by John Hemming
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by Michael Wood
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by Michael Wood
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by Michael Wood
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by Michael Wood
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Could a 16th-century army of 160 Spaniards subjugate a Native American empire of 5-10 million people? Conquistadors, recounting "tales of heroism and endurance, but also of immeasurable greed and staggering brutality", explains how the "lure of gold", the attributes of individual leaders and the hand of fate made this possible.
Could a 16th-century army of 160 Spaniards subjugate a Native American empire of 5-10 million people? Conquistadors, recounting "tales of heroism and endurance, but also of immeasurable greed and staggering brutality", explains how the "lure of gold", the attributes of individual leaders and the hand of fate made this possible.
The book tells of alien cultures meeting for the first time; of Cortes conquering Mexico, Francisco Pizarro's clash with the Incas, the search for El Dorado, and Cabeza de Vaca's years spent peacefully amongst Native Americans. Tying in with a BBC television series in which Michael Wood follows in the footsteps of these explorers, this copiously illustrated and attractively presented book incorporates glimpses of his own journeys. A thought-provoking, balanced and not excessively gory account, Conquistadors reveals how Europeans got bank vaults of gold, potatoes on their dinner tables and lupins in their gardens, while the Native Americans suffered "devastating cultural loss" and gained ravaging diseases. Feeling that "blame or regret are pointless", Wood's focus is on understanding the events and explaining how the world still lives in the conquest's wake. Debate on the morality of the conquest and on what it means to be human occurred in the 16th century and questions on the treatment of traditional cultures, the exploitation of the natural world and globalisation remain as living legacies of the Conquistadors. --Karen Tiley
Product Description
Based on the BBC TV series, this is an account of one of the most cataclysmic events in history, the Spanish conquest of the Americas in the 16th century. Wood travels in the footsteps of some of the greatest of the Spanish adventurers, from Amazonia to Lake Titicaca and from the deserts of New Mexico to the heights of Machu Picchu. He experiences first hand the reality of epic journeys such as those made by Cortes and the Pizarros, and explores the turbulent and terrifying events surrounding the Spanish conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires. He also retraces Orellano's extraordinary voyage of discovery down the Amazon and de Vaca's journey across the continent to the Pacific. As well as bringing history alive with text and pictures, Wood grapples with the moral legacy of the European invasion. These are stories not only of conquest, heroism and greed, but of changes in the way we see the world, history and civilization, justice and human rights.
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72% buy the item featured on this page: Conquistadors |
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11% buy Conquest of the Incas £9.09 |
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6% buy Conquest: Montezuma, Cortes, and the Fall of Old Mexico |
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6% buy The Last Days of the Incas £8.49 |
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