The
Tlaxcalteca (also
Tlaxcalans,
Tlaxcallans) were an indigenous group of
NahuaThe Nahuas are a group of indigenous peoples of Mexico. Their language of Uto-Aztecan affiliation is called Nahuatl and consists of many more dialects and variants, a number of which are mutually unintelligible....
ethnicity that inhabited the Kingdom of
TlaxcalaTlaxcala was a pre-Columbian city state of central Mexico.Tlaxcala was a confederation of four altepetl — Ocotelolco, Quiahuiztlan, Tepeticpac and Tizatlan — which each took turns providing a ruler for Tlaxcala as a whole.- History :Tlaxcala was never conquered by the Aztec empire, but was engaged...
located in what is now the Mexican state of
TlaxcalaTlaxcala is one of the 31 states of the Mexican Republic. It is located east of the center of the country, bordering the states of Puebla, Hidalgo and Mexico State. It is the smallest state of the republic, accounting for only 0.2% of the country’s territory. The state of Tlaxcala is named after...
.
The Tlaxcalteca were originally a conglomeration of three distinct ethnic groups who spoke Nahuatl,
OtomiOtomi may refer to:*Otomi people, an indigenous people of Mexico*Otomi language, the language of the Otomi people*Otomi , an Aztec military order...
and Pinome, respectively. Eventually, the Nahuatl speakers became the dominant ethnic group.
Despite early attempts by the
MexicaThe Mexica were a pre-Columbian people of central Mexico.Mexica may also refer to:*Mexica , a board game designed by Wolfgang Kramer and Michael Kiesling*Mexica , a 2005 novel by Norman Spinrad...
, the Tlaxcalteca were never conquered by the Aztec Triple Alliance.
The
Tlaxcalteca (also
Tlaxcalans,
Tlaxcallans) were an indigenous group of
NahuaThe Nahuas are a group of indigenous peoples of Mexico. Their language of Uto-Aztecan affiliation is called Nahuatl and consists of many more dialects and variants, a number of which are mutually unintelligible....
ethnicity that inhabited the Kingdom of
TlaxcalaTlaxcala was a pre-Columbian city state of central Mexico.Tlaxcala was a confederation of four altepetl — Ocotelolco, Quiahuiztlan, Tepeticpac and Tizatlan — which each took turns providing a ruler for Tlaxcala as a whole.- History :Tlaxcala was never conquered by the Aztec empire, but was engaged...
located in what is now the Mexican state of
TlaxcalaTlaxcala is one of the 31 states of the Mexican Republic. It is located east of the center of the country, bordering the states of Puebla, Hidalgo and Mexico State. It is the smallest state of the republic, accounting for only 0.2% of the country’s territory. The state of Tlaxcala is named after...
.
Pre-Hispanic History
The Tlaxcalteca were originally a conglomeration of three distinct ethnic groups who spoke Nahuatl,
OtomiOtomi may refer to:*Otomi people, an indigenous people of Mexico*Otomi language, the language of the Otomi people*Otomi , an Aztec military order...
and Pinome, respectively. Eventually, the Nahuatl speakers became the dominant ethnic group.
Despite early attempts by the
MexicaThe Mexica were a pre-Columbian people of central Mexico.Mexica may also refer to:*Mexica , a board game designed by Wolfgang Kramer and Michael Kiesling*Mexica , a 2005 novel by Norman Spinrad...
, the Tlaxcalteca were never conquered by the Aztec Triple Alliance. The Aztecs allowed them to maintain their independence so that they could participate in the xochiyaoyatl (
flower warsA flower war or flowery war is the name given to the battles fought between the Aztec Triple Alliance and some of their enemies: most notably the city-states of Tlaxcala, Huexotzinco, Atlixco and Cholula.-Sources:...
) with them to facilitate human sacrifice.
Spanish Colonial History
The Tlaxcaltecas served as allies to
Hernán CortésHernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marqués del Valle de Oaxaca was a Spanish conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the King of Castile, in the early 16th century...
and his fellow Spanish conquistadors, and were instrumental in the invasion of
Tenochtitlan--Please DO NOT change the spelling of "Tenochtitlan" to "Tenochtitlán"There are some towns in Mexico which are spelled "Tenochtitlán", like San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán, in which case the accent is used. However, the Aztec capital is not spelled that way in either Spanish --Please DO NOT change the...
, capital of the Aztec empire, helping the Spanish reach the Valley of
AnahuacAnahuac is an ancient name for a Mesoamerican, particularly Aztec, area or areas, usually identified as located within or even coterminous with the Valley of Mexico...
and providing a key contingency of the invasion force.
Due to their alliance with the
Spanish CrownHabsburg Spain refers to the history of Spain over the 16th and 17th centuries , when Spain was ruled by the major branch of the Habsburg dynasty...
in the conquest of Mexico, the Tlaxcalteca enjoyed some privileges among the indigenous peoples of Mexico, including the right to carry
firearmsA firearm is a device which projects either single or multiple projectiles at high velocity through a controlled explosion. The firing is achieved by the gases produced through rapid, confined burning of a propellant. This process of rapid burning is technically known as deflagration...
, ride horses, hold noble title and to rule their settlements autonomously.
The Tlaxcalteca were also instrumental in the establishment of a number of settlements in Northern Mexico (including parts of present-day southeastern
TexasTexas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States.The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"...
), where conquest of local tribes by the Spaniards had proved unfruitful. They were taken to areas inhabited by nomadic bellicose tribes (known as the
ChichimecaChichimeca was the name that the Nahuas generically applied to a wide range of semi-nomadic peoples who inhabited the north of modern-day Mexico and southwestern United States, and carried the same sense as the European term "barbarian". The name was adopted with a pejorative tone by the Spaniards...
) to serve as examples for the local indigenous groups of sedentary model subjects of the Spanish Crown and to work in mines and haciendas.
The Tlaxcaltec colonies in the Chichimeca included settlements in the modern states of
San Luis PotosíThe Mexican state of San Luis Potosí has an area of .It is in the central part of the Mexican republic, It borders Coahuila to the north, Nuevo Leon to the north-east, Tamaulipas to the east, Veracruz to the east, Hidalgo, Queretaro, and Guanajuato to the south, and Zacatecas to the north-west...
,
ZacatecasZacatecas state of Mexico is located in the north-central region and it is bounded to the northwest by Durango, to the north by Coahuila, to the east by San Luis Potosí, to the south by Aguascalientes and Guanajuato and to the southwest by Jalisco and Nayarit...
,
DurangoDurango is one of the constituent states of Mexico, with a population of 1,509,118. It has Mexico's second-lowest population density, after Baja California Sur...
,
CoahuilaCoahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza , is one of Mexico's 31 component states. It is located in the north of the country.To the north, Coahuila accounts for a stretch of the U.S. - Mexico border, adjacent to the U.S...
,
Nuevo LeónNuevo León is a state located in northeastern Mexico. It borders the states of Tamaulipas to the north and east and San Luis Potosí to the south, and Coahuila to the west. To the north, Nuevo León accounts for a 15 kilometer stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to the U.S...
— Nueva Tlaxcala de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de Horcasistas, today known as
GuadalupeGuadalupe is a city and surrounding municipality located in the state of Nuevo León, in northern Mexico. It is part of the Greater Monterrey Metropolitan area....
, and Santiago de las Sabinas, today known as Sabinas Hidalgo — and
JaliscoJalisco is one of the 31 Mexican states that, together with the Mexican Federal District, conform the 32 federal entities of Mexico.Jalisco is located in central-western Mexico. It is bordered by the states of Nayarit to the northwest, Zacatecas, Aguascalientes and San Luis Potosí to the north,...
(Villa de Nueva Tlaxcala de Quiahuistlán, today known as
ColotlánThe municipality of Colotlán is located in the northern extremity of the Mexican state of Jalisco. The municipality covers an area of approximately 505 square kilometers...
).