Tlaxcala

E31263

Tlaxcala is a pre-Columbian Mesoamerican city-state and region in central Mexico known for its fierce independence from the Aztec Empire and its pivotal alliance with Spanish conquistadors.


Statements (41)
Predicate Object
instanceOf Mesoamerican polity
historical region
pre-Columbian city-state
alliedWith Hernán Cortés
Spanish Empire
archaeologicalSignificance important source for study of Nahua polities
associatedWith Lienzo de Tlaxcala
Tlaxcalan codices
capital Tlaxcala (city)
colonialStatus semi-autonomous indigenous republic under Spain
conflictWith Aztec Triple Alliance
Tenochtitlan
culture Nahua culture
demographyPreConquest densely populated region
economy agriculture
tribute and trade
ethnicGroup Nahua
governmentType council of nobles
grantedBySpanish privileges in colonial period
inhabitedBy Tlaxcalans
knownFor alliance with Spanish conquistadors
fierce independence from the Aztec Empire
languageUsed Nahuatl
locatedIn central Mexico
modernCountry Mexico
modernSuccessor Tlaxcala (state)
notableEvent battles with Spanish forces before alliance
participation in siege of Tenochtitlan
opposed Aztec Empire
partOf Mesoamerica
politicalStructure confederation of altepetl
preConquestReligion worship of local and pan-Nahua deities
presentIn Valley of Puebla–Tlaxcala
regionType highland valley
religion Mesoamerican polytheism
roleIn Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire
statusRelativeToAztecs independent enclave
strategicImportance key ally route to central highlands
timePeriod early colonial period
pre-Columbian era
writingSystem pictographic codices


Please wait…