Cortés’s force, in addition to the Spaniards,…

Cortés’s force, in addition to the Spaniards, now includes forty Cempoalan warrior chiefs and at least two hundred other natives whose task is to drag the cannon and carry supplies.

The Cempoalans are accustomed to the hot climate of the coast, but they suffer immensely from the cold of the mountains, the rain, and the hail as they march towards Tenochtitlan.

Cortés soon arrives at the lands of the Tlaxcala, a confederacy of about two hundred towns and different tribes, but without central government.

The Tlaxcalans’ main city is Tlaxcala.

After almost a century of fighting the Flower Wars, a great deal of hatred and bitterness has developed between the Tlaxcalans and the Aztecs.

The Aztecs have already conquered most of the territory around Tlaxcala, and made war on them every year.

It is possible that the Aztecs left Tlaxcala independent so that they would have a constant supply of war captives to sacrifice to their gods.

The Otomis initially, then the Tlaxcalans, fight the Spanish in a series of three battles from September 2 to September 5, 1519, and at one point, Diaz remarks, "they surrounded us on every side".

After Cortes continues to release prisoners with messages of peace, and realizing the Spanish are enemies of Montezuma, Xicotencatl the Elder, and Maxixcatzin, persuade the Tlaxcalan warleader, Xicotencatl the Younger, that it will be better to ally with the newcomers than to kill them.

Cortés arrives on September 23, 1519, in Tlaxcala and is greeted with joy by the rulers, who see the Spanish as an ally against the Aztecs.

Due to a commercial blockade by the Aztecs, Tlaxcala is poor, lacking, among other things, both salt and cotton cloth, so they can only offer Cortés and his men food and slaves.