Conquistadors
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4.8 • 4 Ratings
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
The Spanish conquest of the Americas in the 16th century was one of the most important and cataclysmic events in history. Spanish expeditions endured incredible hardships in order to open up the lands of the 'New World', and few stories in history can match these for drama and endurance.
In Conquistadors, Michael Wood follows in the footsteps of some of the greatest of the Spanish adventurers travelling from the forests of Amazonia to Lake Titicaca, the deserts of North Mexico, the snowpeaks of the Andes and the heights of Machu Picchu. He experiences the epic journeys of Cortes, Pizarro, Orellana and Cabeza de Vaca, and explores the turbulent and terrifying events surrounding the Spanish conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires.
Wood brings these stories to vivid life, highlighting both the heroic accomplishments and the complex moral legacy of the European invasion. Conquistadors is Michael Wood at his best - thoughtful, provocative and gripping history.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Conquistadors, journalist and filmmaker Michael Wood (In Search of the Trojan War) travels the routes of the Spanish explorers and conquerors (and often by the same means, including a homemade balsa raft on Coca River rapids) the length and breadth of South and Central America and some of North America as well. With photos, maps and illustrations adorning nearly every page, the book examines records of the conquests both by the invaders and the native peoples. A 1613 letter from Peruvian historian Waman Poma to the king of Spain appealing for humane treatment of Indians, Gonzalo Pizarro's catalogue of the infamous El Dorado misadventures, Cabeza de Vaca's account of crossing North America and Geronimo de Aguilar's diary of the Night of Tears (when Aztecs fought back and killed 600 Spaniards) are among the numerous firsthand accounts Wood presents. (Univ. of California, 288p )
