Nezahualcoyotl

Dylan Brennan (University College Cork)
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The best known of the Mexican pre-Hispanic poets, Nezahualcoyotl was born in 1402 in Texcoco. His father, Ixtlilxochitl, was the sixth King of Texcoco and his mother, Matlalcihuatzin, daughter of Huitzilihuitl, second lord of Tenochtitlan. In 1418 Tezozomoc, king of Azcapotzalco waged a war against Texcoco with the intention of dethroning Ixtlilxochitl and annexing Texcoco. Nezahualcoyotl fled alongside his father and, according to one version of events, at Tepanahuayan, the sixteen-year-old boy hid up a tree while his father was slain by Tezozomoc’s soldiers. This event marked the beginning of the young prince’s exile. In 1419 he was captured in Chalco and condemned to death by Toteotzintecuhtli, who hoped to win the favour of Tezozomoc. Nezahualcoyotl managed to escape and sought…

2265 words

Citation: Brennan, Dylan. "Nezahualcoyotl". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 26 July 2017 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=13906, accessed 31 October 2024.]

13906 Nezahualcoyotl 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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