Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico

by Stuart B. Schwartz

In 1519 Hernán Cortés and a small band of Spanish conquistadors overthrew the mighty Mexican empire of the Aztecs. Using excerpts primarily drawn from Bernal Diaz's 1632 account of the Spanish victory and testimonies — many recently uncovered — of indigenous Nahua survivors, Victors and Vanquished clearly demonstrates how personal interests, class and ethnic biases, and political considerations influenced the interpretation of momentous events. A substantial introduction is followed by 9 chronological sections that illuminate the major events and personalities in this powerful historical episode and reveal the changing attitudes toward European expansionism. The volume includes a broad array of visual images and maps, a glossary of Spanish and Nahua terms, biographical notes, a chronology, a selected bibliography, questions for consideration, and an index.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Read For School, Indigenous, War, Textbooks, Native American

271 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Stuart B. Schwartz is Professor of History at Yale University and the former Master of Ezra Stiles College.

He studied at Middlebury College, where he received his undergraduate degree, and the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico. He then went on to study Latin American History at Columbia University where he received his Ph.D. (1968).

He is one of the leading specialists on the History of colonial Latin America, especially Brazil and on the history of Early Modern expansion.

Reviews

[Ania · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish this book was written differently. It is quite easy going for the first 40 pages but eventually it gets really thick and confusing. This is because the author cuts and pastes extracts from letters and books.

I see why he did it. He wanted to present the conquest of Mexico from both sides, the Victors and the Vanquished.

I think the trouble with this book is that it's not suited to my reading preferences. When such cut-and-paste stuff occurs in books there are so many different voices and styles talking one after the other that it's hard to keep it all straight. The fact that these are excerpts often taken out of their full context doesn't help as well. This is why I'm abandoning this book.

However, if you're a history buff, you will probably appreciate the first hand accounts from the people who were there.

[Luke Koran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Schwartz does a great job in collecting numerous text documents and maps, along with indigenous sources like the Florentine Codex, Codex Mendoza, and other visual recordings of history, that highlight the Conquest of Mexico in the early 16th century. Though any scholar can gather a bunch of documents together in a book that will prove to be popular in a certain interest group, the author has to know where to look, likely know the language(s) of the document and often be able to translate if the original translation is incorrect, and then be able to provide a small but thorough introduction and analysis of the documents in order to give the reader some much-needed context. Here is where Schwartz excels and proves that he has provided a worthy contribution to the scholarly community regarding the Mexica peoples, Spanish conquistadores, and the fall of Tenochtitlan, the island capitol of the Aztec Empire. His own text that precedes the entire book and then the short paragraph(s) before each document that explain their significance are well-written and are the conclusions of a scholar who has spent quite a bit of time in this field and has gained unique insight.

The layout is chronological, yes, though in instances where some of the same events are covered by both the Spaniards and Mexica, then the event is relayed through both perspectives. This is great for seeing the differences between the common European tale of an event, like the death of King Montezuma, and the native version, but then the book reads less like a story this way. But keep in mind why this "book" exists: it's a collection of documents to TELL a story (and from multiple perspectives), not to BE the story!

Overall, this book was an EXCELLENT read for my collegiate course "Intro to Latin American History" and comparing the Spaniard and indigenous perspective on this harsh, transformative end-of-an-era.

[Maryk · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading Stuart B. Schwartz’s book, “Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico” one must conclude that if one must choose a correct perspective, either Spanish or Nahua, it cannot be done definitively for there are flaws with both sides. The most accurate account of events seems to have been given by Bernal Diaz because he, unlike the Nahua or Cortez, had no reason to sway or impress either the Spanish throne or the Catholic church. Regardless of right or wrong, the debate over fact from fiction will continue to revive the subject for debate, doing honor to history by inspiring people to dig deeper for answers.

[Isabella · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I usually love reading primary sources and seeing what authors are basing their ideas and arguments on, this book was a bit extreme in its use of sources. The majority of this book was primary sources and explaining where these primary sources can from. It very rarely had the author analyze these texts and give their professional opinion. At times this felt more like a scrapbook of primary sources than a book analyzing both viewpoints from the Spanish conquest of Mexico.

As a person reading nonfiction on a new subject I know that I do not understand everything or have the full context, so having the writer fill in these gaps and explaining things is extremely valuable to me when reading nonfiction. Unfortunately, since the writer relied on the primary sources too much, he neglected to add his commentary which would have added more value to this book.

Though because this book is used as a textbook, I guess the missing commentary from the author was supposed to be supplemented by class lectures, discussions, and assignments. Unfortunately, this means that if you stumble upon this book and read it, like me, you are missing out on this commentary.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book lays out several translated accounts from Nahua and Spanish sources in a chronological/narrative order. The book is rather thin on analysis as it mostly serves as a collection of excerpts, though it does contain sufficient context where necessary. It is certainly one of the more gripping nonfiction books I've read, and even feels suspenseful at times. Some of the Nahua writings may bring you to tears.

[Lynn Stegner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating history of Spain's conquest of Mexico. The indigenous Mexica sources are limited to documents written by those people after the conquest.

[Kienan Aguado · Rating 3 out of 5]

F**K CORTES

I think this one could have been done a bit better, but wow... what a collection of primary sources. Heartbreaking and infuriating.

[Elinor Kleber Diggs · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this my Freshman year of college for my Colonial Latin America Class.

I mean it’s important information but I really didn’t enjoy the reading process.

[Jorge · Rating 2 out of 5]

Uses large chunks of other books rather than referencing them. Granted it is written to be more of a college course textbook, that's fine. It allows for side by side comparison without having both sources side by side. If you've already read the other sources this will not be worth your time unless you want to glance through it. The intros to each chapter have more new information that the chapters themselves. Interesting new translation to Bernal Diaz del Castillo's True History of the Conquest of New Spain with idiot proof editing.

The sections after the fall and seizure of Tenochtitlan are the most informative as to new sources that aren't repetitive.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book for a history course I am enrolled in. I have little background knowledge of the Spanish Conquest of Mexico and after having read the book I don't feel any more knowledgeable. The book was frustrating to read in that the passages tend to drone on and I'll read a few pages and then can't remember what I just read. Although interesting, I wish I had been able to get a lot more out of the book.

[Felisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just finished reading this book last week for my history class. The information that is found in this book is extremely interesting (first hand accounts really give it a nearly chilling quality at times!), but the way it was written left me confused off and on throughout the entire book. Had this been compiled differently, it certainly would've been a historical gem.

[Adrian · Rating 2 out of 5]

The analyses of primary sources could have been written with a bit more character and liveliness. The sources themselves were very interesting and informative, but I can't help but feel that reading that ACTUAL sources would be a better way to get at them.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico by Stuart B. Schwartz – They say that history is written by the victors, but this book gives you a look at both sides. Another cool history major book! Happy Reading!

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good for teaching primary sources and the Spanish conquest of Mexico to undergrads.

[sleeperhits · Rating 4 out of 5]

Useful as a historical resource

[Rachel Burkhart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting stuff but it was hard to read and sometimes confusing.