An Economic History of Mexico : Contested Conquest, Ambiguous Development: 1519-2000

After a turbulent modern history of conquest and colonialism, Mexico has developed as an economy that may be emerging but still displays significant levels of poverty, particularly in relation to its neighbor to the north, the United States. Drawing on archival data, decades of new Mexican historiography, and considering issues of political economy, this book explores how Mexico ended up in the relative economic position that it did.Beginning with Hernán Cortés and the invention of the Conquest of New Spain, it explores the economic history of Mexico through the lens of political economy, incorporating environment and demography, politics and power, and industrialization and inequality.The aftermath of the Conquest brought about a complete restructuring of the economy as a result of death from disease, the introduction of European-style agriculture, and a more intensive exploitation of the peasantry.The eighteenth and nineteenth centuries saw “reform” followed by a series of crises and