Letters from Mexico
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Author Description
Hernán Cortés’s Cartas de Relacíon, written over a seven-year period to Charles V of Spain, provide an extraordinary narrative account of the conquest of Mexico from the founding of the coastal town of Veracruz until Cortés’s journey to Honduras in 1525. Pagden’s English translation has been prepared from a close examination of the earliest surviving manuscript and of the first printed editions, and he also provides a new introduction offering a bold and innovative interpretation of the nature of the conquest and Cortes’s involvement in it. J. H. Elliot’s introductory essay explains Cortes’s conflicts with the Crown and with Diego Velazquez, the governor of Cuba.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
How did Hernán Cortés justify the conquest of Mexico to the Spanish Crown through his direct correspondence with Charles V? This collection presents the primary accounts written by Cortés between 1519 and 1526, edited and translated by A.R. Pagden to provide a reliable scholarly text. The work examines the political maneuvering, military strategies, and cultural clashes inherent in the Spanish colonization of the Aztec Empire, supported by an analytical introduction from J.H. Elliott.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- The complete Cartas de Relación correspondence detailing the conquest from Veracruz to Honduras.
- Scholarly annotations detailing Mesoamerican cultural context and Spanish political dynamics.
- Historical analysis of the conflict between Cortés, the Spanish Crown, and Diego Velázquez.
Scope Limits
- The text is limited to the perspective of the Spanish conquistador and does not provide an indigenous account of the events.
- The analysis focuses primarily on the political and military narrative rather than a comprehensive social history of the region.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars and historians widely regard this translation as the definitive English-language edition of Cortés's correspondence. Experts frequently note that the academic rigor of the annotations and the inclusion of contextual essays make this a foundational text for understanding the Renaissance-era clash of civilizations.
Page Count:
0
Publication Date:
1972-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0192125583
ISBN-13:
9780192125583
History
Biography
American History
Colonial History
Primary Source
Renaissance
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