Synopses & Reviews
This epic history compares the empires built by Spain and Britain in the Americas, from Columbusand#8217;s arrival in the New World to the end of Spanish colonial rule in the early nineteenth century. J. H. Elliott, one of the most distinguished and versatile historians working today, offers us history on a grand scale, contrasting the worlds built by Britain and by Spain on the ruins of the civilizations they encountered and destroyed in North and South America.
Elliott identifies and explains both the similarities and differences in the two empiresand#8217; processes of colonization, the character of their colonial societies, their distinctive styles of imperial government, and the independence movements mounted against them. Based on wide reading in the history of the two great Atlantic civilizations, the book sets the Spanish and British colonial empires in the context of their own times and offers us insights into aspects of this dual history that still influence the Americas.
Review
"Sir John Elliott, the undisputed dean of Hispanic New World and Golden Age historians, brings his formidable knowledge to bear on this important topic. His access to documentation and his nuanced reading, subtle marshaling of the facts, and elegant prose come together in a book destined to be the standard reference in the field. Spain and Britain contested the Atlantic for centuries; their relationship ebbed and flowed, from deep mutual hatred and suspicion to accommodation and, at times, even trust. These nations created very different, yet intertwining, empires in the New World, colonizing different territories (micro-worlds, each with its own geographical and climatic characteristics) and creating structures that reflected the goals, foibles, and economic necessities of the Old World. Elliott compares the two styles and the results brilliantly, fusing two seemingly separate histories into one compelling and detailed story. By looking at family, race, religion, war, agriculture, trade, and the costs and consequences of the enterprise, Elliott enables us to see with impressive clarity how <80><9c>a host of personal choices and the unpredictable consequences of unforeseen events shaped the creation, development, and ultimate loss of two great empires." Virginia Quarterly Review (Copyright 2006 Virginia Quarterly Review)
Review
"Richly illustrated and based on a thorough and thoughtful reading in the vast literatures of British and Spanish America, [Elliott's] masterful synthesis is unlikely to be equaledand#8212;let alone surpassedand#8212;any time soon."and#8212;Carla Rahn Phillips, Eighteenth-Century Studies
About the Author
J. H.and#160;Elliott is Regius Professor Emeritus of Modern History, University of Oxford. His previous books include
The Count-Duke of Olivares, A Palace for a King (with Jonathan Brown), and
Spain and Its World, 1500and#151;1700, all published by Yale University Press. Among the many honors he has received are the Wolfson Prize for History, the Prince of Asturias Prize for the Social Sciences, and the Balzan Prize for History.