The story of an uncovered voyage as colorful and momentous as any on record for the Age of Discovery—and of the Black mariner whose stunning accomplishment has been until now lost to history  It began with a secret mission, no expenses spared. Spain, plotting to break Portugal’s monopoly trade with the fabled Orient, set sail from a hidden Mexican port to cross the Pacific—and then, critically, to attempt the never-before-accomplished return, the vuelta. Four ships set out from Navidad, each one carrying a dream team of navigators. The smallest ship, guided by seaman Lope Martín, a mulatto who had risen through the ranks to become one of the most qualified pilots of the era, soon pulled far ahead and became mysteriously lost from the fleet. It was the beginning of a voyage of epic scope, featuring mutiny, murderous encounters with Pacific islanders, astonishing physical hardships—and at last a triumphant return to the New World. But the pilot of the fleet’s flagship, the Augustine friar mariner Andrés de Urdaneta, later caught up with Martín to achieve the vuelta as well. It was he who now basked in glory, while Lope Martín was secretly sentenced to be hanged by the Spanish crown as repayment for his services. Acclaimed historian Andrés Reséndez, through brilliant scholarship and riveting storytelling—including an astonishing outcome for the resilient Lope Martín--sets the record straight.

This book explores how the diverse and fiercely independent peoples of Texas and New Mexico came to think of themselves as members of one particular national community or another in the years leading up to the Mexican-American War. Hispanics, Native Americans, and Anglo Americans made agonizing and crucial identity decisions against the backdrop of two structural transformations taking place in the region during the first half of the nineteenth century and often pulling in opposite directions. On the one hand, the Mexican government sought to bring its frontier inhabitants into the national fold by relying on administrative and patronage linkages; but on the other, Mexico''s northern frontier gravitated toward the expanding American economy.

A landmark history — the sweeping story of the enslavement of tens of thousands of Indians across America, from the time of the conquistadors up to the early 20th century Since the time of Columbus, Indian slavery was illegal in much of the American continent. Yet, as Andrés Reséndez illuminates in his myth-shattering The Other Slavery, it was practiced for centuries as an open secret. There was no abolitionist movement to protect the tens of thousands of natives who were kidnapped and enslaved by the conquistadors, then forced to descend into the “mouth of hell” of eighteenth-century silver mines or, later, made to serve as domestics for Mormon settlers and rich Anglos.    Reséndez builds the incisive case that it was mass slavery, more than epidemics, that decimated Indian populations across North America. New evidence, including testimonies of courageous priests, rapacious merchants, Indian captives, and Anglo colonists, sheds light too on Indian enslavement of other Indians — as what started as a European business passed into the hands of indigenous operators and spread like wildfire across vast tracts of the American Southwest.  The Other Slavery reveals nothing less than a key missing piece of American history.  For over two centuries we have fought over, abolished, and tried to come to grips with African-American slavery.  It is time for the West to confront an entirely separate, equally devastating enslavement we have long failed truly to see. 

This book explores how the diverse and fiercely independent peoples of Texas and New Mexico came to think of themselves as members of one particular national community or another in the years leading up to the Mexican-American War. Hispanics, Native Americans, and Anglo Americans made agonizing and crucial identity decisions against the backdrop of two structural transformations taking place in the region during the first half of the nineteenth century and often pulling in opposite directions. On the one hand, the Mexican government sought to bring its frontier inhabitants into the national fold by relying on administrative and patronage linkages; but on the other, Mexico''s northern frontier gravitated toward the expanding American economy.

The true story of a colorful and momentous 16th-century voyage, and of the Black mariner whose accomplishment was almost lost to history. It was a voyage of epic scope. In a Spanish plot to break Portugal''s trade monopoly with the fabled Orient, four ships set sail from a hidden Mexican port. The smallest of them was guided by Black seaman Lope Martín, one of the most qualified pilots of the era. Mutiny, murderous encounters with Pacific islanders, and extreme physical hardships followed—and at last a triumphant return to the New World. But the pilot of the fleet''s flagship, the Augustine friar Andrés de Urdaneta, also achieved the Vuelta, while Martín was sentenced to be hanged by the Spanish crown as repayment for his services. Acclaimed historian Andrés Reséndez delivers a "rip-roaring maritime adventure" (Publishers Weekly, starred review), making the riveting case for Martín as the scandalously overlooked Columbus of the Pacific.Praise for Conquering the Pacific"A pacey account [of] triumph of seamanship over wind and water." —Wall Street Journal"A masterwork of narrative and conception. Reséndez magically transforms dogged archival research into a sweeping vision of the past." —Greg Grandin, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The End of the Myth and Empire''s Workshop"[Reséndez] makes the details fascinating and compelling. Readers of sailing and adventure stories will find this true account both enlightening and exciting." —Booklist (starred review)

The story of an uncovered voyage as colorful and momentous as any on record for the Age of Discovery—and of the Black mariner whose stunning accomplishment has been until now lost to history  It began with a secret mission, no expenses spared. Spain, plotting to break Portugal’s monopoly trade with the fabled Orient, set sail from a hidden Mexican port to cross the Pacific—and then, critically, to attempt the never-before-accomplished return, the vuelta. Four ships set out from Navidad, each one carrying a dream team of navigators. The smallest ship, guided by seaman Lope Martín, a mulatto who had risen through the ranks to become one of the most qualified pilots of the era, soon pulled far ahead and became mysteriously lost from the fleet. It was the beginning of a voyage of epic scope, featuring mutiny, murderous encounters with Pacific islanders, astonishing physical hardships—and at last a triumphant return to the New World. But the pilot of the fleet’s flagship, the Augustine friar mariner Andrés de Urdaneta, later caught up with Martín to achieve the vuelta as well. It was he who now basked in glory, while Lope Martín was secretly sentenced to be hanged by the Spanish crown as repayment for his services. Acclaimed historian Andrés Reséndez, through brilliant scholarship and riveting storytelling—including an astonishing outcome for the resilient Lope Martín--sets the record straight.

This book explores how the diverse and fiercely independent peoples of Texas and New Mexico came to think of themselves as members of one particular national community or another in the years leading up to the Mexican-American War. Hispanics, Native Americans, and Anglo Americans made agonizing and crucial identity decisions against the backdrop of two structural transformations taking place in the region during the first half of the nineteenth century and often pulling in opposite directions. On the one hand, the Mexican government sought to bring its frontier inhabitants into the national fold by relying on administrative and patronage linkages; but on the other, Mexico''s northern frontier gravitated toward the expanding American economy.

A landmark history — the sweeping story of the enslavement of tens of thousands of Indians across America, from the time of the conquistadors up to the early 20th century Since the time of Columbus, Indian slavery was illegal in much of the American continent. Yet, as Andrés Reséndez illuminates in his myth-shattering The Other Slavery, it was practiced for centuries as an open secret. There was no abolitionist movement to protect the tens of thousands of natives who were kidnapped and enslaved by the conquistadors, then forced to descend into the “mouth of hell” of eighteenth-century silver mines or, later, made to serve as domestics for Mormon settlers and rich Anglos.    Reséndez builds the incisive case that it was mass slavery, more than epidemics, that decimated Indian populations across North America. New evidence, including testimonies of courageous priests, rapacious merchants, Indian captives, and Anglo colonists, sheds light too on Indian enslavement of other Indians — as what started as a European business passed into the hands of indigenous operators and spread like wildfire across vast tracts of the American Southwest.  The Other Slavery reveals nothing less than a key missing piece of American history.  For over two centuries we have fought over, abolished, and tried to come to grips with African-American slavery.  It is time for the West to confront an entirely separate, equally devastating enslavement we have long failed truly to see. 

This book explores how the diverse and fiercely independent peoples of Texas and New Mexico came to think of themselves as members of one particular national community or another in the years leading up to the Mexican-American War. Hispanics, Native Americans, and Anglo Americans made agonizing and crucial identity decisions against the backdrop of two structural transformations taking place in the region during the first half of the nineteenth century and often pulling in opposite directions. On the one hand, the Mexican government sought to bring its frontier inhabitants into the national fold by relying on administrative and patronage linkages; but on the other, Mexico''s northern frontier gravitated toward the expanding American economy.

The true story of a colorful and momentous 16th-century voyage, and of the Black mariner whose accomplishment was almost lost to history. It was a voyage of epic scope. In a Spanish plot to break Portugal''s trade monopoly with the fabled Orient, four ships set sail from a hidden Mexican port. The smallest of them was guided by Black seaman Lope Martín, one of the most qualified pilots of the era. Mutiny, murderous encounters with Pacific islanders, and extreme physical hardships followed—and at last a triumphant return to the New World. But the pilot of the fleet''s flagship, the Augustine friar Andrés de Urdaneta, also achieved the Vuelta, while Martín was sentenced to be hanged by the Spanish crown as repayment for his services. Acclaimed historian Andrés Reséndez delivers a "rip-roaring maritime adventure" (Publishers Weekly, starred review), making the riveting case for Martín as the scandalously overlooked Columbus of the Pacific.Praise for Conquering the Pacific"A pacey account [of] triumph of seamanship over wind and water." —Wall Street Journal"A masterwork of narrative and conception. Reséndez magically transforms dogged archival research into a sweeping vision of the past." —Greg Grandin, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The End of the Myth and Empire''s Workshop"[Reséndez] makes the details fascinating and compelling. Readers of sailing and adventure stories will find this true account both enlightening and exciting." —Booklist (starred review)