A review by jamesorr70
The Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Diaz del Castillo

4.0

Amazing that a 500yr old book can be so entertaining. Diaz is a great story teller, giving not just a first person narrative of the conquest but of the mind set of the Spaniards as well. This was written as a response to historians who Diaz thought had represented the events rather poorly and as a response to Las Casas so one has to keep in mind the intentions of Diaz. However the brilliance of Cortez from not just a military standpoint but a political one cannot be denied. One of the most interesting things I learned was how similar the ruling class of Moctezuma was to that of Europe, strengthening control through intermarriage and bribery.