Born to Die: Disease and New World Conquest, 1492–1650

by Noble David Cook

Noble David Cook explains, in vivid detail and sweeping scope, how the conquest of the New World was achieved by a handful of Europeans--not by the sword, but by deadly disease. The Aztec and Inca empires with their teeming millions were destroyed by a few hundred Europeans whose most important weapons, though the conquerors did not realize it at the time, were diseases previously unknown in the Americas. The end result of the colonizing experience in the Americas, whether of the Portuguese, Dutch, Spanish, English, or French, was the collapse of native society.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, European History, World History, The Americas, American History, Native American History

Paperback

First published February 13, 1998

Reviews

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent analogy of disease in the New World, but a more balanced view regarding violence, negotiation, and trading pathways is needed. Note that the author did research only in libraries in the United States, and did not examine primary sources in Peru.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good followup to Alfred Crosby's foundational text The Columbian Exchange which reports on research updates to his original arguments on disease, and also incorporates information and critiques McNeil's Plagues and People. Cook uses this book to ultimately dispel any lingering questions as to whether more Indians were killed by the cruelty of the Spaniards (Black Legend) or through disease (spoiler alert: the Spanish weren't nice, but their atrocities can't compare to the ravages of Influenza, measles, small pox, typhus, mumps, and yellow fever.) Ultimately, the death of 90% of the indigenous population made conquest of the Americas relatively easy for Europeans.

[Eva · Rating 4 out of 5]

While at times it reads like a monotonous list of brief descriptions of epidemics, this book provides an excellent and well-sourced overview of the role of epidemic disease in the downfall of indigenous civilizations on the American continent, especially the Caribbean and South and Central America.

[Paty Mat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book!

[Simon Reuber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Noble David Cook covers up the disease and New World conquest. Brilliant researching.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of recent disease history books are focused on the discourse of disease, rather than on the diseases themselves. This is not one of those books. Cook doesn't spend a minute on discourse; he's fully invested in describing the disease experience in the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries.

Personally, I prefer this sort of study. Cook's objective was basically to elaborate on the disease theory for the depopulation of the "New World" after the encounter. The biology suggests that we would have seen such a catastrophic population decline with so many "virgin soil" diseases; Cook was combing through sources to document that biological pattern.

[AskHistorians]

An in-depth study of the role of disease in European conquest/colonization