 However, the Totonacs chafed under Aztec rule, with Aztec rulers from Axayacatl to Moctezuma II having to send soldiers to quell rebellions.The Huastecs were subjugated more successfully by the Aztecs and relegated to the provinces of Atlan and Tochpan.Veracruz played an important part in the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire by Hernán Cortés and his expedition members.