Veracruz was founded in April 1519 by Hernán Cortés — who promptly dissolved his own expedition's legal authority by establishing it as an autonomous municipality, effectively outmaneuvering the governor of Cuba who had ordered him to return. The city thus became the administrative and juridical foothold that made the entire conquest of Mexico legally possible, and the 500th anniversary of that founding was the occasion for this commemorative circulation issue.
Veracruz was founded in April 1519 by Hernán Cortés — who promptly dissolved his own expedition's legal authority by establishing it as an autonomous municipality, effectively outmaneuvering the governor of Cuba who had ordered him to return. The city thus became the administrative and juridical foothold that made the entire conquest of Mexico legally possible, and the 500th anniversary of that founding was the occasion for this commemorative circulation issue.