Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest

by Restall, Matthew

• ISBN13: 9780195176117
• ISBN10: 0195176111
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-10-28
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Here is an intriguing exploration of the ways in which the history of the Spanish Conquest has been misread and passed down to become popular knowledge of these events. The book offers a fresh account of the activities of the best-known conquistadors and explorers, including Columbus, Cortés, and Pizarro. Using a wide array of sources, historian Matthew Restall highlights seven key myths, uncovering the source of the inaccuracies and exploding the fallacies and misconceptions behind each myth. This vividly written and authoritative book shows, for instance, that native Americans did not take the conquistadors for gods and that small numbers of vastly outnumbered Spaniards did not bring down great empires with stunning rapidity. We discover that Columbus was correctly seen in his lifetime--and for decades after--as a briefly fortunate but unexceptional participant in efforts involving many southern Europeans. It was only much later that Columbus was portrayed as a great man who fought against the ignorance of his age to discover the new world. Another popular misconception--that the Conquistadors worked alone--is shattered by the revelation that vast numbers of black and native allies joined them in a conflict that pitted native Americans against each other. This and other factors, not the supposed superiority of the Spaniards, made conquests possible. The Conquest, Restall shows, was more complex--and more fascinating--than conventional histories have portrayed it. Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest offers a richer and more nuanced account of a key event in the history of the Americas.

Author Biography

Matthew Restall is Professor of Latin American History, Women's Studies, and Anthropology, and Director of Latin American Studies at Pennsylvania State University. He is the author of five books, including Maya Conquistador and The Maya World. He lives in State College, Pennsylvania.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Introduction
The Lost Words of Bernal Diaz	xiii
1 A Handful of Adventurers
The Myth of Exceptional Men	1	(26)
2 Neither Paid Nor Forced
The Myth of the King's Army	27	(17)
3 Invisible Warriors
The Myth of the White Conquistador	44	(20)
4 Under the Lordship of the King
The Myth of Completion	64	(13)
5 The Lost Words of La Malinche
The Myth of (Mis)Communication	77	(23)
6 The Indians Are Coming to an End
The Myth of Native Desolation	100	(31)
7 Apes and Men
The Myth of Superiority	131
Epilogue
Cuauhtémoc's Betrayal	147	(12)
Permissions	159	(2)
Notes	161	(32)
References	193	(16)
Index	209