When Europeans first arrived in the Americas, their guns, horses, and, perhaps most importantly, diseases, made relatively quick work of conquering native populations. But while Indigenous weaponry was ultimately not a match for the steels and gunpowder of the Conquistadors, the Inca, Aztec, Maya and other native populations had long crafted impressive and effective tools of war. While designed for the distinct realities of warfare on the American continent, these weapons, combined with unique battle tactics and knowledge of the terrain, ultimately felled a fair number of their conquerors as well.The Aztec: Fiercest FoesAztec warriors wielding macahuitl clubs. Florentine Codex, Bernardino de Sahagn, 16th century. Source: Wikimedia CommonsAs the most warlike of the three primary American civilizations, the Aztecs had a reputation for aggression and military prowess. War was central to Aztec societyfor expanding territory, demonstrating political strength, and capturing victims for sacrifice. Warriors trained extensively and were held in high esteem in the Aztec Empire. Six levels of military achievement were recorded in Aztec records, and the most skilled warriors were rewarded with the finest weapons and regalia. Even in its later years, when conflict evolved to be less about expansion and more a ritual demonstration of strength, with predetermined encounters like the Flower Wars, warfare remained an essential element of the society whose patron was Huitzilopochtli, god of war.Aztec weapons included both projectiles, like slings, blow darts (tipped with frog poison!) and bows and arrows, as well as small arms like clubs and daggers for hand-to-hand combat. Though the Aztec had some basic knowledge of metallurgy, it was generally not used in crafting armaments. Instead, fragile but razor-sharp obsidian glass was used to create the Empires deadliest weapons, while thickly woven cotton was used to fashion surprisingly sturdy armor and hardwood employed for helmets. Spear points, arrowheads, and similar piercing elements were made from not only obsidian but stone, bone, and hardened wood as well.Aztec atlatl or spear-thrower made of wood, shell, thread, 1400-1521. Source: The British MuseumPerhaps the most renowned weapon of the Aztecs was the macuahuitl, a sort of club-sword hybrid measuring up to three feet in length. Made of wood and shaped like a modern cricket bat, it was edged at intervals with obsidian blades or teeth. Historians believe it was not intended to kill opponents, but rather to injure and incapacitate them so they could be captured and brought back to the capital for ritual sacrifice. However, as there are no surviving examples, conclusions about how the macuahuitl was used and how effective it was are based solely on illustrations in Aztec codices and contemporary accounts from the Conquistadors themselves. Several sixteenth century chronicles recount the damage done by the club to Spanish horses, while modern scholars note that the brittle nature of obsidian wouldve made it a less effective weapon against armed and armored men.The Aztecs other notable weapon was the atlatl, a spear or dart thrower. Rather than aiming and throwing light spears by hand alone, the Aztecs fashioned a device that provided leverage that could hurl their spears both farther and faster. Often elaborately carved, the atlatl was the length of a warriors forearm, with a grip at one end and a hook at the other. Similar spear throwers had existed for thousands of years but had long been out-of-use in Europe at the time of the conquest and therefore seemed novel to the Spanish. The spears they launched were tipped with obsidian and their use was reserved for the most skilled warriors.Weapons of the Peaceful MayaMural depicting war scenes, discovered at Bonampak in modern-day Mexico, 580-800 CE. Source: LatinAmericanStudies.orgWhen earnest study of the pre-Columbian civilizations began, researchers often suggested that the Maya civilization was largely peaceful. Because it had collapsed before the conquest, the Conquistadors encountered not an organized empire to be conquered but small jungle communities and loosely organized city-states, leading to sporadic engagements lasting nearly two hundred years. Early knowledge of the Maya was based primarily on Spanish records of these encounters and what structures had not been reclaimed by the jungle. As more extensive excavations were done, the original theory of the peaceful Maya collapsed. Though perhaps not as aggressive as their Aztec neighbors, warfare was a consistent element of Mayan society, with frequent disputes between city-states during the Classic period.Given their proximity to the Aztec and the overlap and intermixing of these cultures in Mesoamerica, its no surprise that much Mayan weaponry was similar in nature. The Maya also used the macuahuitl club and atlatl spear-thrower as well as obsidian or stone-tipped arrows and small axes with bronze or stone heads. Wood was perhaps the most ubiquitous material to be used for weapons, and while wooden stakes and spears may have been a poor match for gunpowder, the Maya used fire to harden them and reportedly lined pits with them for Spanish horses to fall into.Obsidian blade with face carving, 250-900 CE, Classic Maya. Source: The British MuseumOf particular importance to the Maya were blowguns, though it is unclear whether they were used against enemies or solely for hunting. Made from lightweight wood, blowguns varied in length and were used to launch projectiles, including stones and poisoned darts. Scholars suggest that the Maya favored ambush style attacks when encountering the Spanish, in which case the blowgun would make sense as a surreptitious weapon. Blowguns feature prominently in Mayan mythology and iconography, most notably as weapons carried by prominent gods and by various figures in their creation myth. Another weapon that appears in Mayan mythology, specifically the Popol Vuh, is the hornet bomb, a gourd filled with angry wasps or hornets that could be launched at the enemy. Sadly there is no evidence of this ingenious weapon actually being put to use.The best offense is a good defense, or so they say. And while metal armor of the kind used by the Spanish was unheard of in the Americas, the Maya, as well as Aztec, utilized an ingenious method to create a cotton armor that was so effectiveas well as comparatively comfortableit was reportedly adopted by some Conquistadors over their plate armor. Called ichcahuipilliin Nahuatl, this cotton armor was created by sandwiching densely packed cotton fibers between layers of tightly woven cotton fabric, which were then quilted together in a diamond pattern. The armor was then soaked in a salted brine and hung out to dry, allowing the salt to crystallize and further strengthen the fabric. Designed to repel darts, obsidian blades and arrowheads, it reportedly also fared surprisingly well against musket balls.Building an Empire: Inca WeaponsUniform of the Inca soldier, a standard-issue tunic in camelid fiber. 1400-1535 CE. Source: The Met MuseumAs conquerors, the Inca were no strangers to combat, though evidence suggests they favored diplomacy and political coercion over military engagement when possible. Ultimately, building an empire that stretched from modern day southeastern Colombia down to Santiago, Chile and westward into Bolivia and Argentina required a formidable, well-trained and well-equipped army. Military service was obligatory in the Empire for men aged 25-50. Chronicles from the 16th century claim that the Empire kept a standing army of approximately 200,000 well-organized soldiers who started training as young as 10 years old.One notable difference between the Inca and the Mesoamerican civilizations is that the Inca had pack animals. While llamas certainly could not be ridden into battle like the horses of the Spanish, they were available to help transport equipment, carrying up to 75 pounds over the rugged Andean terrain. Still, given the size of the Empire, hauling weaponry and equipment to various locations wouldve been a challenge, one the organized Inca solved by stockpiling weapons and materials in the various storehouses built along the Qapaq an, the Inca road system. These would include helmets, made of wood and sometimes plated in soft metals, wooden shields often covered with leather, and standard tunics.Star-shaped club head, bronze. Source: The British MuseumInca weapons were designed not to capture enemies for ritual sacrifice but to subdue defending armies and conquer new territories. They primarily favored weapons for hand-to-hand combat. Various kinds of clubs were used, including one similar to a mace that featured a star-shaped copper, bronze or stone ball at the top with protruding points, designed to crack skulls. They also wielded axes, daggers, lances and spears made with bronze or stone, but none sharp enough to pierce Spanish plate armor. The bow and arrow were primarily used by those cultures in conquered territory in the jungle and not in common use among the Inca soldiers.The Incas sling shots, waraka were perhaps their most formidable weapon and the most common, given to young warriors during initiation rites. In the case of the Spanish, they were more effective at disarming or slowing down the Conquistadors than inflicting injury but for regional warfare they could be far more deadly. Warriors wielding waraka, woven from cotton, llama or alpaca fiber, were capable of launching stone or soft metal projectiles with such force and accuracy they could snap a steel sword in half. Similarly, Inca bolas, a seemingly humble weapon of cords with weights on the ends, could be hurled into the fray to tangle around feet or, in the case of the Spanish, hooves, and were effective at slowing advances.Germ Warfare: The True BattleImage from the Codex Telleriano-Remensis illustrating outbreaks of disease in the former Aztec Empire, 1563. Source: Dumbarton OaksMany researchers have argued that the reason the Spanish ultimately succeeded in conquering the Indigenous peoples of the Americas had less to do with their innovative weapons or military experience than with another, completely unplanned, advantage. It was not their firepower or mounted soldiers that outmaneuvered the Indigenous population, but something much smaller: the humble germ.In fact, both sides of the conquest harbored diseases that were unique to the opposing side and for which their enemy had no immunity. But the primary illness the Indigenous brought to the fight was syphilis, which wasnt as deadly or easily transmissible as the numerous diseases the Spanish brought: smallpox, measles, chicken pox, influenza, and even bubonic plague, among others. These diseases led to dramatic depopulation in the Americas, preceding the Conquistadors themselves in many cases, the conquest of the Inca Empire in particular. The result was that, while steel, gunpowder and horses certainly gave the Spanish a tactical advantage, they also had millions fewer Indigenous peoples to contend with than they would have in the absence of their germs.