Henry Kamen's work re-creates the dazzling world of Imperial Spain, from the capture of Moorish Granada and Columbus's first voyage in 1492, to its expansion into Europe, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, and the opening up of the frontiers in Texas and California in the eighteenth century. Drawing on the accounts of those who witnessed these great events, whether Aztec chroniclers, Italian explorers or Filipino sultans, Kamen balances the wonders of the Empire (the first sight of the Pacific, the astonishing voyages of the Manila galleons) with the horrors - the slavery, disease, terror and waste of human life it entailed. Throughout he emphasises just how unSpanish this Empire actually was, always relying on the cooperation (willing or otherwise) of non-Castilians for its success: Portuguese, basque, Aztec, Genoese, Chinese, Flemish, West African, Inca and Neapolitan. It was this vast diversity of resources and people which included many of its greatest adventurers and soldiers) that made Spain's' power so overwhelming. Henry Kamen demonstrates how the traditional view of the Spanish Empire as the all-conquering enemy of Protestant Europe has distorted our knowledge of its achievements. Shorn of this "black legend", Spain's complex impact on world history becomes far more apparent - but also, in new ways, just as disturbing.
Spain's Road to Empire
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About the Author
Henry Kamen was most recently Visiting Professor of History at the University of Chicago. He is the author of Philip Of Spain and lives in Barcelona.
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24 of 34 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Mr. Kamen begins his book with the following lines of Bertolt Brecht: "The young Alexander conquered India. All by himself? Caesar beat the Gauls. Didn't he even have a cook with him?" The answers are obvious. Mr. Kamen asks a different question. Who built the Spanish Empire? The answer to that question seems obvious, also...the Spanish, right? But Mr. Kamen spends the next 500 pages showing us that the obvious answer, in this case, is the wrong answer. In a dazzling display of erudition, covering events in Granada, North Africa, Italy, the Spanish Netherlands, the Caribbean, Mexico, Peru, the Philippines, etc., the author reveals that the Spanish Empire was built and maintained with the help of people of many nations...that it was a true "multinational enterprise". Mr. Kamen also shows that rather than the Empire being created by Spain, Spain was created by the Empire- for at the starting point of the book, 1492, there really was no such entity as Spain. Like several other European countries of the time, such as Italy and Germany, Spain consisted of many geographical units- each with its own language and/or culture, and people felt a loyalty to that particular area rather than to the larger abstraction called "Spain". Only after the Empire developed and the language of the largest geographical area, Castile, became the language of Empire did people start to think of themselves as belonging to something bigger than the particular region they lived in. Mr. Kamen also points out that the population of Spain (which was much less than that of France or England) was never great enough to provide the soldiers needed to support the far-flung Empire. Where did this Empire come from, though?... Read more ›
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Being a Spaniard fond of history (albeit no scholar) I read this book because I am fed up with Spanish writers. I must admit I learned a lot, but the main thing about this book is that it seems a little bit like the personal interpretation of history by the author. It's like his theory. The facts are what they are, but the explanations given by the author are intriguing. The main line goes something like this: Spain was a world power of certain status during the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries (second to Great Britain and France in the late 17th and throughout the 18th century) because it was in the best interest of the other powers to keep her as such. It was convenient, (so Kamen says or implies) to keep a certain balance or status quo among the nations. I must say that his theories struck me as odd. I give it 3 stars because I enjoyed reading it, however puzzling his explanations seemed to me, and I learned history. But believe me, this is no ordinary history book. It's a personal defence of the theories of Kamen by himself. I would not give it 4 stars, because history books should be more objective, I think.
14 of 22 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Believe it or not Kamen's books on the Spanish Empire are actually necessary in order to produce a renovated approach to the study of Empire building. There is plenty of food for thought in this book which will undoubtedly spark heated debate in the academic world. Unfortunately Kamen's theories are wild, subjective and blatantly anti-Spanish at times. His emphasis on Spain expecting her partners and allies to speak Spanish as if it were a sign of a blatant superiority complex is absolutely correct, but in what does this differ from other Imperial policies throughout history? Did the Romans take crash couses in Iberian and Gallic during their empire building? Were the British recognised as masters of the different Indian languages in their colonisation of the Sub-Continent or to further prove a point, how much diplomacy or trade was run in native languages up and down Africa? This lack of linguistic skill is applicable to France, Germany, the USA and any other country that has initiated a policy of imperialism and colonialisation. To mention such anecdotes as part of a theory is, in my opinion, puerile. A further point which demands criticism is his mention of the numbers of actual Spanish soldiers in Imperial armies in order to prove that Spain really -and I quote another reviewer- "did not have the muscle" to realise its imperial dreams. XVI century Europe had, to name just a few examples, French armies composed of minimal amounts of Frenchmen and rather large amounts of Swiss, Dutch armies composed mostly of German mercenaries and so on....so what is Kamen really trying to prove?
Kamen should for his own good promptly revert to an objective methodology and stick to facts which are surprisingly not that traumatic to obtain.... Read more ›
Kamen should for his own good promptly revert to an objective methodology and stick to facts which are surprisingly not that traumatic to obtain.... Read more ›
11 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a generally well written and extensively researched book, however the author seems more intent on castigating the Castillians than he is on delivering an objective history. Some of the criticisms levelled at the Castillians seem almost personal, for example "the poor reputation of Spain in matters of courtesy and culture..." This is simply a gratuitous insult that has no place in a grown-up history. There are many more examples of unjustified and petty criticisms of Castillian culture that add nothing to Mr Kamen's argument.
If you are looking for a mature, balanced history of the Spanish Empire I would suggest you look elsewhere.
If you are looking for a mature, balanced history of the Spanish Empire I would suggest you look elsewhere.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent summary
This book was originally read as background material. I was impressed at the depth of knowledge of Kamen. Read more
Published on 11 May 2011 by M. Hamann
2.0 out of 5 stars
Average to low history book
I would have expected some more research on the side on Kamen on this book. It is obvious that he has not spent enough time in the Archivo de Indias in Seville. Read more
Published on 13 Mar 2003 by Robert D
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