Colonial Latin America: A Documentary History

Colonial Latin America: A Documentary History centers on people from different parts of the world who came together to form societies by chance and by design in the years after 1492. This text encourages detailed exploration of the cultural development of colonial Latin America through a wide variety of documents and visual materials, most of which have been translated and presented originally for this collection.

An invaluable resource for teachers of colonial Latin American history. The documents are well-chosen, judiciously translated, and beautifully introduced. They bring forth the key themes of faith, honor, patronage, and mestizaje in vivid, unforgettable strokes. And like all vital historical documents, they are challenging and open to multiple interpretations, offering fertile ground for classroom discussion. -- Bryan McCann, Georgetown University Adding this book to syllabi which treat what is usually referred to as the 'colonial period' will undoubtedly enrich the experience and expand the understanding of undergraduates studying Latin America. * Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies * Emphasizing the confluence of the many, varied peoples that formed societies in colonial Latin America by chance and by design in the years following 1492, this text examines the region's cultural development based on readings, documents, historical analysis, photographs, drawings, and paintings. * Book News, Inc. * This text constitutes the most diverse and illuminating set yet assembled on colonial Spanish America. The editors have succeeded brilliantly in combining highly useful original sources intended for the serious undergraduate with a scholarly apparatus and commentary of the highest order. * Rocky Mountain Review * A much-needed and innovative selection of texts and images. . . . Suited for classroom use, this work blends primary and secondary sources dealing with gender, class, race, ethnicity, and institutional development in early Latin America. This volume is recommended to students and aficionados of Spanish colonial history in the Americas. * Colonial Latin American Historical Review * I've taught the colonial Latin American survey for the last nine years, and the only source reader I really like is Mills, Taylor, & Graham. I keep coming back to it because it is thorough, well-selected, and of the highest scholarly caliber. The documents are all relevant to my approach to the survey, and I use virtually all of them in the course of each semester. Since many have a religious or ethnohistorical focus, they nicely complement the more political economy/secular society thrust of most textbooks. The use of art historical approaches to understanding colonial (and pre-colonial) thought and vision is the icing on the cake-not just pictures, but 'visual texts.' -- Kris Lane, College of William & Mary This is the most challenging, useful and thoughtful collection of primary sources available for the study of Colonial Latin America. -- Nicole von Germeten, Oregon State University A unique and eclectic collection of archival 'vignettes' that students would not normally have any exposure. Although they focus on individual experiences and situations, these vignettes have great teaching value for the larger themes of colonial Latin American history. They bring history alive in ways that textbooks cannot. Probably most important, they allow me to illustrate larger lecture points in a way that is not only clear but memorable to students. -- Paula DeVos, San Diego State University I have the highest regard for this as an invaluable text. -- John Russell-Wood, Johns Hopkins University