A Concise History of Mexico (Cambridge Concise Histories) by Brian R. Hamnett

Cambridge Concise Histories

by Brian R. Hamnett

This Concise History looks at Mexico from political, economic and cultural perspectives, and tackles controversial themes such as the impact of the Spanish Conquest and the struggle to establish an independent Mexico. A broad range of readers interested in the modern-day Americas should find here a helpful introduction to this vibrant and dynamic North-American society.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

Hardcover

First published November 24, 1995

About the author

Brian Hamnett is a Research Professor in History Emeritus at the University of Essex, where he taught from 1990 until his retirement. Hamnett studied as an undergraduate and postgraduate at Peterhouse, Cambridge, and then became Assistant Professor in History at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, USA, from 1968 to 1972. After a period at the University of Reading (1972-74), he taught at the University of Strathclyde (1974-90) where he became a Reader in 1989. From 1990-95 he was joint Editor of the Bulletin of Latin American Research, and has been a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Latin American Studies and of the International Advisory Boards of the European Review of Latin American and Caribbean Studies, and is also a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and Correspondent of the Academia Mexicana de la Historia. He was Director of the Latin American Centre (1994-97). In March 2010, Professor Hamnett was awarded a Banco Nacional de Mexico prize for Foreign Scholar working on Mexican Regional History.

Reviews

[David Warner · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is predominantly a socio-economic history of Mexico from the pre-Columbian indigenous age, through the Spanish Conquest and Empire, and onto the post-1821 republic, up to 2006, since when a third edition has appeared. The focus is very much upon themes, especially those of social and economic continuities, and as such is not a narrative history, which is its greatest weakness: political events, such as Independence, 1820-21, the French Intervention and Second Empire of 1864-7, and the Mexican Revolution after 1910 are placed against a structural background, but are not properly explained as historical conjunctures. This is a problem of authorial intent. Brian Hamnett has purposely abandoned political classification of historical time, which would favour a more linear narrative, in favour of a broader thematic approach, so that rather than placing 1821 and Independence from Spain as a turning point, he positions it within an age of 'Destabilisation and fragmentation, 1770-1867', and similarly, the Mexican Revolution, which in view of its predominant political and cultural influence upon modern Mexico might best be examined as a separate historical subject, is embedded within a period entitled, 'Reconstruction, 1867-1940'. All historical divisions are artificial and somewhat arbitrary, but it is hard to see how the fall of the Empire of Maximilian and the restoration of the republic in 1867 is of more importance than Independence or the Revolution.
This history, then, is one of structures and one written in the tradition of Marxist historiography, which regards impersonal economic and social institutions and relations as the primary factors in historical development rather than political events or changes in thought and mentality. One major fault with this approach is the author's entirely negative and marginal examination of the Roman Catholic Church either as cultural and religious institution or as medium and manifestation of popular religious practice and belief, beyond a brief attempt to link Marian devotion to pre-Columbian forms of worship. Hamnett's attitude to the Catholic hierarchy is strongly hostile, regarding it simply in terms of its opposition to the secularisation, land reforms, and state education policies of the restored liberal republic, particularly as associated with Benito Juárez (president 1858-72), who, along with the later Francisco Madero (president 1911-13), are clearly admired by the author. The nature of faith and belief, their prevalence and practice within society, and the doctrinal and social policies of the episcopate are not explored within the Mexican historical context.
The strongest parts of the book are the chapters on pre-1519 indigenous Mexico, which provide an overview of the development of Mexican tribal, cultural, and religious society, with all its richness and diversity, up to the Conquest; the Porfirito (the personal rule of Porfirio Diaz, 1876-1911), in which political events and governmental administration are closely associated with economic and social development and financial questions; and, a brief concluding chapter on modern Mexican culture, predominantly literature and cinema. However, overall, this history of Mexico is a disappointment, failing to capture the spirit of the Mexican people and their thoughts and beliefs or provide a political narrative to more clearly explain historical development and contextualise the effects of the social and economic changes undertaken by Mexico over the longue durée. And even within the socio-economic approach there is a failure to analyse important structures such as the hacienda or the pueblo in terms of their functionality and productivity, and there is little examination of the people whose lives were lived within these social and economic structures. The themes are explored, but only in the most broad brush of terms, and without sufficient consideration of the human factor, namely the Mexican people and their development over historical time. In the end, this book's themes have no pudding.

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is a good overview of Mexican history, but is written at an academic level that might make it difficult for the reader who is only interested in learning a general history of Mexico as opposed to starting an academic study of the country. I use it for my class on Mexico because, as far as a general survey of Mexican national history goes, it is as good as it gets and does a good job of being exactly what the title says and that is concise.

[Céline · Rating 2 out of 5]

J'ai trouvé que l'écriture de ce livre était très universitaire voire aride ( donnée après donnée, date après date, chiffre après chiffre), ce qui rendait la lecture du livre assez pénible par moment.
J'ai été aussi un peu déçue que l'auteur passe rapidement sur certains éventements historiques, comme les révolutions ou l'arrivée des Espagnols, mais élabore en détail certains aspects économiques du pays.
En définitive, ce livre est très complet, mais, personnellement, j'aurais préféré quelque chose de plus romancé.

[Vida · Rating 3 out of 5]

Relations were re-established with the Holy See and John Paul II in 1993. They had been broken since 1867. Given what appears to be the strength of the Roman Catholic Church and the people of Mexico, the strength of the relational undercurrent is remarkable.

This book is political and economic - persons and personalities are minor actors.

Socialist, power-wielding Mexican history converged to have Mexico be what it is today.

[Abby Lockridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hamnett knows his stuff, but can seem like a professor who has his head too deep in the material to be able to remember what it’s like to have to learn it. Otherwise - fascinating book. Considering Mexico is our direct neighbor to the south and issues concerning M are rampant in politics, I was ignorant of so much of the country’s history. Drank water out of a fire hose but happy to have a better understanding of the country’s history, people, successes, failures, and culture.

[Eduardo Garcia-Gaspar · Rating 3 out of 5]

El título describe al libro. Una historia de México, desde los inicios prehispánicos, cuando la nación no existía hasta el tiempo presente, previo a la elección del nuevo presidente. Una muy aceptable descripción de principales hechos y personajes que servirá de introducción a unos y de recordatorio a los otros.

[Cara · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. I guess this book is okay if you're interested in a detailed economic history of Mexico. It is neither concise nor accessible to someone who doesn't know much about the topic. I got more than halfway but I found I wasn't getting very much out of it because all the numbers meant very little to me. If you're looking for an actual intro I'd recommend A Brief History of Mexico by Lynn Foster.

[Keeley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had this recollection of the Cambridge Concise Histories being no-nonsense overviews that were worthwhile as a sort of "should have taken that class at university" meal replacement. However, apparently I should have read my review of the Italy one before reading this one and chosen another book. While I did gain some of the insight I desired into why Mexico's relationship with the United States is the way it is today, the writing was terrible.
Hamnett's organization scheme is opaque and often involves mentioning people and concepts that have not yet been adequately introduced. Shifts among subjects (politics, economy, church and state, etc.) involve zooming back and forth in time, but no pattern is clearly established for this approach. There are editorial errors ranging from the important (impossible dates) to the ridiculous (getting the name of a 1997 telenovela totally wrong). And this man loves commas like nobody's business.
Only read this if you want to pick up some random information about Mexico, especially in the 19th century, and need an insomnia cure.

[NCHS Library]

From the Publisher:
The second edition of this accessible study of Mexico includes two new features, an examination of cultural developments since Independence from Spain in 1821 and a discussion of contemporary issues up to the time of publication. Several new plates with captions expand the thematic coverage in the book. The updated edition examines the administration of Vicente Fox, who came to power with the elections of 2000. The new sections reinforce the importance of Mexico's long and disparate history, from the Precolumbian era onwards, in shaping the country as it is today. This Concise History looks at Mexico from political, economic and cultural perspectives, and tackles controversial themes such as the impact of the Spanish Conquest and the struggle to establish an independent Mexico. A broad range of readers interested in the modern-day Americas should find here a helpful introduction to this vibrant and dynamic North-American society.

[Bernie4444 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do not have a lifetime to study? – need a quickie overview?

This book is not an in-depth history of Mexico. It is more of an aggregation of one person’s view of Mexico in general.

However, it does take the time to cover Mexico in general, the pre-Columbian era, the European incursions, Spanish colonialism, the American Society, destabilization and fragmentation (1770 – 1867), reconstruction (1867 – 1940), the monopoly party (1940 – 2000) and much more.

You will find the book packed with pictures, diagrams, maps, etc.

This is just the starting point you will find a good bibliography in the back for further investigations into the history of Mexico.

[Joshua · Rating 2 out of 5]

This "concise" history is really only accessible to people with a good working knowledge of Mexican history. The author regularly refers to events out of chronological orders, assumes knowledge of facts necessary to appreciate the import of his comments, and fails to adequately explain key developments. I had been excited to read a good one volume history in advance of an upcoming trip to Mexico. Having just about finished this book, I feel deeply disappointed.

[Derrick Nedzel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very detailed, scholarly work that focuses on political and economic history, but not really a full history. This should probably not have been my first read on Mexican history, this would be great if you want to focus on just politics.

[Z.A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a dry read. I know it’s a history book and all, but it was just the facts and none of the stories. It was concise (as promised) and managed to pack a lot in. A nice starting point, but it feels more like a reference than a good read.

[Joaquín · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really quite boring. Very academic and often not chronological. Often vaguely mentions many politicians quickly and solely by name and then talks at length about them many pages later and expects the reader to remember everything said about them prior.

[Marv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having studied the history of Mexico since High School, I came to the conclusion this is the tome I wish I could have started my learning of Mexico. What a wonderful general history Brian Hamnett has created. Should be a companion to all study of North American countries.

[Oscar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely informative in the aspects of economic, political, some literary, and socio economic history of Mexico. Wasn't expecting it to be purely about economics and politics even though I learned a bit but it does require some general knowledge on it to better understand the book more.

[Christoph Sachse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very detailed history of Mexico

[Jonah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thorough and comprehensive but poorly organized and some sentences are barely intelligible. Learned a lot of but in need of serious editing.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Research and not very helpful!

[Alex Klenin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too much numbers on economy and politics. Really, is it that important to know how many chairs does the parties had in government and which states was voting?

[Bernie4444 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do not have a lifetime to study? – need a quickie overview?

This book is not an in-depth history of Mexico. It is more of an aggregation of one person’s view of Mexico in general.

However, it does take the time to cover Mexico in general, the pre-Columbian era, the European incursions, Spanish colonialism, the American Society, destabilization and fragmentation (1770 – 1867), reconstruction (1867 – 1940), the monopoly party (1940 – 2000) and much more.

You will find the book packed with pictures, diagrams, maps, etc.

This is just the starting point you will find a good bibliography in the back for further investigations into the history of Mexico.