Ahuilizapan

Ahuilizapan, later known as Orizaba, stands in a valley of the eastern Mexican highlands beneath the great volcanic peak that bears its name. It was already an important settlement when the Spanish arrived. Its position between the Gulf coast and the interior placed it on a route across the steep eastern slopes.

The Mexica expansion under Moctezuma I brought Ahuilizapan and other eastern lordships under imperial control. Orizaba continued to prosper in the colonial period and was granted the rank of villa in 1774. During the war for Mexican independence, José María Morelos captured it in 1812. After independence it became a city in 1830; the Cocolapan textile factory was established there in 1836. In 1821 Agustín de Iturbide stayed at Orizaba around the signing of the Treaty of Córdoba in the neighboring city.