Letters from Mexico

This book is an excellent new translation of five letters to Charles V, the HRE, four written by Cortes. The first letter, not written by Cortes, seems to have been written with Cortes leaning over the writer's shoulder, for it fits in perfectly with the four Cortes letters, both in sequence and in theme.The running theme of all five letters seems to be this: Cortes is a great man who works to bring wealth and glory to Charles V, while overcoming amazing obsticles presented by both Indian and Spanish sources.What can be learned from these letters? Not much that can be trusted, other than Cortes is good at "selling" Cortes to the royal court.The letters are full of obvious exagerations and vast silences.

Anthony Pagden, Harry C. Black Professor of History at Johns Hopkins University, presents his readers with what he feels is the definitive edition of Hernan Cortes letters. Pagden states in his introduction that although his translation was not the first in English, the previous were, "more or less unsatisfactory" (page lxxix). Pagden sticks to the verisimilitude of the letters as much as possible, presenting Cortes' original spellings and place names. The main liberty Pagden admits to have taken, dividing the text into further paragraphs, does not distract the reader or destroy the intent of the work. By using the earliest available manuscripts, the original translations, and numerous primary sources as evidenced by an extensive bibliography, Pagden allows the reader to enter another world, and delve into the mind of the most talked about of all conquerors, Hernan (Hernando, Fernando) Cortes. Five letters are presented for synaptic digestion. However, the first letter presented is actually not written by Cortes. The unknown author speaks highly of Cortes, though. The other letters, penned by Cortes, describes the exact minutiae of what he paints as a perilous journey. What makes these letters so readable and enjoyable is the reader gains an intimate knowledge of the pageantry of the 16th century, and a first-hand account of what must have been clash of Spanish and New World cultures. The letters written by Cortes are revelatory. He must have had either a tremendous memory (the shortest letter is fifty-six pages long whereas the longest is 122 pages) or a fervent imagination. It is not inconceivable, then, and Cortes' prose intimates this, that he was an educated man. The letters also show that Cortes was very deferential - as he addresses his head of state, every few pages Cortes begins a new thought with phrases such as, "Most Powerful and Invincible Lord", "Your Majesty", and "Most Catholic Lord." For the contemporary reader this can be distracting. From the triumph of Conquest, the reader finds Cortes ends as a broken man, literally begging King Charles for monies to pay his increasing debts. Certainly these are not all the letters Cortes wrote to his monarch. What letters presented represent a unique opportunity. Herein lays the thinking of the man who led a handful conquerors and New World allies to bring down an empire. In this respect, the work succeeds brilliantly, for the mind of Cortes leaps out in his letters. I might have read a different edition than the one advertised, so the page numbers might not match up.

This book is the letters that Cortes wrote home to the king of Spain, and they provide a first hand account of his amazing adventure, and how he conquered one of the most powerful civilizations in the world. It is astounding how ruthlessly brutal the conquistadores were, and how devastatingly successful. It definitely puts a heavy dose of reality on the dates and names that usually make history dull.

The story begins with the planting of A Orange Tree and ends with the the conquest of Mexico. Cortes is a man driven by adventure and the lure of wealth in the new lands. It is however sad that he ends up in love with the place and culture that he finally destroys. The book gives a blow by blow description of the political intrigue of the church, the crown and of course Cortes men. At one point in the book the fighting is so brutal that Cortes is literally hacking the Aztec warroirs to death as steel meets wood in a no contest.Montezouma is perhaps the most tagic figure given that he is a child not a leader. The insights that Cortes rrecordrds give a fascinating account in a true historical sense. It is a book that destroys the idea that conquistidores like Cortes are bigger than life.The book reaffirms a tragic tale with its detail descriptions. A great read for enthusiasts of Mexican history Leigh Collins