This is a list of Mesoamerican rulers of the altepetl of Tenochtitlan (modern Mexico City) from its foundation in 1325 until the end of the line of indigenous rulers. From c. 1375 onwards, the rulers of Tenochtitlan were monarchs and used the title tlatoani.
From 1427 to 1521, the tlatoque of Tenochtitlan were alongside those of the cities Tetzcoco and Tlacopan the leaders of the powerful Triple Alliance, commonly known as the Aztec Empire. The rulers of Tenochtitlan were always pre-eminent and gradually transitioned into the sole rulers of the empire; under either Tizoc (1481–1486)[1] or Ahuitzotl (1486–1502),[2] the tlatoque of Tenochtitlan assumed the grander title huehuetlatoani ("supreme tlatoani") to indicate their superiority over the other tlatoque in the alliance.[2] The evolution into full autocracy was finished by 1502, when Moctezuma II was elected as huehuetlatoani of Tenochtitlan without the traditional input from Tetzcoco and Tlacopan.[3]
In 1521, the Aztec Empire was conquered by the Spaniards under Hernán Cortés and a large number of Mesoamerican allies. Tenochtitlan was destroyed and replaced by Mexico City, though the Spanish colonial authorities continued to appoint tlatoque of Tenochtitlan until the office was abolished in 1565.