Xicotencatl II

Xicotencatl II
Xicohténcatl Axayacatzin
Died	1521
Title	Prince of Tlaxcalla
Parent(s)	Xicotencatl the Elder

Xicotencatl II Axayacatl, also known as Xicotencatl the Younger (died 1521), was a prince and warleader, probably with the title of Tlacochcalcatl, of the pre-Columbian state of Tlaxcallan at the time of the Spanish conquest of Mexico.

He was the son of the ruler of Tizatlan, one of the four confederate altepeme of the Tlaxcallan state, of which Xicotencatl the Younger was considered to be the de facto ruler because of his father's weakened health. His Nahuatl name, pronounced [ʃiːkoʔˈteːŋkatɬ], is sometimes also spelled Xicotencatl and means "Person from the bumblebee edge place".

He is known primarily as the leader of the force that was dispatched from Tlaxcallan to intercept the forces of Hernán Cortés and his Totonac allies as they entered Tlaxcallan territory when going inland from the Veracruz coast. His actions are described in the letters of Cortés, Bernal Díaz del Castillo's Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España and in the histories of Tlaxcala, such as the one by Diego Muñoz Camargo.

When fighting the Spaniards he used an ambush strategy; he first engaged the enemy with a small force that feigned a retreat, and then lured the Spaniards back to a better fortified position where the main force waited. The Spaniards retreated when too many of their men were killed or wounded, and they sought a peace treaty with the Tlaxcaltecs. Maxixcatzin, the ruler of Ocotelolco, was in favour of allying with the Spaniards, but Xicotencatl II opposed this idea and continued to fight, nearly wiping out the Spanish force. However, in a crucial moment, the soldiers from Ocotelolco retreated from the battlefield following the orders of Maxixcatzin, and Xicotencatl was forced to accept the proposed peace treaty.