The city was founded as Villa Real de Chiapa in 1528 by Diego de Mazariegos in what was called the Hueyzacatl�n Valley, which means �pasture� in Nahuatl. From then on, the city went through a number of name changes: to Villa Viciosa in 1529, to Villa de San Crist�bal de los Llanos in 1531, and to Ciudad Real in 1536. It was changed to Ciudad de San Crist�bal in 1829. �de las Casas� was added in 1848 in honor of Bartolom� de las Casas. There were some modifications in the early 20th century to the name but it returned to San Crist�bal de las Casas in 1943. In the Tzotzil and Tzeltal languages the name of the area is Jovel, the place in the clouds.
The area did not have a pre Hispanic city. After defeating the Zoques in the Northern Mountains and the Chiapans of this area, Diego de Mazariegos founded the city as a military fort. This city and much of what would be the state of Chiapas came under the Captaincy General of Guatemala in 1532 headed by Pedro de Alvarado. San Crist�bal received its coat of arms in 1535 from Carlos V and it was officially declared a city in 1536. The city gained the rank of Alcad�a Mayor in 1577 which gave it authority over much of Chiapas north of it. The intendencia of Chiapas was created in 1786 combining San Cristobal�s territory with that of Tuxtla and Soconusco, with the government in San Cristobal. In 1821, the city followed Comit�n de Dom�nguez� declaration of independence from Spain and the Captaincy General of Guatemala. However, the city and the rest of Chiapas would become a part of Mexico in 1824, with the capital established here.
In 1829, the name Ciudad Real was changed to San Crist�bal. In the 19th century, the state government would shift back and forth between San Crist�bal, in the highlands dominated by Conservatives and Tuxtla, which favored the Liberals. Independent tendencies arose again in 1853, when the Plan of Yalm�s was announced declaring the then Mexican Constitution null. Conservative forces
