Books
Period
Latin American History
1492–1990 CE
Latin American history begins here with the arrival of European empires in the Americas and follows the creation of colonial societies built through conquest, Indigenous resistance, forced labour, African slavery, missionary activity and Atlantic trade. It includes Spanish and Portuguese rule, the Caribbean plantation world, the wars of independence and the formation of new republics across the nineteenth century.
After independence, political life was shaped by contested constitutions, regional elites, civil wars, export economies, foreign intervention and struggles over land and citizenship. The twentieth century brought urbanisation, labour movements, revolution, Cold War intervention, military dictatorship, exile and democratic transition. These developments varied greatly by country, and the experience of Chile, Mexico, Cuba, Haiti or Brazil could differ sharply even within the same decade.
The broader setting provides a regional framework while individual novels bring particular countries, conflicts and regimes into sharper focus.
