Atlacatl (d. 1528) is reputed to have been the name of the last ruler of a polity which was based around the center of Cuzcatlán, in the southwestern periphery of Mesoamerica (present-day El Salvador), at the time of the Spanish conquest. Cuzcatlán was at that time one of the leading political centers in a loose 'confederation' of Mesoamerican peoples known as the Pipils, whose ultimately unsuccessful resistance against the Spanish conquistadores under Pedro de Alvarado and others is remembered in Salvadoran tradition. The figure of Atlacatl himself has taken on a somewhat legendary aspect in Salvadoran folklore, symbolising the Pipils' brave and stout resistance against the invading Spanish forces. However, the historical reality of Atlacatl's resistance (and even existence) is open to question, with contemporary sources providing a different account, and the details of Atlacatl's heroic exploits appearing as later embellishments after the fact. Events June 19 - Battle of Landriano - A French army in Italy under Marshal St. ... Polity is a general term that refers to political organization of a group. ... The cultural areas of Mesoamerica The term Mesoamérica is used to refer to a geographical region that extends roughly from the Tropic of Cancer in central Mexico down through Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua to northwestern Costa Rica, and which is characterized by the particular cultural homogeneity... // The Spanish conquest and colonization of the Americas began with the arrival in the Western Hemisphere of Christopher Columbus (Cristóbal Colón) in 1492. ... The Pipil are a loose confederation of Nahua indigenous peoples known for prehistoric migrations who currently live in El Salvador. ... Conquistador (Spanish: []) (meaning Conqueror in the Spanish language) is the term used to refer to the soldiers, explorers, and adventurers who brought much of the Americas and Asia Pacific under Spanish colonial rule between the 15th and 17th centuries, starting with the 1492 settlement established in the modern-day Bahamas... Pedro de Alvarado y Contreras (Badajoz, c. ...

According to one account, when Pedro de Alvarado and his forces arrived at Atehuan (Ateos) he received a message sent to him by Atlacatl in which Atlacatl acquiesced to Alvarado's demand for Cuzcatlán's surrender. However, when Alvarado approached the town he found it abandoned, the Pipils all having fled to the mountainous region nearby. Alvarado sent a new demand to Atlacatl for their surrender, but instead received the answer: "if you want our arms you must come to get them from the mountains". Alvarado's forces launched a furious attack on the Pipil mountain stronghold in which many horses, Spaniards and their native auxiliaries were killed; Alvarado was forced to retreat from Cuzcatlán on 4 July 1524. Pedro de Alvarado y Contreras (Badajoz, c. ... For the United States holiday, the Fourth of July, see Independence Day (United States). ... Events March 1, 1524/5 - Giovanni da Verrazano lands near Cape Fear (approx. ...

Two years after this battle, Alvarado's kinsman Gonzalo de Alvarado had founded a Spanish base at San Salvador (August of 1526), from where the Spanish forces continued to raze the surrounding districts and combat the remaining Pipil resistance. Finally, in 1528, Diego de Alvarado set out on another attack on Cuzcatlán, during the defense of which Atlacatl and his forces were defeated and the captured Atlacatl was hanged. Country El Salvador Department San Salvador Municipality San Salvador Founded 1525 Seat of the Government Capital of the Nation Mayor Violeta Menjívar Area    - City km² Population    - City (2005) 2,233,696  - Density 7,064/km² Website: http://www. ... Events June 19 - Battle of Landriano - A French army in Italy under Marshal St. ...

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