Restall‚ _Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest_ New York‚ Oxford University Press‚ 2003 3 pages‚ 889 words _Myths of the Spanish Conquest_ is broken into seven chapters‚ each dedicated to a different myth or mis-conception regarding the Spanish conquest. In debunking these myths‚ Matthew Restall works with three themes regarding the conquest. First‚ that the European discovery of the Americas was one of the greatest events in human history. Second‚ that the conquest was the achievement of "a few
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The book offers important events and discoveries that were by the Spanish in both Europe and America. The author highlights that the Spanish were first people to discover the printing press. The Spanish Conquest was made possible by the elaborate strategies utilized by renowned individuals such as Christopher Columbus and Pizarro. According to Restall (2003)‚ the European discovery and the conquest of the America were as a result of courageous adventurers. The author highlights how powerful empires
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practiced an incredibly wealthy lifestyle. Nonetheless‚ this rule began to deteriorate when Spanish explorers disembarked at Tabasco and Vera Cruz on April 21st 1519. When the Spanish voyagers first arrived‚ they were welcomed warmly‚ respectfully and received Godlike treatment. Montezuma‚ the ruler at that time‚ believed that the Spanish military leader‚ Hernán Cortés‚ was the great god Quetzalcoatl. The Spanish took advantage of this Aztec belief and conquered Mexico within two years. By 1521‚ the
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Factors Causing 2 Many different factors ultimately led to the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire. Many of the factors could be considered luck and it can be mind boggling how the Spanish took on the largest empire of the day with only a handful of soldiers and weapons. The reasons the Spanish were able to control and systematically destroy the Aztecs was because of their alliances with neighboring cultures‚ their advanced weapons‚ their domesticated animals‚ disease‚ and the luckiest part of
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Advantages the Spanish had over the Incas The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire is one of the most important campaigns in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. This operation‚ although carried out by Spanish conquistadors and their native allies‚ took decades of fighting to subdue‚ one of the mightiest empires in the Americas. One may ask‚ if the Incas were so powerful‚ how could they possibly have fallen to the authority of the Spaniards? Did they not have a strong enough army? Were there
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Adam Smith says that the discovery of America was one of the two greatest and most important events recorded in the history of mankind. "The general advantages which Europe‚ considered as one great country‚ has derived from the discovery and colonization of America‚ consist‚ first‚ in the increase of its enjoyments; and‚ secondly‚ in the augmentation of its industry." (Page 2‚ Voices of Freedom) The production in America was considered a surplus to Europe‚ as it gave them a variety of commodities
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With the Spanish conquest in Latin America came many accounts from both Spanish and indigenous writers. These primary sources are not only useful because of their content‚ but also because of their omissions. That is to say that the discrepancies found among writers of different class‚ race‚ or political position‚ are expressive of their individual biases. Analyzing what these variations are and why they exist allows for a deeper understanding of the history of this colonial period. Especially in
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The accounts of the Spanish conquest of Mexico are often Spanish and almost always "patently self-serving" (Hassig 3). They glorify the ideals of the groups that the authors represent and emphasize the improbability of the Spanish victories. They largely ignore the Native points of view of the conquest‚ due to both a smaller number of Native accounts and due to their own motives. However‚ Hassig presents a balanced narrative of the Spanish conquest of Mexico and considers the Native perspectives
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control of the entire valley. Conquering city after city‚ Moctezuma and his warrior empire took food‚ luxury goods‚ exotic raw materials and war captives. The prisoners of war were saved for sacrifices to the gods. Embarking on a journey of his own in search of gold‚ General Hernando Cortes lead his group of Spanish troops into the path of the powerful Moctezuma monarchy. After meeting face to face‚ both men seemingly viewed the other with mutual respect after a friendly exchange of greetings. Trust was
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values‚ attitudes‚ and conduct of the Spanish during the Age of Discovery and Conquest (1492-1579). The colonial church provided control and a standard of conduct and living for the new world. In fact‚ the colonial church had even more power in Spanish America then it did in Spain. Why this is important though‚ is because it limited the possibility of rebellion and opposition. As long as the church was in place‚ there was Spanish order‚ and as long as there was Spanish order‚ the colonization process could
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