city state · Mesoamerica and the Caribbean

Tlacopan

1300 CE – 1521 CE (approx.) · capital Tlacopan

The Tepanec city on the western shore of Lake Texcoco that became the third and junior member of the Aztec Triple Alliance.

Origins

Tlacopan (modern Tacuba) was a Tepanec town subject to Azcapotzalco. In the Tepanec war of 1428, its ruler Totoquihuaztli supported Tenochtitlan and Texcoco against Maxtla of Azcapotzalco, and Tlacopan was then made a partner in the new Triple Alliance.

Rule and society

As the third member of the alliance, Tlacopan received one fifth of the tribute from joint conquests, against two fifths each for Tenochtitlan and Texcoco. It led the Tepanec towns of the western valley and controlled lands in the Toluca valley. Its ruler held the title of Tepaneca tecuhtli.

Decline and legacy

Tlacopan's ruler Tetlepanquetzal fought the Spanish with Cuauhtemoc and was executed by Cortés in 1525 during the expedition to Honduras. The Spanish had fled Tenochtitlan along the Tlacopan causeway on the Noche Triste of 1520, and Tlacopan, called Tacuba, is now a district of Mexico City.

Lineage

TlacopanNew Spain 1521 CE – 1821 CE

Connections (2)

Tlacopan was part of Tepanec Empire1367 CE – 1428 CE
Tlacopan was part of Aztec Empire1428 CE – 1521 CE

More states of Mesoamerica and the Caribbean →

Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Tlacopan. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/tlacopan
MLA: “Tlacopan.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/tlacopan. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Tlacopan.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/tlacopan.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Tlacopan’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/tlacopan (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻