Espasa-Calpe is publishing a series of general histories of which the present work is a part. Volumes one through four deal with distinct historical epochs, while volumes five and six, by F. Morales Padrón, comprise a general history of America.
Volume five constitutes a survey of America from pre-Columbian times until the independence era. The form is that of a general text, omitting notes and index. The author has placed his emphasis on Spanish America, allotting only moderate space to English, French, and Portuguese America. A valuable bibliographical essay is included at the end of each chapter to supplement the chapter on American historical bibliography with which the volume begins.
Unlike that of many general works, the presentation is not devoid of polemics. Asserting that American history has suffered from localism, Morales Padrón insists that history should be treated as a unit with shadings and variations. Though it is convenient to write history in terms of centuries, he states, it must not be assumed that the spirit of one age is totally different from that of previous epochs.
In six chapters Morales Padrón treats the origin, structure, and culture of pre-Columbian societies. The theories and viewpoints of recent anthropological and archaeological scholarship provide the basis for his discussion. Chapter eight analyzes contributing factors preparatory to the discovery of America: the Portuguese in Africa, Spain’s conquest of her own territory, and, simultaneously, the Canaries. The latter, the author emphasizes, was the proving ground for Spain’s conquest of America. In the following two chapters the adventures and tribulations of Columbus are related. A balanced view is presented by incorporating the many available interpretations. Considerable space is given to “the intellectual discoverer of America”—Vespucio.
The conquest of America was, above all, a mass effort. Morales Padrón presents the conquistadores as men imbued with the spirit of the age rather than simply as phenomenal heroes. A chapter is devoted to a discussion of the Spanish justification of the conquest—a topic seldom treated today. The author feels that the Spanish explorations in the Pacific have not yet received the attention they merit.
Nine chapters are devoted to the viceregal period in Spanish America and to the colonial era generally. A provocative chapter on piracy and the defense of the Indies is included. The final four chapters constitute an analysis of the eighteenth-century Enlightenment and its implications for the reform of colonial institutions in America.
A magnificent array of illustrations provides a backdrop for the narrative. The author and publisher are to be complimented on the quality of this volume. Of interest to the student and scholar alike is the author’s frequent citation of the historians of the period and his succinct analysis of the thinkers of Spain and America who contributed to the attitudes and ideologies present in the history of Spanish America.
The electic approach of Morales Padrón helps to make this a stimulating volume.
