Zempoala

Cempoala (also spelled Zempoala, Nahuatl for 'Place of Twenty Waters') was the largest city on the Gulf of Mexico and the capital of the Totonac kingdom of Totonacapan during the Post-Classic period. Located in present-day Veracruz, Mexico, the city was home to approximately 30,000 inhabitants at its peak. In 1519, Hernan Cortes marched to Cempoala and forged a crucial alliance with the Totonac leader Xicomecoatl against the Aztec Empire. The site features ceremonial structures studded with smooth riverbed stones, including the Temple of the Sun (Great Pyramid) and the Temple of the Chimneys with its semicircular pillars.