Note 4 — Chapter III · GOVERNMENT OF THE NAHUA NATIONS.
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Torquemada writes: 'esta fue costumbre de estos Mexicanos, en las Elecciones, que hacian, que fuesen Reinando sucesivamente, los Hermanos, vnos despues de otros, y acabando de Reinar el vltimo, entraba en su lugar, el Hijo de Hermano Maior, que primero avia Reinado, que era Sobrino de los otros Reies, qui à su Padre avian sucedido.' Monarq. Ind., tom. i., p. 107. 'Los Reies (of Mexico) no heredaban, sino que eran elegidos, y como vimos en el Libro de los Reies, quando el Rei moria, si tenia hermano, entraba heredando; y muerto este, otro, si lo avia; y quando faltaba, le sucedia el sobrino, Hijo de su hermano maior, à quien, por su muerte, avia sucedido, y luego el hermano de este, y así discurrian por los demas.' Id., tom. ii., p. 177. Zurita states that in Tezcuco and Tlacopan, and their dependent provinces, 'le droit de succession le plus ordinaire était celui du sang en ligne directe de père en fils; mais tous les fils n'héritaient point, il n'y avait que le fils aîné de l'épouse principale que le souverain avait choisie dans cette intention. Elle jouissait d'une plus grande considération que les autres, et les sujets la respectaient davantage. Lorsque le souverain prenaient une de ses femmes dans la famille de Mexico, elle occupait le premier rang, et son fils succédait, s'il était capable.' Then, without definitely stating whether he is speaking of all or part of the three kingdoms in question, the author goes on to say, that in default of direct heirs the succession became collateral; and finally, speaking in this instance of Mexico alone, he says, that in the event of the king dying without heirs, his successor was elected by the principal nobles. In a previous paragraph he writes: 'L'ordre de succession variait suivant les provinces; les mêmes usages, à peu de différence prés, étaient reçus à Mexico, à Tezcuco et à Tacuba.' Afterward we read: 'Dans quelques provinces, comme par exemple à Mexico, les frères étaient admis à la succession, quoiqu'il y eût des fils, et ils gouvernaient successivement.' Rapport, in Ternaux-Compans, Voy., série ii., tom. i., pp. 12-18. M. l'Abbé Brasseur de Bourbourg, taking his information from Zurita, and, indeed, almost quoting literally from the French translation of that author, agrees that the direct line of succession obtained in Tlacopan and Tezcuco, but asserts, regarding Mexico, that the sovereign was elected by the five principal ministers of the state, who were, however, restricted in their choice to the brothers, nephews, or sons of the deceased monarch. Hist. Nat. Civ., tom. iii., pp. 576-7. Pimentel also follows Zurita. Memoria, p. 26. Prescott affirms that 'the sovereign was selected from the brothers of the deceased prince, or, in default of them, from his nephews.' Mex., vol. i., p. 23. Sahagun merely says: 'Escogian uno de los mas nobles de la linea de los señores antepasados,' who should be a valiant, wise, and accomplished man. Hist. Gen., tom. ii., lib. viii., p. 318. 'Per non lasciar troppa libertà agli Elettori, e per impedire, quanto fosse possibile, gl'inconvenienti de' partiti, o fazioni, fissarono la corona nella casa d'Acamapitzin; e poi stabilirono per legge, che al Re morto dovesse succedere uno de'suoi fratelli, e mancando i fratelli, uno de'suoi nipoti, e se mai non ve ne fossero neppur di questi, uno de'suoi cugini restando in balìa degli Elettori lo scegliere tra i fratelli, o tra i nipoti del Re morto colui, che riconoscessero più idoneo pel governo, schivando con sí fatta legge parecchj inconvenienti da noi altrove accennati.' Clavigero, Storia Ant. del Messico, tom. ii., p. 112. Leon Carbajal quotes this almost literally. Discurso, pp. 54-5. That the eldest son could put forward no claim to the crown by right of primogeniture, is evident from the following: 'Quando algun Señor moria y dexava muchos hijos, si alguno se alzava en palacio y se queria preferir á los otros, aunque fuese el mayor, no lo consentia el Señor á quien pertenecia la confirmacion, y menos el pueblo. Antes dexavan pasar un año, ó mas de otro, en el qual consideravan bien que era mejor para regir ó governar el estado, y aquel permanecia por señor.' Las Casas, Hist. Apologética, MS., cap. ccxiii. Señor Carbajal Espinosa says that from the election of Chimalpopoca, who succeeded his brother Huitzilihuitl, and was the third king of Mexico, 'quedó establecida la ley de elegir uno de los hermanos del rey difunto, y á falta de éstos un sobrino, cuya práctica se observó constantemente, como lo harémos ver, hasta la ruina del imperio mexicano.' Hist. de Mex., tom. i., p. 334. 'El Imperio era monárquico, pero no hereditario. Muriendo el Emperador los gefes del Imperio antiguamente se juntaban y elegian entre sí mismos al que creian mas digno, y por el cual la intriga, el manejo, la supersticion, eran mas felizmente reconocidas.' Carli, Cartas, pt i., p. 114. 'Tambien auia sucession por sangre, sucedia el hijo mayor, siendo para ello, y sino el otro: en defeto de los hijos sucedian nietos, y en defeto dellos yua por elecion.' Herrera, Hist. Gen., dec. iii., lib. iv., cap. xv. As the order in which the Mexican kings actually did follow each other should be stronger proof of what was the law than any other evidence, I take from the Codex Mendoza the following list: Acamapichtli, who is usually spoken of as the first king, succeeded Tenuch, although it is not stated that he was related to him in any way; then came Huicilyhuitl, son of Acamapichtli; Chimalpupuca, son of Huicilyhuitl, Yzcoaci, son of Acamapichtli; Huehuemoteccuma, son of Huicilyhuitl; Axayacaci, son of Tecocomochtli, and grandson of Yzcoaci; Tiçoçicatzi, son of Axayacaci; Ahuiçoçin, brother of Tiçoçicatzi; Motecçuma, son of Axayacaci; thus, according to this author, we see, out of nine monarchs, three succeeded directly by their sons, and three by their brothers. Esplicacion, in Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq., vol. v., pp. 42-53. See further, Veytia, Hist. Ant. Mej., and Brasseur de Bourbourg, Hist. Nat. Civ. These writers differ slightly from the collection above quoted, but in no important respect.