The Salitre War ( es, Guerra del Salitre; also Saltpeter War) was a 1480-1510 military conflict between the

Tarascan state Tarascan or Tarasca is an exonym and the popular name for the Purépecha culture. It may refer to: * the Tarascan State, a Mesoamerican empire until the Spanish conquest in the 1500s, located in (present-day) west-central Mexico * the Purépecha ...

Purépecha The Purépecha (endonym pua, P'urhepecha ) are a group of indigenous people centered in the northwestern region of Michoacán, Mexico, mainly in the area of the cities of Cherán and Pátzcuaro. They are also known by the pejorative " Tarascan ...

people and peoples settled in

Colima Colima (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Colima ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Colima), is one of the 31 states that make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It shares its name with its capital and main city, Colima. Colima i ...

, Sayula, Zapotlán, Tapalpa, and

Autlán Autlán de Navarro is a city and its surrounding municipality of the same name in the Costa Sur region of the southwestern part of the state of Jalisco in Mexico. At the Mexican census of 2005, the city had a population of 53,269. In 2010, the ...

. It started with the invasion by Tarascan ''

cazonci Irecha was the title held by the ruler of the Purépecha Empire, which existed from the 14th to the 16th centuries in the area of the modern mexican states of Michoacán, Guerrero, Jalisco Jalisco (, , ; Nahuatl: Xalixco), officially the F ...

'' (monarch)

Tangaxuan II Tzimtzincha-Tangaxuan II (died February 14, 1530) was the last ''cazonci'' (monarch) of the Purépecha Empire, from 1520–1530. He was baptized Francisco when his realm made a peace treaty with Hernán Cortés. He was executed by burning by Nu ...

with the purpose to seize the mining of

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . This alkali metal nitrate Salt (chemistry), salt is also known as Indian saltpetre (large deposits of which were historically mined in India). It is an ionic salt of potassium ...

(hence the name) and ended with the expulsion of Purépecha from the areas of Colima and

Jalisco Jalisco (, , ; Nahuatl: Xalixco), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco ; Nahuatl: Tlahtohcayotl Xalixco), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal ...

.Enciclopedia de Mexico, 2005,
p.1542
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saltpeter War (Mexico) History of Mesoamerica Pre-Columbian warfare 1480s conflicts 1490s conflicts 1500s conflicts Conflicts in 1510 Military history of Mexico History of Jalisco 1480s in Mexico 1500s in Mexico Purépecha