THE GOLDEN CONQUISTADORES

by ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 24, 1960

Journals, letters, and other legal and private documents by Bernal Diaz del Castillo, Bartolome de las Casas, Antonio de Mendoza, and lesser figures of Spain's Golden Age are presented here in a smooth-reading translation by Harry Rosen. Irwin Blacker's commentary introduces each of the seven chapters and suggests relationships among the excerpts and their authors. The widely varying motives for Spain's accomplishments in the New World are cited as they pertain to such conquerors as Pizarro, Balboa, Cortes, and Alvarado. Blacker takes the view that completely sincere allegiance to Cross and Crown were foremost among these motives, and he is in places somewhat critical of Columbus the Discoverer and his brothers. Few historians dispute either of these attitudes, although this book perhaps is a little less conservative on the religious issue than most. The period is the first half of the 16th century, heyday of the conquistador who ""will always be remembered because he became less a person than a symbol, a state of mind that acknowledged no defeat no matter how strange or how forbidding the barriers"". The work has enough sparkle to be read for entertainment as well as information.

Pub Date: Oct. 24, 1960

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Bobbs-Merrill

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1960

Categories: NONFICTION