Although tenochtitlán was a peaceful place, the aztecs themselves were a warlike people. in the 1400s, aztec warriors began conquering the other people in the region. soon, the aztecs controlled a huge empire. one ruler, the emperor, ruled over all the aztec lands. the aztecs forced the people they conquered to pay tributes, or taxes, in the form of food, gold, or slaves. they also took thousands of prisoners of war to serve as human sacrifices. the aztecs believed that they had to sacrifice humans to the gods so that the sun would have enough strength to rise every day. human blood was what gave the sun strength. if the sun did not rise, crops could not grow, and the people would starve. priests made the offerings to the gods daily. in very bad times, members of noble aztec families were sometimes sacrificed to the sun god. find one event or condition to use as a starting point. list it below and label it a cause or effect.