John F. Schwaller is a distinguished historian of colonial Latin America. He has served as Director of the Academy of American Franciscan History at the Franciscan School of Theology in Berkeley, California; Associate Provost and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Montana, Missoula; Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Dean at the University of Minnesota, Morris; and President of SUNY Potsdam. His previous books include The History of the Catholic Church in Latin America: From Conquest to Revolution and Beyond.Helen Nader was Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Arizona. She was the author of numerous books, including Power and Gender in Renaissance Spain: Eight Women of the Mendoza Family, 1450–1650 and Liberty in Absolutist Spain: The Habsburg Sale of Towns, 1516–1700.

From the moment that I opened The First Letter from New Spain to its conclusion, I found myself ridiculously excited about the material. . . . Schwaller does a good job in his effort to place the founding of the town within the context of the events surrounding it. Further, by organizing the book in the way that they do and focusing on all known signatories, Schwaller and Nader lessen the exceptionalism of the top conquistadores and demonstrate the very real plight and dangers that awaited the conquistadores at the bottom ranks of the group. At the end of the monograph, and this review, I find myself just as excited about it as when I started. I believe that the book will appeal to scholars, students, and the general public alike. (Hispanic American Historical Review)

• PrefaceChapter 1. Introduction (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 2. A Synopsis of the Conquest of Mexico (John F. Schwaller and Helen Nader)Chapter 3. The Veracruz Petition in Historiographical Context (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 4. Description of the Veracruz Petition (Helen Nader and John F. Schwaller)Chapter 5. Facsimile, Transcription, and Translation of the Veracruz Petition (Helen Nader and John F. Schwaller)Chapter 6. The Members of the Company: A Prosopographical Essay (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 7. Biographies of the Signatories of the Veracruz Petition (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 8. Conclusions (John F. Schwaller)Appendix. Signatories of the 1520 Segura de la Frontera LetterNotesBibliographyIndex

John F. Schwaller is a distinguished historian of colonial Latin America. He has served as Director of the Academy of American Franciscan History at the Franciscan School of Theology in Berkeley, California; Associate Provost and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Montana, Missoula; Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Dean at the University of Minnesota, Morris; and President of SUNY Potsdam. His previous books include The History of the Catholic Church in Latin America: From Conquest to Revolution and Beyond.Helen Nader was Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Arizona. She was the author of numerous books, including Power and Gender in Renaissance Spain: Eight Women of the Mendoza Family, 1450–1650 and Liberty in Absolutist Spain: The Habsburg Sale of Towns, 1516–1700.

From the moment that I opened The First Letter from New Spain to its conclusion, I found myself ridiculously excited about the material. . . . Schwaller does a good job in his effort to place the founding of the town within the context of the events surrounding it. Further, by organizing the book in the way that they do and focusing on all known signatories, Schwaller and Nader lessen the exceptionalism of the top conquistadores and demonstrate the very real plight and dangers that awaited the conquistadores at the bottom ranks of the group. At the end of the monograph, and this review, I find myself just as excited about it as when I started. I believe that the book will appeal to scholars, students, and the general public alike. (Hispanic American Historical Review)

• PrefaceChapter 1. Introduction (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 2. A Synopsis of the Conquest of Mexico (John F. Schwaller and Helen Nader)Chapter 3. The Veracruz Petition in Historiographical Context (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 4. Description of the Veracruz Petition (Helen Nader and John F. Schwaller)Chapter 5. Facsimile, Transcription, and Translation of the Veracruz Petition (Helen Nader and John F. Schwaller)Chapter 6. The Members of the Company: A Prosopographical Essay (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 7. Biographies of the Signatories of the Veracruz Petition (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 8. Conclusions (John F. Schwaller)Appendix. Signatories of the 1520 Segura de la Frontera LetterNotesBibliographyIndex

John F. Schwaller is a distinguished historian of colonial Latin America. He has served as Director of the Academy of American Franciscan History at the Franciscan School of Theology in Berkeley, California; Associate Provost and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Montana, Missoula; Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Dean at the University of Minnesota, Morris; and President of SUNY Potsdam. His previous books include The History of the Catholic Church in Latin America: From Conquest to Revolution and Beyond.Helen Nader was Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Arizona. She was the author of numerous books, including Power and Gender in Renaissance Spain: Eight Women of the Mendoza Family, 1450–1650 and Liberty in Absolutist Spain: The Habsburg Sale of Towns, 1516–1700.

From the moment that I opened The First Letter from New Spain to its conclusion, I found myself ridiculously excited about the material. . . . Schwaller does a good job in his effort to place the founding of the town within the context of the events surrounding it. Further, by organizing the book in the way that they do and focusing on all known signatories, Schwaller and Nader lessen the exceptionalism of the top conquistadores and demonstrate the very real plight and dangers that awaited the conquistadores at the bottom ranks of the group. At the end of the monograph, and this review, I find myself just as excited about it as when I started. I believe that the book will appeal to scholars, students, and the general public alike. (Hispanic American Historical Review)

• PrefaceChapter 1. Introduction (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 2. A Synopsis of the Conquest of Mexico (John F. Schwaller and Helen Nader)Chapter 3. The Veracruz Petition in Historiographical Context (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 4. Description of the Veracruz Petition (Helen Nader and John F. Schwaller)Chapter 5. Facsimile, Transcription, and Translation of the Veracruz Petition (Helen Nader and John F. Schwaller)Chapter 6. The Members of the Company: A Prosopographical Essay (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 7. Biographies of the Signatories of the Veracruz Petition (John F. Schwaller)Chapter 8. Conclusions (John F. Schwaller)Appendix. Signatories of the 1520 Segura de la Frontera LetterNotesBibliographyIndex