The European arrival in the New World is one of the most dramatic moments in all of human history. It precipitated a clash of civilizations unlike any other, setting off a chain of events that forever reshaped global geopolitics and continues to shape the lives of millions today.
Unfortunately, it is also one of the most misunderstood periods in history. Debates rage as to whether Christopher Columbus was a villain or a hero. Some view the conquest of the Aztecs as a brutal genocide, while others consider it the just overthrow of a civilization that practiced human sacrifice, pointing out that many local tribes were only too happy to partner with Cortés in his siege of Tenochtitlan.
So what is the truth about the conquistadors? That is the question at the heart of my conversation with Dr. Fernando Cervantes, historian at Bristol University and author of Conquistadores: A New History.
Better than anyone else, Dr. Cervantes helps place the conquistadors in their proper context, in “a world that myth and prejudice have rendered almost as alien to us as the world of the Americas was to the conquistadores themselves”. Over the course of a wonderful 2.5 hour interview, he brings this world to life, proving why:
“It is important that we do not reduce the richly complex world of the conquistadores to a sweeping caricature…their world was not the cruel, backward, obscurantist and bigoted myth of legend”
-Conquistadores: A New History
Our conversation covers everything from Columbus to Cortés, the conquest of Mexico, contemporary Spanish critics, the missionary tactics of early friars, and much more. The first 50 minutes are free for all readers of INVICTUS.
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