Tutul-Xiu (), also Tutul Xiues or Mani, was the name of a

Mayan Mayan most commonly refers to: * Maya peoples, various indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Maya civilization, pre-Columbian culture of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Mayan languages, language family spoken ...

chiefdom of the central

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula ( , ; ) is a large peninsula in southeast Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north and west of the peninsula from the C ...

with capital in Maní, before the arrival of the

Spanish conquistadors Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

in the sixteenth century.

Earlier history

In later accounts the

Cocom The Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (CoCom) was established in 1949 at the beginning of the Cold War to coordinate controls on exports from Western Bloc countries to the Soviet Union and its allies. Operating through inform ...

family are stated to have founded

Mayapan Mayapan (Màyapáan in Yucatec Maya language, Modern Maya; in Spanish language, Spanish Mayapán) is a Pre-Columbian Maya civilization, Maya site a couple of kilometers south of the town of Telchaquillo in Municipality of Tecoh, approximately ...

in the

. However earlier accounts state that the earliest rulers were the Xiu. They held dominance in the settlement for the first century of its existence (c. 1180–1280). This period is marked by an increasing number of

stelae A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...

being dedicated to mark the end of k'atun periods, perhaps inspired by practices in the city of

Uxmal Uxmal (Yucatec Maya: ''Óoxmáal'' ) is an ancient Maya civilization, Maya city of the classical period located in present-day Mexico. It is considered one of the most important archaeological sites of Maya culture, along with Palenque, Chichen ...

. During this time Mayapan worked cooperatively with Uxmal and also

Chichen Itza Chichén Itzá , , often with the emphasis reversed in English to ; from () "at the mouth of the well of the Itza people, Itza people" (often spelled ''Chichen Itza'' in English and traditional Yucatec Maya) was a large Pre-Columbian era, ...

, which by this point had entered its decline. The Xiu gradually lost control of Mayapan, which was in the hands of the Cocom and their Canul mercenaries by 1300. In c. 1400 the Cocom expelled a large number of Xiu from the settlement. However the Xiu plotted revenge and in 1441 revolted against the Cocom. One party, led by

Ah Xiu Xupan Ah Xiu Xupan (Maya glyphs ) was the last known ruler of the Maya civilization, Mayan chiefdom of Tutul-Xiu when it was part of the League of Mayapan. In 1441, Ah Xiu Xupan, who was the great ruler of Uxmal at that time, was given the t ...

and assisted by mercenaries from elsewhere in

Pre-Columbian Mexico The pre-Columbian (or prehispanic) history of the territory now making up the country of Mexico is known through the work of archaeologists and epigraphers, and through the accounts of Spanish conquistadores, settlers and clergymen as well as ...

, killed all members of the Cocom in Mayapan. There was only one significant survivor of that family, who was away on a trading mission. Archaeological excavations have shown evidence of burnt structures, ceremonial deposits and human bones from this period. The destruction led to the decline of the cities of Northern Yucatán. The leading families of Mayapan left to found new settlements and Yucatán fragmented into 18 petty kingdoms. The

Chel Chel may refer to: * ''NHL'' (video game series), often colloquially known as Chel * Chel, a village in the municipality of Chajul, Guatemala {{disambiguation ...

established themselves at

Tecoh Tecoh is a town and the municipal seat of the Tecoh Municipality, Yucatán in Mexico. Gallery Image:Arco de Tecoh, Town of Tecoh, Yucatan, Mexico.jpg, Arch of Tecoh Image:Tecoh (Tecoh), Yucatán (05).JPG, Tecoh main church: Parroquia de Nuest ...

, the surviving Cocom at Tibolon and the Xiu at

Mani Mani may refer to: People * Mani (name), (), a given name and surname (including a list of people with the name) ** Mani (prophet) (c. 216–274), a 3rd century Iranian prophet who founded Manichaeism ** Mani (musician) (born 1962), an English ...

During the Spanish conquest

The Xiu were among the most willing allies of the Spanish, who counted the Capul and Cocom among their fiercest opponents. The Xiu later claimed to have submitted to the Spanish because of prophecies foretelling their arrival but their cooperation seems to have been motivated by the possibility of Spanish assistance against the Cocom, as the rivalry had intensified. The first ambassadors from the Xiu met with Spanish conquistador

Francisco de Montejo the Younger Francisco de Montejo y León (; 1508 – 8 February 1565), known as "the Younger" (), was a Spanish conquistador, who in 1542 founded the city of Mérida, capital of State of Yucatán, Mexico. The son of Francisco de Montejo, ca. June 1527 he ...

at Tuchi-caan, around 1539. In 1547 a Spanish mission was established at Mani, the Xiu capital. The Mani Land Treaty of 1557 resolved a border dispute between the Xiu of Mani, the Cocom of

Sotuta Sotuta is a small town and municipality of the Mexican state of Yucatán, and also was the name of a Mayan chiefdom of the northern central Yucatán Peninsula, before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the sixteenth century. See also * ...

and the Copul.

References

Mayan chiefdoms of the Yucatán Peninsula 1441 establishments in North America 15th-century establishments in the Maya civilization 1547 disestablishments in North America 16th-century disestablishments in the Maya civilization {{Mexico-hist-stub