William H. Prescott

"It is a magnificent epic," said William H. Prescott after the publication of History of the Conquest of Mexico in 1843. Since then, his sweeping account of Cortés's subjugation of the Aztec people has endured as a landmark work of scholarship and dramatic storytelling. This pioneering study presents a compelling view of the clash of civilizations that reverberates in Latin America to this day. "Regarded simply from the standpoint of literary criticism, the Conquest of Mexico is Prescott's masterpiece," judged his biographer Harry Thurston Peck. "More than that, it is one of the most brilliant examples which the English language possesses of literary art applied to historical narration. . . . Here, as nowhere else, has Prescott succeeded in delineating character. All the chief actors of his great historic drama not only live and breathe, but they are as distinctly differentiated as they must have been in life. Cortés and his lieutenants are persons whom we actually come to know in the pages of Pres-cott. . . . Over against these brilliant figures stands the melancholy form of Montezuma, around whom, even from the first, one feels gathering the darkness of his coming fate. He reminds one of some hero of Greek tragedy, doomed to destruction and intensely conscious of it, yet striving in vain against the decree of an inexorable destiny. . . . [Prescott] transmuted the acquisitions of laborious research into an enduring monument of pure literature."

History of the Conquest of Mexico

History of the Conquest of Mexico & History of the Conquest of Peru

William Hickling Prescott (1796-1859) was an American historian. In 1838, he published History of the Regin of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic in three volumes which at once gained for him a high place among historians. It was followed in 1843 by the History of the Conquest of Mexico and in 1847 by the Conquest of Peru. His last work was the History of Philip II, of which the third volume appeared in 1858, and which was left unfinished. In all his works he displayed great research, impartiality, and an admirable narrative power. Much of Prescott's work was based on his researches with unpublished documents in archives in Spain.

History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic

History of the Conquest of Mexico and History of the Conquest of Peru

Reprint of the original, first published in 1869.

Volume II

History of the Reign of Philip the Second, King of Spain

Theodore Roosevelt

Edward Gibbon

Francis Parkman

Revisit a world of conquest, exploration, and imperial adventure with this Modern Library eBook bundle that includes Edward Gibbon’s The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Francis Parkman’s Montcalm and Wolfe, William H. Prescott’s History of the Conquest of Mexico, and Theodore Roosevelt’s The Naval War of 1812. THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE (ABRIDGED) Edward Gibbon’s masterpiece, which narrates the history of the Roman Empire from the second to the fifteenth centuries, is widely considered the greatest work of history ever written. This abridgment retains the full scope of the original, while emphasizing elements ignored in all other abridgments—in particular the role of religion in the empire and the rise of Islam. MONTCALM AND WOLFE The result of more than forty years of passionate research, Montcalm and Wolfe is the epic story of Europe’s struggle for dominance of the New World. Thought by many to be Francis Parkman’s greatest work, it is a riveting read and an essential part of any military history collection. HISTORY OF THE CONQUEST OF MEXICO William H. Prescott’s sweeping account of Cortés’s subjugation of the Aztec people has endured as a landmark work of scholarship and dramatic storytelling. This pioneering study presents a compelling view of the clash of civilizations that reverberates in Latin America to this day. THE NAVAL WAR OF 1812 Published when its author, Theodore Roosevelt, was only twenty-three years old, The Naval War of 1812 was immediately hailed as a literary and scholarly triumph, and it is still considered the definitive book on the subject. Roosevelt’s inimitable style and robust narrative make The Naval War of 1812 enthralling, illuminating, and utterly essential to every armchair historian.

The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (Abridged); Montcalm and Wolfe; History of the Conquest of Mexico; The Naval War of 1812

The Modern Library Essential World History 4-Book Bundle

A recognized Latin American history masterpiece "The History of the Conquest of Peru" offers an authoritative vision of Pizarro's turbulent defeat of the Inca Empire. Overflowing with spectacle, every page encapsulates the ruthlessness and arrogance of the conquistadors.

The History of the Conquest of Peru

History Of The Conquest Of Mexico

Written by one of America's great historians, this gripping chronicle draws upon the firsthand accounts of eminent 16th-century captains and statesmen to relate the overthrow of the Inca empire by the Spanish adventurers under Pizarro's command. Rich in vivid anecdotes, it recaptures the glories of Inca society before European contact.

William H. Prescott

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