Sword of Empire: The Spanish Conquest of the Americas from Columbus to Cortés, 1492–1529 is, by design, an approachable and accessible history of some of the most life-altering events in ...the story of man. Chipman examines the contributions of Christopher Columbus and Hernando Cortes in creating the foundations of the Spanish Empire in North America. Chipman has produced a readable and accurate narrative for students and the reading public, although some information presented on Cortes cannot be found elsewhere in print and is therefore of interest to specialists in the history of Spain in America. Exclusive material from Professor France V. Scholes and the author share insights into the multi layered complexities of a man born in 1484 and named at birth Fernando Cortes. As for Columbus, born in Genoa on the Italian peninsula in 1451 and given the name Cristobal de Colon, he is a more transformative man than Cortes in bringing Western Civilization to the major Caribbean islands in the Spanish West Indies and beyond. Historians strive to present a “usable past” and the post-Columbian world is, of course, the modern world. Columbus's discoveries, those of other mariners who followed to the south in America, and still other eastward to the Asia placed the world on the path of global interdependence-both good and ill-for peoples of the world. There are no footnotes in Sword of Empire —this is narrative at its finest—but there are extensive bibliographies for each chapter that will prove useful for readers of every background.
Este libro ofrece un estudio de conjunto de la escritura cortesiana con el fin de esclarecer el proceso de construcción del yo que Hernán Cortés lleva a cabo a lo largo de su propio discurso. Sin ...eludir el diálogo con otros textos de la época, pero centrado en el corpus de documentos cortesianos, el estudio va recorriendo todo un haz de relaciones que delimitan al sujeto narrativo, como serían el vínculo del yo con la propia escritura, el posicionamiento del autor respecto a la Historia, su problemática relación con el emperador Carlos V, la percepción del indígena o su vinculación al nuevo territorio. Con ello, se busca poner de manifiesto la peculiar manera en que pretendió mostrarse a sí mismo este controvertido personaje que manifestó a lo largo de su vida una verdadera obsesión por la palabra escrita.
Estas páginas compendian una reflexión global sobre textos como las Cartas de relación a Carlos V, que permitieron ingresar en la Historia al capitán Hernán Cortés, gracias a su particular caracterización tanto de sí mismo como de su proyecto de conquista. Con estos escritos cortesianos, el lector occidental tenía noticia, por primera vez, de una gran civilización americana, y esta le llegaba además de primera mano, escrita por quien se erigía como protagonista de la excepcional hazaña de descubrimiento y futura conquista del "maravilloso" imperio azteca. Texto de la editorial.
This biographical pairing of Alexander the Great and Hernan Cortes reflects both upon the character and the leadership abilities of the two famous conquerors. The book joins historical narrative with ...source analysis and consideration of moral themes revealing underappreciated aspects of their leadership.
The founding of la Villa Rica de la Veracruz (the rich town of the True Cross) is prominently mentioned in histories of the conquest of Mexico, but scant primary documentation of the provocative act ...exists. During a research session at the Spanish archives, when John Schwaller discovered an early-sixteenth-century letter from Veracruz signed by the members of Cortés's company, he knew he had found a trove of historical details. Providing an accessible, accurate translation of this pivotal correspondence, along with in-depth examinations of its context and significance, The First Letter from New Spain gives all readers access to the first document written from the mainland of North America by any European, and the only surviving original document from the first months of the conquest.The timing of Cortés's Good Friday landing, immediately before the initial assault on the Aztec Empire, enhances the significance of this work. Though the expedition was conducted under the authority of Diego Velázquez, governor of Cuba, the letter reflects an attempt to break ties with Velázquez and form a strategic alliance with Carlos V, the Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain. Brimming with details about the events surrounding Veracruz's inception and accompanied by mini-biographies of 318 signers of the document—socially competitive men who risked charges of treason by renouncing Velázquez—The First Letter from New Spain gives evidence of entrepreneurship and other overlooked traits that fueled the conquest.
The History of the Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Diaz del Castillo, a new abridgement of Diaz del Castillo's classic Historia verdadera de la conquista de Nueva España, offers a unique contribution ...to our understanding of the political and religious forces that drove the great cultural encounter between Spain and the Americas known as the "conquest of Mexico." Besides containing important passages, scenes, and events excluded from other abridgements, this edition includes eight useful interpretive essays that address indigenous religions and cultural practices, sexuality during the early colonial period, the roles of women in indigenous cultures, and analysis of the political and economic purposes behind Diaz del Castillo's narrative. A series of maps illuminate the routes of the conquistadors, the organization of indigenous settlements, the struggle for the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan, as well as the disastrous Spanish journey to Honduras. The information compiled for this volume offers increased accessibility to the original text, places it in a wider social and narrative context, and encourages further learning, research, and understanding.
Continued from Second Series 23, 24, 25, 30. Books XIV-XVII, translated into English and edited, with introduction and notes, by Alfred Percival Maudslay, M.
