The improbable conquest : sixteenth-century letters from the Río de la Plata

Author(s)

• Loaeza, Pablo García
• Garrett, Victoria L. (Victoria Lynn)

Bibliographic Information

The improbable conquest : sixteenth-century letters from the Río de la Plata

edited and translated by Pablo García Loaeza and Victoria L. Garrett

（Latin American originals, 9）

Pennsylvania State University Press, c2015

Note

Includes bibliographical references (p. [109]-112) and index

Description and Table of Contents

Description

The Improbable Conquest offers translations of a series of little-known letters from the chaotic Spanish conquest of the Rio de la Plata region, uncovering a rich and understudied historical resource. These letters were written by a wide variety of individuals, including clergy, military officers, and the region's first governor, Pedro de Mendoza. There is also an exceptional contribution from Isabel de Guevara, one of the few women involved in the conquest to have recorded her experiences. Writing about the conditions of settlements and expeditions, these individuals vividly expose the less glamorous side of the conquest, narrating in detail various misfortunes, infighting, corruption, and complaints. Their letters further reveal the colony's fraught relationship with the native peoples it sought to colonize, giving insight into the complexities of the conquest and the colonization process. Pablo Garcia Loaeza and Victoria Garrett provide an introduction to the history of the region and the conquest's key players, as well as a timeline and a glossary explaining difficult and archaic Spanish terms.

Table of Contents

Contents Foreword Preface Acknowledgments Chronology Introduction Selected Letters from the Rio de la Plata Pedro de Mendoza to Juan de Ayolas (April 21, 1537) Isabel Guevara to Princess Juana (July 2, 1556) Domingo de Irala to Emperor Charles V (March 1, 1545) Francisco Galan to Rodrigo de Vera (March 1, 1545) Juan Pavon to Martin de Agreda (June 15, 1556) Francisco de Andrada to the Council of the Indies (March 1, 1545) Martin Gonzalez to Emperor Charles V (June 25, 1556) Domingo Martinez to Emperor Charles V (July 2, 1556) Epilogue Glossary of Spanish Terms Bibliography Index

by "Nielsen BookData"

Details

• NCID: BB19441228
• ISBN:
  • 9780271065489
• LCCN: 2014028301
• Country Code: us
• Title Language Code: eng
• Text Language Code: eng
• Place of Publication: University Park, Pa.
• Pages/Volumes: xix, 121 p.
• Size: 22 cm
• Classification:
  • LCC : F2909
  • DC23 : 916.3/68
• Subject Headings:
  • LCSH : Rio de la Plata Region (Argentina and Uruguay) -- Discovery and exploration -- Spanish
  • LCSH : Rio de la Plata Region (Argentina and Uruguay) -- History -- 16th century
  • LCSH : Spaniards -- Rio de la Plata Region (Argentina and Uruguay) -- History -- 16th century
  • LCSH : Spaniards -- Rio de la Plata Region (Argentina and Uruguay) -- Correspondence
  • LCSH : Explorers -- Spain -- Correspondence
• Parent Bibliography ID:
  • BA86679785