or Moctezuma II
born 1466
died с June 30, 1520, Tenochtitlán, near modern Mexico City
Ninth emperor of the
In 1502 he inherited from his uncle an empire of five to six million people that stretched from present-day Mexico to Nicaragua. Aztec belief in the prophesied return of the god Quetzalcóatl , whose description the conquistador Hernán Cortés resembled, contributed to his downfall. Cortés, who had made alliances with tribes eager to be rid of Aztec domination, held Montezuma prisoner in {{link=Tenochtitl%C3%A1n">Tenochtitlán , and he died in custody.