Reviews for History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages, 400-568 Ad

The average rating for History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages, 400-568 Ad based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2013-06-06 00:00:00 Robert Wolf This was very good in my opinion. It is considered the concrete writing that sets the standard for the Inca and the conquest. It is divided into five books. The first book gave the extensive history of the pre-exploration Inca. This included the Inca creation story, the rise of their empire, internal organization, military, religion and spiritual temples, farming (terrace cropping in the mountains), livestocking, astronomy, architecture, and a lot more. The second book told about the discovery of Peru. Rumors of gold and the famous 'El Dorado', the city of gold, encouraged many in seeking fame and fortune. Francisco Pizarro's biography was given, his first expedition crossing through Panama, heading south along the coastline, and making landfall in modern day Ecuador/Peru in 1524. His expedition into the interior convinced him there was more gold than what he initially saw. This ends with his reporting back to the Court of Spain seeking permission to further engage in this new region. In 1529 he was given capitulation by Queen Isabel—essentially this was a writ of go forth and conquer. There were a total of three expeditions with the last being the conquering tour. Pizarro was eventually made the governor of the region that was called New Castile. The third and fourth book told about the military engagement with the Inca, the capture,ransom, and execution of the Inca king Atahuallpa, native holdouts against the Spaniards, sieges and destruction, and the gradual obliteration the Inca. Eventually among the conquistadors greed, distrust, and the cabal against Pizarro let to his murder. He was killed by his own men in Lima, 1541. The fifth book concluded with political climate of post-conquered Peru up to the 1560s. I really liked this one and was very detailed. William H. Prescott wrote an unbiased and fact-driven account of the conquest of Peru. I've seen a few documentaries on YouTube and they only give the abbreviated version of what happened. I would recommend this anyone interested in colonial America or the Age of Exploration. Thanks!

Review # 2 was written on 2018-11-23 00:00:00 John Connell William Hickling Prescott is one of the world's greatest historians. Years ago, I had read his History of the Conquest of Mexico prior to taking my first vacation in Mexico. Now I have finished History of the Conquest of Peru; with a preliminary view of the civilization of the Incas prior to a projected visit to the Andes. Along with Francis Parkman and John Lothrop Motley (The Rise of the Dutch Republic, Prescott is one of a trio of great American 19th century historians -- all of whom, sadly, are neglected in our time. Because of his problems with vision, Prescott had actually never visited Mexico nor Peru, but he had visited Spain. With his considerable family wealth, he employed researchers and secretaries who helped him scour the Spanish archives for information about those two masterful conquistadors, Hernan Cortés and Francisco Pizarro. Unlike Cortés, Pizarro was not only illiterate but illegitimate. He was the creature of a military career and was thus able to destroy the Inca empire with a handful of lowlifes recruited from Spain and Panama. Written in his masterful style, The History of the Conquest of Peru is a page-turner. Prescott takes one not only to the fall of the Incas but beyond, to the civil war between the Pizarros, the Almagros, and various representatives of the Spanish crown. He ends only with the defeat and execution of Gonzalo Pizarro, Francisco's brother, at the hands of Pedro de la Gasca, who held the powers of, but not the title of, viceroy.