Spain in America

The New American Nation Series

by Charles Gibson

This book is designed as an over-all summary of colonial Spanish - American history. It deals with a longer chronological period than do most other volumes of the New American Nation Series, and its treatment is more comprehensive and general. With respect to emphasis and point of view I have sought to keep in mind both the requirements of a historical survey and the particular interests of readers in the United States.

Genres: History, American History

239 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1966

Reviews

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees · Rating 2 out of 5]

This general survey of the colonial period in Latin America is probably just about right for anyone looking for the highs and lows of this period, along with an analysis of the trends that affected the history of the region. It seemed to me to be an excellent primer on the subject, whereas anyone who has studied this time and place will probably not find much that's new here.

The book is only somewhat organized chronologically--it's focus is more on the trends that developed over time rather than tied to specific events or figures. So it begins with conquest, and moves into the encomienda period, then discusses how the Spanish crown began to wrest control back from the original colonists. It also discusses the rise of the creole class, and the countless variations of racial mixtures that formed the basis of society. It ends prior to the revolutionary period with the life on the borderlands, and then hints of the coming turbulence.

Part of the New American Nation series published by Harper Torchbooks back in the 60s, I found this installment much better than the first that I read, The Indian in America, mostly, I think, because there was more of a unified story to tell here, whereas the earlier subject was simply too broad. Still, I'm not sure this series is going to be all I hoped it would be when I first started picking them up. The next book in the series is France In America, which is a subject I'm less familiar with than the other two, so I'm hoping that a general survey will be perfect for me.

[Sarah Seele · Rating 4 out of 5]

y’all this was way better than I thought it would be. i wanted an overview of Spanish-American history and i was prepared to suffer for it, but really i only suffered ~a little~

the real treasure, though (as i figured it would be only two chapters in), was the sources we picked up along the way. when i am able to actually dive in, i have places to start, including primary-source places to start, thank you & bless you Charles Gibson

[John E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gibson wrote a very good overview of Spanish American colonial history. Since it was part of the New American Nation Series it does emphasize the history of Mexico since that is the part of colonial Spanish America most involved with United States history. This is a very good way to see the differences between English and Spanish colonialism and the results of those differences in the resulting independent nations.

[Jose Crespo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un buen libro para iniciarse en la materia, solo conozco la versión en español que lamentablemente contiene alguna frase de difícil comprensión por haber sido mal traducida seguramente.