 The Totonacs were some of the first people with whom the Spanish had contact on the American mainland.The very first contact was with Captain Juan de Grijalva on the coastline north of the present-day city of Veracruz.Still chafing under Aztec rule, Totonac ruler Tlacochcalcatl welcomed Hernán Cortés and promised 50,000 warriors to help defeat Tenochtitlan.