Conquistadores: A New History of Spanish Discovery and Conquest
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- Create Date：2021-09-16 17:21:02
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Fernando Cervantes
- ISBN：1101981261
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Summary
A sweeping， authoritative history that aims to deepen our understanding of the campaigns and conquests that propelled a small European kingdom to become one of the greatest empires in the world
Over the few short decades that followed Christopher Columbus's first landing in the Caribbean in 1492， Spain conquered the two most formidable civilizations of the Americas: the Aztecs of Mexico and the Incas of Peru。 Hernán Cortés， Francisco Pizarro， and the other explorers and soldiers that took part in these expeditions dedicated their lives to seeking political and religious glory， helping to build an empire unlike any the world had ever seen。
Centuries later， two dominant narratives about these conquests have prevailed--one of the romance and exoticism of adventure， the other of cruelty and exploitation of innocent people at the service of politics and religious bigotry。 In The Conquistadors， Mexican historian Fernando Cervantes--himself a descendent of one of the conquistadors--tells the complete story of the conquests while steering a middle course between these two viewpoints。 He argues that， while the conquistadors had undeniable faults， the tendency to condemn them tells us more about our modern sense of shame than it does about their original intentions。
Drawing upon previously untapped primary sources that include diaries， letters， chronicles， and polemical treatises， Cervantes reframes the story of the Spanish conquest of the New World， examining the late medieval world from which the conquistadors emerged。 At the heart of the story are the conquistadors themselves， whose epic ambitions and moral contradictions defined an era， as well as their supporters and detractors。 Cervantes helps us understand them on their own terms and shows us how their achievements still have much to tell us in our increasingly post-nationalist world。
Over the few short decades that followed Christopher Columbus's first landing in the Caribbean in 1492， Spain conquered the two most formidable civilizations of the Americas: the Aztecs of Mexico and the Incas of Peru。 Hernán Cortés， Francisco Pizarro， and the other explorers and soldiers that took part in these expeditions dedicated their lives to seeking political and religious glory， helping to build an empire unlike any the world had ever seen。
Centuries later， two dominant narratives about these conquests have prevailed--one of the romance and exoticism of adventure， the other of cruelty and exploitation of innocent people at the service of politics and religious bigotry。 In The Conquistadors， Mexican historian Fernando Cervantes--himself a descendent of one of the conquistadors--tells the complete story of the conquests while steering a middle course between these two viewpoints。 He argues that， while the conquistadors had undeniable faults， the tendency to condemn them tells us more about our modern sense of shame than it does about their original intentions。
Drawing upon previously untapped primary sources that include diaries， letters， chronicles， and polemical treatises， Cervantes reframes the story of the Spanish conquest of the New World， examining the late medieval world from which the conquistadors emerged。 At the heart of the story are the conquistadors themselves， whose epic ambitions and moral contradictions defined an era， as well as their supporters and detractors。 Cervantes helps us understand them on their own terms and shows us how their achievements still have much to tell us in our increasingly post-nationalist world。
Reviews
Daniel
，
Conquistadores and their actions are often now remembered， and probably rightfully so， as cruel and unnecessarily violent。 The plundering and destruction by the Spanish in the New World took place concurrently with the growing ubiquity， allowing the Spanish monarchy to be one of the first， and perhaps most deserving， victim of propagandist publishing。 This rampant spread of political and cultural propaganda set the stage for centuries of ridicule towards the Spanish monarchy and it’s agents in t Conquistadores and their actions are often now remembered， and probably rightfully so， as cruel and unnecessarily violent。 The plundering and destruction by the Spanish in the New World took place concurrently with the growing ubiquity， allowing the Spanish monarchy to be one of the first， and perhaps most deserving， victim of propagandist publishing。 This rampant spread of political and cultural propaganda set the stage for centuries of ridicule towards the Spanish monarchy and it’s agents in the new world。 While this ridicule is justified when examined through modern standards of morality， the Spanish colonization of The New World is often not viewed within the context of the world in which the events （read atrocities） took place。 This book seeks to place the actions and motives of the once revered， now besmirched conquistadores in a historical setting which is more accurate than both the glorification and demonization they have typically been examined in。 It is important to note that Cervantes seeks not to justify the unjustifiable， but rather to recognize the religious and political histories which set the stage for a medieval Spain and its Conquistadores to undergo the destruction of civilizations for the benefit of a monarchy。 Conquistadores seeks to peel back centuries of press， both good and bad， which have altered the modern understanding of the colonization efforts of the Spanish empire and to understand the motives and processes of expansion which came about through a complex history interwoven with the rest of Europe and the world at large。 。。。more
Jennifer Lynch
，
This is an incredibly detailed account of the Conquistadores。 There is obviously a huge amount of information which Cervantes wants to convey but I found his writing quite dull。 It took a lot of effort to get through the book。 Cervantes states that his aim is for us to reconsider our perceptions of the Conquistadores but I do not personally feel he has brought forward any new arguments which put them in a better light。 Despite this， the book provides valuable information to anyone interested in This is an incredibly detailed account of the Conquistadores。 There is obviously a huge amount of information which Cervantes wants to convey but I found his writing quite dull。 It took a lot of effort to get through the book。 Cervantes states that his aim is for us to reconsider our perceptions of the Conquistadores but I do not personally feel he has brought forward any new arguments which put them in a better light。 Despite this， the book provides valuable information to anyone interested in Spain's conquest。 。。。more
Joseph A。
，
A well written， concise history from the viewpoint of the Spanish State on the developments and discoveries of the several groups of conquistadores who traveled on expeditions to the Americas from 1400's to 1500's。 It lays out the discrepencies between what was correct for the monarchy and what was actually taking place on the other side of the Atlantic。 It would appear that the distance created unexpected problems between the two。 However， having said that， the need for plunder was essential to A well written， concise history from the viewpoint of the Spanish State on the developments and discoveries of the several groups of conquistadores who traveled on expeditions to the Americas from 1400's to 1500's。 It lays out the discrepencies between what was correct for the monarchy and what was actually taking place on the other side of the Atlantic。 It would appear that the distance created unexpected problems between the two。 However， having said that， the need for plunder was essential to the Spanish State to continue its affairs within the empire， and gold， silver， gemstones and other valuable artifacts were sent by many ships to the monarchys utter pleasure。 The treatment of the indiginous population is glossed over somewhat though it is made clear by several examples， of the amount of slaughter upon these people took place in the name of subjugation to the crown and the cross。 Although it seems at times as an apology for the behaviour of the conquistadores and for Spains part in it; it also lays out that there was a sense of seperate rules and order in the Americas quite different than that which the King continually insisted upon。 Again the distance created a vast rift in how that was instituted and in most cases， the Indian populations suffered not only from diseases brought over by the Spaniards but also by the destruction of their culture， cities， and the continual pillaging of sacred sites of the gold， silver， jewels。 The burning of libraries with untold damage to the full account of the histories of these people。 And for that we still have a very limited understanding of these great cultures which existed for centuries before the arrival of the Spanish。It cannot be stressed that this book is a great work of scholarly importance for its revealing the mindset of the Spanish place in medieval European history。For a further in depth analysis of the plight of the indigenous population as seen from their side of the history; other sources must be sought。This book is a must read to anyone seeking to understand this very important turning point in European expansion into the New World。 。。。more
Geourska
，
I was surprised to learn that this book had such good reviews on GoodReads because， quite frankly， I found the book to be quite a slog。 Having recently moved to South America， I was looking forward to learning some more about its history。 This would not be a book that I recommend。I have two main complaints。 My first is that the book is written in a rather dry style， filled with references to names and concepts that I am unfamiliar with。 I have no idea who the intended audience of the book is， bu I was surprised to learn that this book had such good reviews on GoodReads because， quite frankly， I found the book to be quite a slog。 Having recently moved to South America， I was looking forward to learning some more about its history。 This would not be a book that I recommend。I have two main complaints。 My first is that the book is written in a rather dry style， filled with references to names and concepts that I am unfamiliar with。 I have no idea who the intended audience of the book is， but it clearly was not me。 In fact， I think this book is an excellent example of why reading is not merely the act of decoding words also the act of placing knowledge into an existing schema。 There were many times in which I could read all the individual words in a sentence but was unable to make any sense of what was being discussed since I am not familiar with 16th-century Spanish politics and religious history。 Take， for example， the following sentence， which is a part of a discussion of the religious order that was chosen to convert the Tainos in Hispaniola。 "Erasmus's secret was the deceptively simple way in which he managed to fuse into a single intellectual tradition the main conflicting currents of the late fifteenth century: the Netherlands piety of the devotio moderna and the Windisheim reform movement， Florentine Neo-Platonism， humanistic textual scholarship， and the various anxieties of what we might anachronistically call a growing 'middle class' increasingly aware of its needs and its potential for social action。' （pg。 108）Maybe this sentence means something to someone with a background in the topic， but it meant absolutely nothing to me。 The endless references to abstract concepts that are unlikely to be familiar to the general reader greatly detracted from the book。 At times， Cervantes was able to make the topic come alive， but unfortunately， such instances were few and far between。My second complaint about the book is that it claims to give a more balanced and reframed view of the actions of the conquistadors。 One of the main arguments seems to be that we are judging the conquistadors' actions by modern standards and that when one considers the structure of government that they put into place （which lasted for over 300 years）， their conquest and Spain's subsequent development of the New World should be considered an accomplishment。 Spain， he argues， did not just exploit its 'colonies' （Cervantes argues that technically， these were not really colonies）， but helped the region develop into a thriving， commercially prosperous kingdom， that was home to countless intellectuals。 He also goes on to say that the conquistadors should not be blamed for the current problems in South America。 To me， this seems to be an argument of the ends justifying the means。 Given that the conquistadors were rightfully criticized for their actions at the time， it is clear that even by the standards of their time， the conquistadors behaved despicably。 Secondly， while New Spain might have had a flourishing culture， we will never know what the Incas， Mayas， and Aztecs would have achieved had their cultures not been destroyed by the Spanish。 At the end of the day， the death of thousands of people and wanton destruction of culture in the name of greed can never be justified。This brings me to one last related point， and this regards Cervantes' choice of language when describing the fate of the Inca queen， Cura Ocllo。 Cervantes states， 'Whether [Francisco] and his secretary， Antonio Picado， actually managed to have sexual intercourse with her， as was later alleged， we will never know。 But her execution reached levels of cruelty that shocked even the most heartless conquistadores。' （pg。 310）。 Let us be clear， the correct word to use here would be rape。 Stating that Francisco and Picado may have had sexual intercourse makes it sound like a somewhat consensual act， which it clearly would not have been。 I am also not sure what the speculation about whether or not they were successful in raping her adds much either。 But language has power and not calling a crime by its name only serves to minimize the crime。 。。。more
Alex Anderson
，
Like the topics of dinosaurs， WWII， the Age of Empire or the history of Nazi Germany， the conquests of the Conquistadores and their exploits in the Americas have always， since a child， held a dark and peculiar fascination for me。It is easy to see the total subjugation of indigenous peoples in general and particularly of the Aztecs by Hernando Cortez or the decimation of Incas by Francisco Pizarro， in light of more modern-day war crimes such as the Balkans， Congo， Armenian massacres or even the s Like the topics of dinosaurs， WWII， the Age of Empire or the history of Nazi Germany， the conquests of the Conquistadores and their exploits in the Americas have always， since a child， held a dark and peculiar fascination for me。It is easy to see the total subjugation of indigenous peoples in general and particularly of the Aztecs by Hernando Cortez or the decimation of Incas by Francisco Pizarro， in light of more modern-day war crimes such as the Balkans， Congo， Armenian massacres or even the slaughter of the Jews during the holecaust。 But this shortsighted comparison， while being emotionally cathartic， doesn’t allow for historical perspective nor hold up under any reasonably objective form of critical scrutiny。Cunning， guts， malfeasance， differences in the overal purpose of battle & warfare， superior technology， superstition and an astonishing single-mindedness and sense of purpose， along with the inadvertent utility of chemical warfare （probably more devastating than any other tool of war in use at the time， carried over with the invaders as it was in the form of deadly viruses that the indigineous peoples had absolutely no defence against） and the Devil’s Own Luck served as apocalyptical a collection of macabre tools of subjugation， death， destruction and genicidal obliteration as any modern nuclear device ever might hope to be。Hindsight of modern historical perspective and political correctness aside， there always seemed to me to be something inherently missing in the accounts that I had previously read concerning this subject， some part of the puzzle of truth。 In Conquistadores， Cervantes contributes in no small measure to filling this gap in knowledge with an accounting of the political and moral circumstances running both alongside and counter to the classic view of the whole concept of historical conceits and imperatives imbuing the materials so far made available to us concerning the Conquest of the Americas。The author’s main thesis is that the whole of the Conquista ought to be tracked not only by the greed for gold and racial bloodlust but additionally through the lens of the zealously religious world outlook of the Spaniards and the Holy Roman Emporer （it covers the Spanish Conquista， the Portuguese Conquistadors are entirely another matter， not covered here）。There are a few parts of the book which are overly pedantic or that might not seem relevant， the uninterested reader can easily skip this material。 But， for the reader who is curious about the subject and interested in adding a little more depth， substance and perspective to his historical wonderings， your time spent here pays off。 。。。more
Alejandro Urrutia
，
Buenísimo。 Una historia que todos los mexicanos creemos conocer， contada a detalle y ligada a eventos políticos europeos。
Emi
，
This was Best Book I read all year: completely gripping and well-researched。 I was completely hooked from the fist page and unfortunately read it so quickly that I didn't have time to let the information settle， so I will definitely come back to this book in the future and re-read。 I have always found this part of history absolutely fascinating， and I think the author does a brilliant job in bringing that complex history to life in a way that avoids the typical stereotypes。 This book is absolute This was Best Book I read all year: completely gripping and well-researched。 I was completely hooked from the fist page and unfortunately read it so quickly that I didn't have time to let the information settle， so I will definitely come back to this book in the future and re-read。 I have always found this part of history absolutely fascinating， and I think the author does a brilliant job in bringing that complex history to life in a way that avoids the typical stereotypes。 This book is absolutely not just a list of historical events: instead the author writes in a way that places the events and the conquistadors' actions within the religious， social， economic and cultural contexts that they occurred。 The pace is quite fast， and the book covers a large span of time， with chapters dedicated to major events such as the conquests of Mexico and Peru。 I feel that you get a major impression of significant conquistadors involved in the events， such as Cortes and Pizarro， as well as Moctezumo and Manquo Inca， and even figures such as Charles V and mendicant Friars like las Casas are described in some detail。 Despite covering a large timespan， the book is also rich in detail， using a lot of eyewitness accounts， geographical and archeological descriptions and a small selection of well-chosen photos。 。。。more
Stephanie Jane
，
See more of my book reviews on my blog， Literary FlitsI was drawn to read Fernando Cervantes new history of the early Spanish conquistadores because， other than Moctezuma， Christopher Columbus and Hernan Cortes， I knew very little about the leading men involved in this period of central American history。 It turns out that I didn't know much about the three I could already name either！ Cervantes details the years from just prior to Columbus' famous first voyage in 1492 through the reign of Empero See more of my book reviews on my blog， Literary FlitsI was drawn to read Fernando Cervantes new history of the early Spanish conquistadores because， other than Moctezuma， Christopher Columbus and Hernan Cortes， I knew very little about the leading men involved in this period of central American history。 It turns out that I didn't know much about the three I could already name either！ Cervantes details the years from just prior to Columbus' famous first voyage in 1492 through the reign of Emperor Charles V。 I liked that he tried to explain how the political and religious motivations determined actions on both sides and he is obviously very well versed in the the contemporary documentation of the time。 From the synopsis I had thought more original letters and diaries would be quoted whereas in fact they are more of simply referred to or described。 I didn't feel that Conquistadores actually challenged my perceptions of the conquistadores though。 I expected some ground-breaking insights， whereas what I actually felt I read was almost， at times， an apology for their behaviour。 That the Spanish expeditions were driven in seemingly pretty equal parts by blind faith and greed isn't exactly news and sums up most imperial expansions throughout human history！ What most disappointed me about this book though is how dryly Cervantes renders such a potentially fascinating an exciting period of history。 As I found with the biography Francis I by Leonie Frieda， an examination of the French king's life through roughly the same period， I need more to engage with history than just lists of names engaging in endless battles。 There are moments in Conquistadores where suddenly a person or scene sprang vividly to life for me， but unfortunately these were few and far between so， while this book is undoubtedly brilliantly researched and very informative， I found it a real slog to actually read。 。。。more
Andres Castillo
，
Highly readable and full of detailAlso， a much needed reflection on the balance on the moral contradictions of the conquistadors that will probably cause some （very welcome as I see it） heated discussions。Which ever position one might hold regarding these hot topics， I think people will find this to be a fascinating read
Lou
，