Essential Histories
2 primary works
Book 59
The Great Plains cover the central two-thirds of the United States, and during the nineteenth century were home to some of the largest and most powerful Indian tribes on the continent. The conflict between those tribes and the newcomers from the Old World lasted about one hundred and fifty years, and required the resources of five nations - Spain, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the Confederate States of America and the United States - before fighting ended in the mid 1890s. This masterly exposition explains the background, causes and long term effects of these bitter wars, whose legacy can still be felt today.
Book 60
The Spanish conquest of Mexico was the greatest military expedition in history, and in achieving it, Hernan Cortes proved himself as one of the foremost generals of all time. This book explains the background both of the Aztec Empire and the Spanish presence in Mexico. It describes the lives of the Aztecs in their glittering capital and of the Europeans as they learned to adapt and survive in an alien and often dangerous world. The invasion was a war between civilizations, pitting the fatalism and obsessive ritual of the Aztecs against soldiers fighting for riches, their lives, and eventually their souls.