Succession
Mayan kings cultivated godlike personas. When a ruler died and left no heir to the throne, the result was usually war and bloodshed. King Pakal's precursor, Pacal I, died upon the battlefield. However, instead of the kingdom erupting into chaos, the city of Palenque, a Mayan capital city in southern Mexico, invited in a young prince from a different city-state. The prince was only twelve years old. His name was Pakal. Pakal's Temple of Inscriptions still towers today amid the ruins of Palenque, as the supreme symbol of Pakal's influence and power in Palenque.
Read more about this topic: Maya Rulers
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