Table of Contents

Maps
Preface

1. AMERICA, IBERIA, AND AFRICA BEFORE THE CONQUEST
Amerindian Civilizations on the Eve of European Conquest
The Iberian World in the Late Fifteenth Century
Atlantic Africa in the Fifteenth Century
First Encounters in the New World

2. THE AGE OF CONQUEST
The Conquest of Mexico
The Conquest of Peru
The Ebbtide of Conquest
Black Participation in the Age of Conquest
Conundrums and the Columbian Exchange

3. RULING NEW WORLD EMPIRES
Imperial Organization and Administration
The Colonial Church

4. POPULATION AND LABOR
Changes in the Colonial Population
Indian Labor
Slavery and the Slave Trade

5. PRODUCTION, EXCHANGE, AND DEFENSE
The Mining and Sugar Industries
International Trade and Taxation
Defense
The Colonial Economy

6. THE SOCIAL ECONOMY: SOCIETIES OF CASTE AND CLASS
Evolution of Colonial Societies
The Elites
Urban and Rural Middle Groups
The Broad Base of Colonial Society

7. THE FAMILY AND SOCIETY
Family: The Foundation of Colonial Society
Women in Colonial Societies and Economies
The Culture of Honor

8. LIVING IN AN EMPIRE
Colonial Settings
Daily Life in the Colonies
The Cultural Milieu

9. IMPERIAL EXPANSION
The Spanish Colonies: From the War of Succession to the Loss of Havana
Brazil in the Age of Expansion

10. THE ERA OF CAROLINE REFORMS
New Spain and Peru
The Emergence of the Periphery in Spanish America

11. CRISIS AND POLITICAL REVOLUTION
An Era of War and Crisis for Spain and Portugal
Governments of Resistance and Political Revolution, 1808-1812

12. FROM EMPIRE TO INDEPENDENCE
Ferdinand and the Failure of Absolutism
Independence in Spanish America
Portugal and Brazil in an Era of Revolution
Cuba: The "Ever Faithful Isle"
Spain After the Loss of the Mainland Empire

13. EPILOGUE
The Economy
Government and Political Life
Social Change

A Note on Periodical Literature and Suggested Readings
Glossary
Illustration Sources and Credits
Monarchs of Spain and Portugal
Index