Quiahuiztlan was one of the four altepetl

Altepetl

The altepetl, in Pre-Columbian and Spanish conquest-era Aztec society, was the local, ethnically based political entity. The word is a combination of the Nahuatl words ā-tl, meaning water, and tepē-tl, meaning mountain....

(states) that made up the confederation

Confederation

A confederation in modern political terms is a permanent union of political units for common action in relation to other units. Usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution, confederations tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense, foreign...

 of Tlaxcala.

Located on the lower slopes of a volcanic mountain on the gulf coast of Veracruz state, Mexico, it was occupied in the 16th century AD as part of the Totonac

Totonac

The Totonac people resided in the eastern coastal and mountainous regions of Mexico at the time of the Spanish arrival in 1519. Today they reside in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, and Hidalgo. They are one of the possible builders of the Pre-Columbian city of El Tajín, and further maintained...

 culture. Its temples, ballcourt, plazas and residences are built on artificial and natural terraces on the fairly high relief flanks of the mountain. The site is most-likely famous for its association with the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés

Hernán Cortés

Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marquis of the Valley of 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 rule of the King of Castile in the early 16th century...

. Excavations conducted at Quiahuiztlan were conducted by Alfonso Medellín Zenil and Ramón Arellanos Melgarejo, from the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia.

In the early 16th century, Quiahuiztlan briefly seceded

Secession

Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...

 from the confederation, and replaced its Franciscan

Franciscan

Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....

 priests with Dominican

Dominican Order

The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...

ones. Quiahuiztlan subsequently rejoined Tlaxcala, but the possibility of a repeat secession continued to be used as a political threat.