The Essential Diaz: Selections from The Conquest of New Spain - Softcover

Bernal Diazs True History of the Conquest of New Spain, the chronicle of an ordinary soldier in Hernando Cortess army, is the only complete account (other than Cortess own) that we have of the Spanish conquest of ancient Mexico. It makes for consistently fascinating reading, and Ted Humphrey and Janet Burke have provided the best, and the most engaging, translation ever to have appeared in English. Anthony Pagden, UCLA [Humphrey and Burkes] translation takes full advantage of the best scholarship of the last fifty years, providing useful context and interpretation for the non-specialist. The result is a highly readable, engaging book that will prove a valuable teaching tool in a variety of classroom settings. Lyman Johnson, University of North Carolina Charlotte

Ideally suited for use in swift-moving surveys of World, Atlantic, and Latin American history, this abridgment of Ted Humphrey and Janet Burke's 2012 translation of the True History provides key excerpts from Diaz's text and concise summaries of omitted passages. Included in this edition is a new preface outlining the social, economic, and political forces that motivated the European discovery of the New World.