Apa y Tepeapulco was a Spanish
corregimiento
''Corregimiento'' (; , ) is a Spanish term used for country subdivisions for royal administrative purposes, ensuring districts were under crown control as opposed to local elites. A ''corregimiento'' was usually headed by a '' corregidor''. The ...
during the colonial period in
new Spain
New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...
(what is today
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
). It was located in south-eastern
Hidalgo
Hidalgo may refer to:
People
* Hidalgo (nobility), members of the Spanish nobility
* Hidalgo (surname)
Places
Mexico
:''Most, if not all, named for Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla (1753–1811)''
* Hidalgo (state), in central Mexico
* Hidalgo, Coah ...
consisting of the modern municipalities of
Almoloya,
Tepeapulco and at least some of
Tlanalapa.
The region was a frontier province of the
Aztec Empire
The Aztec Empire, also known as the Triple Alliance (, Help:IPA/Nahuatl, jéːʃkaːn̥ t͡ɬaʔtoːˈlóːjaːn̥ or the Tenochca Empire, was an alliance of three Nahuas, Nahua altepetl, city-states: , , and . These three city-states rul ...
.
Tepepolco was also part of this province, and it was a point of resistance to
Tlaxcallan
Tlaxcala ( , 'place of maize tortillas') was a pre-Columbian city and state in central Mexico.
During the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, the Tlaxcaltecs allied with the Spanish Empire against their hated enemies, the Aztecs, supplying a ...
invasions. It may have had a connection with
Huehue-ichocayan.
In 1527 the Franciscans established a parish at Tepeapulco.
The population was primarily Nahuatl and Otomi speaking prior to the Spanish incursion. By 1521 the Spanish power had been asserted over this area. It was made its own corrigimento in 1531. For a brief time around 1545 Tlanalapa was a separate unit but was reunited with Apa y Tepeapulco shortly later.
In 1787 when the government of New Spain was reorganized Apa y Tepeapulco was made a
subdelegacion retaining its old boundaries.
In 1792 the population consisted of 1,295 Spaniard (both peninsulares and creoles), 651 mestizos, 1,059 mulattos and at least 5,000 indios.
Sources
*Gerhard, Peter. ''Guide to the Historical Geography of New Spain''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1972.
1531 establishments in New Spain
History of Hidalgo (state)