xajilá in 1571, and completed by his grand son, Francisco Rojas in 1604...
recounting the history of the Kaqchikel vassals and later enemies of the K'iche'. A number of other títulos such as those of Sacapulas, the C'oyoi, Nijaib and Tamub titles each recount K'iche' history from the viewpoint of a specific K'iche' lineage. Other sources include those written by conquistadors and ecclesiastics, and administrative documents of the colonial administration.
History
Origins
The Mayan K'iche' people had lived in the highlands of Guatemala since 600 BCE but the documented history of the K'iche' kingdom began when foreigners from the Mexican Gulf coast entered the highlands via the Río Pasión around 1200 CE. These invaders are known as the "k'iche' forefathers" in the documental sources, because they founded what would be the three ruling lineages of the K'iche' kingdom. The invading peoples were composed of seven tribes: the three K'iche' lineages (the Nima K'iche', the Tamub and the Ilok'ab), the forefathers of the Kaqchikel, RabinalRabinal
Rabinal is a small town located in the Guatemalan department of Baja Verapaz, at . It serves as the administrative seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. The municipality covers 504 km² and, in 2004, had a population of around 36,000...
, Tz'utujil
Tz'utujil
The Tz'utujil are a Native American people, one of the 21 Maya ethnic groups that dwell in Guatemala. Together with the Xinca, Garífunas and the Ladinos, they make up the 24 ethnic groups in this relatively small country. Approximately 100,000 Tz'utujil live in the area around Lake Atitlán...
peoples, and a seventh tribe called the Tepew Yaqui. Not much is known about the ethnicity of the invaders: the ethnohistoric sources state that they were unable to communicate with the indigenous K'iche' when they arrived, and that they were yaquies, meaning that they spoke Nahuatl
Nahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
. J.E.S. Thompson
J. Eric S. Thompson
Sir John Eric Sidney Thompson was an English Mesoamerican archeologist and epigrapher. His contributions to the understanding of Maya hieroglyphs lead him to be one of the foremost mid-20th century anthropological scholars. He was generally known as J. Eric S...
identified them as Mexicanized Putún
Putún Maya
Putún or Chontal Maya is a collective name for several groups of Maya that displaced much of the older leadership of the Maya Lowlands during the Late Classic and Postclassic. The Putún, who came from the Gulf coast in the northwest region of the Maya area, are generally held to have been more...
merchants. But Carmack
Robert M. Carmack
Robert M. Carmack is an academic anthropologist and Mesoamericanist scholar who is most noted for his studies of the history, culture and societies of contemporary Maya peoples...
(1968) is of the opinion that they were probably bilingual Nahuatl
Nahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
and Chontal Maya
Chontal Maya
Chontal Maya may refer to:* Chontal Maya people* Chontal Maya language...
speakers who were influenced by Toltec
Toltec
The Toltec culture is an archaeological Mesoamerican culture that dominated a state centered in Tula, Hidalgo in the early post-classic period of Mesoamerican chronology...
culture and arrived as conquerors rather than merchants. It is well documented that Nahuan influence in the K'iche' language
K'iche' language
The K’iche’ language is a part of the Mayan language family. It is spoken by many K'iche' people in the central highlands of Guatemala. With close to a million speakers , it is the second-most widely spoken language in the country after Spanish...
already occurs in this period, and the names of the "forefathers" are better understandable as coming from Chontal and Nahuatl than from K'iche'. The K'iche' forefathers brought with them their tribal Gods: the Patron God of the K'iche' tribe was the sky god Tohil
Tohil
Tohil was a deity of the K'iche' Maya in the Late Postclassic period of Mesoamerica. At the time of the Spanish Conquest, Tohil was the patron god of the K'iche'. Tohil's principal function was that of a fire deity and he was also both a sun god and the god of rain. Tohil was also associated with...
.
Foundation (ca. 1225 – 1400)
The "forefathers" conquered the indigenous highland peoples and founded a capital at JakawitzChitinamit
Chitinamit is an archeological site of the Maya civilization in the highlands of Guatemala. It has been identified as Jakawitz, the first capital of the K'iche' Maya. The site is located in the El Quiché department, in the municipality of Uspantán...
in the Chujuyup valley. During this period the Kaqchikel, Rabinal and Tzjutujil tribes were allies of the K'iche' and subordinate to K'iche' rulership. In these days the languages of the four peoples were largely similar but as contact between the groups waned, and finally became enmity, the languages diverged becoming the distinct modern languages.
The K'iche' people itself was also composed of three separate lineages, the K'iche', the Tamub' and the Ilok'ab'. Each lineage served a different function, the Nima K'iche' were the ruling class, the Tamub were probably traders and the Ilok'ab warriors. Each lineage was further divided into sublineages which also each had their specific functions: The K'iche' sublineages were Ajaw K'iche', Kaweq, Nijaib and Sakiq. The Tamub sublineages were Ekoamak' and Kakoj. The Ilok'ab sublineages were the Siq'a and Wanija.
After conquering and settling Jakawitz under Balam Kitze, the K'iche' now ruled by Tz'ikin expanded into Rabinal territory and subdued the Poqomam
Poqomam
The Poqomam are a Maya people in Guatemala. Their indigenous language is also called Poqomam and is closely related to Poqomchi'. Notable Poqomam settlements are located in Chinautla , Palín , and in San Luis Jilotepeque . Before the Spanish Conquest, the Poqomam had their capital at Chinautla...
with the help of the Kaqchikel. Then they went southwest to found Pismachi where a large ritual center was built.
At Pismachi, both K'oqaib and K'onache ruled, but soon internal conflicts between the lineages erupted, and finally the Ilok'abs left Pismachi and settled in a nearby town called Mukwitz Chilok'ab. During the rule of the ahpop ("man of the mat" - the title of the K'iche ruler) K'otuja the Ilok'abs revolted against the leadership of the Nima K'iche' lineage but were soundly defeated. K'otuja expanded the influence of the K'iche's and tightened the political control over the Kaqchikel and Tz'utujil peoples by marrying his family members into their ruling lineages.
Quq'kumatz and K'iq'ab (ca. 1400 – 1475)
Nagual
In Mesoamerican folk religion, a Nagual or Nahual is a human being who has the power to magically turn him- or herself into an animal form: most commonly a donkey, turkey, or dog, but also other and more powerful animals such as the jaguar and puma.Such a Nagual is believed to use his powers for...
" lord of the K'iche' and is claimed to have been able to magically transform himself into snakes, eagles, jaguars and even blood. He could fly into the sky or visit the underworld, Xibalba
Xibalba
Xibalba , roughly translated as "place of fear", is the name of the underworld in Maya mythology, ruled by the Maya death gods and their helpers. In 16th-century Verapaz, the entrance to Xibalba was traditionally held to be a cave in the vicinity of Cobán, Guatemala. According to some of the...
. Q'uq'umatz greatly expanded the K'iche' kingdom, first from Pismachi' and later from Q'umarkaj. At this time, the K'iche' were closely allied with the Kaqchikels. Q'uq'umatz sent his daughter to marry the lord of the K'oja, a Maya people based in the Cuchumatan mountains
Sierra de los Cuchumatanes
The Sierra de los Cuchumatanes is the highest non-volcanic mountain range in Central America. Its elevations range from 500 m to over 3,800 m, and it covers a total area of ±16,350 km². With an area of 1,500 km² situated above 3,000 m, it is also the most extensive highland region in Central...
, somewhere between Sacapulas
Sacapulas
Sacapulas is a municipality in the Guatemalan department of El Quiché.In 2006, Sacapulas was connected by a new paved road to Aguacatán and to Nebaj. This road will give the entire area new access to markets and opportunities for economic development....
and Huehuetenango
Huehuetenango
Huehuetenango is a city and a municipality in the highlands of western Guatemala. It is also the capital of the department of Huehuetenango. The municipality's population was over 81,000 people in 2002...
. Instead of marrying her and submitting to the K'iche'-Kaqchikel alliance, Tekum Sik'om, the K'oja king, killed the offered bride. This act initiated a war between the K'iche'-Kaqchikel of Q'umarkaj and the K'oja. Q'uq'umatz died in the resulting battle against the K'oja.
With the death of his father in battle against the K'oja, his son and heir K'iq'ab swore vengeance, and two years later he led the K'iche'-Kaqchikel alliance against his enemies, together with the Ajpop K'amha (king-elect). The K'iche'-led army entered K'oja at first light, killed Tekum Sik'om and captured his son. K'iq'ab recovered the bones of his father and returned to Q'umarkaj with many prisoners and all the jade and metal that the K'oja possessed, after conquering various settlements in the Sacapulas area, and the Mam people
Mam people
The Mam are a Native American people in the western highlands of Guatemala and in south-western Mexico.Most Mam live in Guatemala, in the departments of Huehuetenango, San Marcos, and Quetzaltenango...
near Zaculeu
Zaculeu
Zaculeu or Saqulew is a pre-Columbian Maya archaeological site in the highlands of western Guatemala, about outside of the modern city of Huehuetenango. Occupation at the site dates back as far as the Early Classic period of Mesoamerican history...
. During the reign of K'iq'ab, who was particularly warlike, the K'iche' kingdom expanded to include Rabinal
Rabinal
Rabinal is a small town located in the Guatemalan department of Baja Verapaz, at . It serves as the administrative seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. The municipality covers 504 km² and, in 2004, had a population of around 36,000...
, Cobán
Cobán
The city of Cobán is the capital of the department of Alta Verapaz in central Guatemala. It also serves as the administrative center for the surrounding Cobán municipality. It is located 219 km from Guatemala City....
and Quetzaltenango
Quetzaltenango
Quetzaltenango, also commonly known by its indigenous name, Xelajú , or more commonly, Xela , is the second largest city of Guatemala. It is both the capital of Quetzaltenango Department and the municipal seat of Quetzaltenango municipality....
, and extended as far west as the Okos River, near the modern border between the Chiapas coast of Mexico and Guatemalan Pacific coast. With Kaqchikel help, the eastern frontier of the kingdom was pushed as far as the Motagua River
Motagua River
The Motagua River is a long river in Guatemala. It rises in the western highlands of Guatemala where it is also called Río Grande, and runs in an easterly direction to the Gulf of Honduras. The final few kilometres of the river form part of the Guatemala/Honduras border...
and south as far as Escuintla
Escuintla
Escuintla is a city in south central Guatemala. It is the capital of the Escuintla Department and the administrative seat of Escuintla Municipality....
.
In 1470 a rebellion shook Q'umarkaj during a great celebration that saw a great gathering that included representatives of all the most important highland peoples. Two sons of K'iq'ab together with some of his vassals rebelled against their king, killing many high ranking lords, Kaqchikel warriors and members of the Kaweq lineage. The rebels tried to kill K'iq'ab himself but he was defended by sons loyal to him in Pakaman, on the outskirts of the city. As a result of the rebellion, K'iq'ab was forced to make concessions to the rebelling K'iche' lords. The newly empowered K'iche' lords turned against their Kaqchikel allies, who were forced to flee Q'umarkaj and found their own capital at Iximche
Iximche
Iximche is a Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican archaeological site in the western highlands of Guatemala. Iximche was the capital of the Late Postclassic Kaqchikel Maya kingdom from 1470 until its abandonment in 1524. The architecture of the site included a number of pyramid-temples, palaces and two...
.
After the death of king K'iq'ab in 1475 the K'iche' were engaged in warfare against both the Tz'utujils and the Kaqchikels, perhaps in an attempt to recover the former power of Q'umarkaj.
Decline and conquest
In the period after the death of K'iq'ab the weakened K'iche' continuously struggled against the Kaqchikel, the Tz'utujil, the Rabinal, and the Pipil. Under the leadership of Tepepul the K'iche tried to launch a sneak attack on Iximché, whose inhabitants were weakened because of a famine, but the Kaqchikel got word of the attack and defeated the K'iche army. Constant warfare ensued until 1522 when a peace accord was made between the two peoples. Although the K'iche also experienced some military successes in this period, for example in the subordinations of the Rabinal and the peoples on the Pacific coast of Chiapas (SoconuscoSoconusco
Soconusco is a region of the Mexican state of Chiapas, located in the extreme south of the state and separated from Guatemala by the Suchiate River. It is a region of rich lowlands and foothills. The economic center is Tapachula. Soconusco consists of 16 municipalities.The name comes from the...
), the K'iche' didn't achieve the same level of hegemony as they had experienced in earlier times. From around 1495 the Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
empire which was then at its height in central Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
began asserting influence on the Pacific coast and into the Guatemalan highlands. Under the Aztec Tlatoani
Tlatoani
Tlatoani is the Nahuatl term for the ruler of an altepetl, a pre-Hispanic state. The word literally means "speaker", but may be translated into English as "king". A is a female ruler, or queen regnant....
Ahuitzotl the Soconusco province which was then paying tribute to the K'iche' was conquered by the Aztecs, and when Aztec pochteca
Pochteca
Pochteca were professional, long-distance traveling merchants in the Aztec Empire. They were a small, but important class as they not only facilitated commerce, but also communicated vital information across the empire and beyond its borders. The trade or commerce was referred to as pochtecayotl...
(long distance traders) later arrived at Q'umarkaj the K'iche' ruler 7 Noj was so embittered that he ordered them to leave his kingdom, not to return. However in 1510 when Aztec emissaries from Moctezuma II
Moctezuma II
Moctezuma , also known by a number of variant spellings including Montezuma, Moteuczoma, Motecuhzoma and referred to in full by early Nahuatl texts as Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin, was the ninth tlatoani or ruler of Tenochtitlan, reigning from 1502 to 1520...
arrived in Q'umarkaj to request tribute from the K'iche they saw themselves forced to accept vassalage to the Aztecs. From 1510 to 1521 Aztec influence at Q'umarkaj increased and the K'iche lord 7 Noj also married two daughters of the Aztec ruler, further cementing the Aztec lordship, by becoming his son in-law. During this period Q'umarkaj also became known as Utatlán, the Nahuatl translation of the placename. When the Aztecs were defeated by the Spanish in 1521 they sent messengers to the K'iche' ruler that he should prepare for battle.
In 1524 conquistador
Conquistador
Conquistadors were Spanish soldiers, explorers, and adventurers who brought much of the Americas under the control of Spain in the 15th to 16th centuries, following Europe's discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492...
Pedro de Alvarado
Pedro de Alvarado
Pedro de Alvarado y Contreras was a Spanish conquistador and governor of Guatemala. He participated in the conquest of Cuba, in Juan de Grijalva's exploration of the coasts of Yucatan and the Gulf of Mexico, and in the conquest of Mexico led by Hernan Cortes...
arrived in Guatemala with 135 horsmen, 120 footsoldiers and 400 Aztec, Tlaxcaltec
Tlaxcaltec
The Tlaxcalteca were an indigenous group of Nahua ethnicity that inhabited the Kingdom of Tlaxcala located in what is now the Mexican state of Tlaxcala.-Pre-hispanic history:...
s and Cholultec allies. They were quickly promised military assistance by the Kaqchikels. The K'iche knew all about the movements of the Spanish forces through their network of spies. When the army arrived at the K'iche' town of Xelaju Noj (Quetzaltenango
Quetzaltenango
Quetzaltenango, also commonly known by its indigenous name, Xelajú , or more commonly, Xela , is the second largest city of Guatemala. It is both the capital of Quetzaltenango Department and the municipal seat of Quetzaltenango municipality....
) the K'iche' steward of the town sent word to Q'umarkaj. The K'iche' chose Tekum Uman
Tecún Umán
Tecún Umán was the last ruler and king of the K'iche' Maya people, in the highlands of what is now Guatemala...
, a lord from Totonicapan
Totonicapán
Totonicapán is a city in Guatemala. It serves as the capital of the department of Totonicapán and as the administrative seat for the surrounding municipality of Totonicapán.- External links :# #...
, as their commander against the Spanish, and he was ritually prepared for the battle. He and his 8,400 warriors met the Spanish/Aztec/Kaqchikel army outside of Pinal south of Quetzalteango and were defeated. After several more defeats the K'iche' offered the Spanish vassalage and invited them to Q'umarkaj. By way of deceit Alvarado then seized the lords of Q'umarkaj and burned them alive. He instated two lower K'iche leaders as his puppet rulers and continued to subdue the other K'iche' communities in the area. Q'umarkaj was razed and levelled to hinder the K'iche' in reestablishing themselves at the well fortified site, and the community relocated to the nearby town of Santa Cruz del Quiché
Santa Cruz del Quiché
Santa Cruz del Quiché is a city in Guatemala. It serves as the capital of El Quiché department and the municipal seat of Santa Cruz del Quiché municipality.The city is located at , at an elevation of 2,021 m above sea level...
.
Social organization
In the Late Postclassic, the greater Q'umarkaj area is estimated to have had a population of around 15,000. The inhabitants of Q'umarkaj were divided socially between the nobility and their vassals. The nobles were known as the ajaw, while the vassals were known as the al k'ajol. The nobility were the patrilinealPatrilineality
Patrilineality is a system in which one belongs to one's father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritance of property, names or titles through the male line as well....
descendants of the founding warlords who appear to have entered as conquerors from the Gulf coast
Gulf Coast of Mexico
The Gulf Coast of Mexico stretches along the Gulf of Mexico from the border with the United states at Matamoros, Tamaulipas all the way to the tip of the Yucatán Peninsula at Cancún. It includes the coastal regions along the Bay of Campeche. Major cities include Veracruz, Tampico, and...
around AD 1200 and who eventually lost their original language and adopted that of their subjects. The nobles were regarded as sacred and bore royal imagery. Their vassals served as foot-soldiers and were subject to the laws laid out by the nobility, although they could receive military titles as a result of their battlefield prowess. The social divisions were deep seated and were equivalent to strictly observed caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...
s. The merchants were a privileged class, although they had to make tributary payments to the nobility. In addition to these classes, the population included rural labourers and artisans. Slaves were also held and included both sentenced criminals and prisoners of war.
There were twenty-four important lineages, or nimja, in Q'umarkaj, closely linked to the palaces in which the nobility attended to their duties; Nimja means "big house" in K'iche', after the palace complexes that the lineages occupied. Their duties included marriage negotiations and associated feasting and ceremonial lecturing. These lineages were strongly patrilineal and were grouped into four larger, more powerful nimja that chose the rulers of the city. At the time of the Conquest, the four ruling nimja were the Kaweq, the Nijaib, the Saqik and the Ajaw K'iche'. The Kaweq and the Nijaib included nine principal lineages each, the Ajaw K'iche' included four and the Saqik had two. As well as choosing the king and king elect, the ruling Kaweq dynasty also had a lineage that produced the powerful priests of Q'uq'umatz, who may have served as stewards of the city.