Description
Book SynopsisChallenges the view that that the Moriscos of Spain made little or no attempt to assimilate to the majority Christian culture around them, and that this led to their expulsion between 1609 and 1614. There has been a widely-held consensus among historians that the Moriscos of Spain made little or no attempt to assimilate to the majority Christian culture around them, and that this apparent obduracy made their expulsion between1609 and 1614 both necessary and inevitable. This book challenges that view. Assimilation, coexistence, and tolerance between Old and New Christians in early modern Spain were not a fiction or a fantasy, but could be a reality, made possible by the thousands of ordinary individuals who did not subscribe to the negative vision of the Moriscos put around by the propagandists of the government, and who had lived in peace and harmony side by side for generations. For some, this may be a new and surprising vision of early modern Spain, which for too long, and thanks in large part to the Black Legend, has been characterized as a land of intolerance and fanaticism. This book will help to rebalance the picture and show sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Spain in a new, infinitely richer and more rewarding light. Trevor J. Dadson FBA is Professor of Hispanic Studies at Queen Mary, University of London, andis currently President of the Association of Hispanists of Great Britain & Ireland. In 2008 he was elected a Fellow of the British Academy.
Trade ReviewThis effort by Trevor Dadson . . . reminds us why moriscos merit closer scholarly attention. . . . This valuable and insightful book is suitable for an undergraduate course as well as graduate courses. It offers a substantial revision of the accustomed view of moriscos in pre- and postexpulsion Spain and acts as an invitation to other scholars to join this work with comparative regional studies. * JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE *
[A] jewel of a monograph. . . . The old history of Spanish intolerance is being rewritten and in-depth studies like Dadson's are essential to that process. * RENAISSANCE QUARTERLY *
Interesting and significant ... Dadson's study does a great job of explicating how early modern governance worked. * FIDES ET HISTORIA *
This very impressive book contains a well-written summation of the complex story that is persuasive in its case for a full reappraisal of the history of Spain's Moriscos. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Most levels/libraries. * CHOICE *
This work represents a new milestone in the study of [its] subject ... an obligatory reference for all students of ethnic minorities in Modern Spain. * LIBROS DE HISTORIA *
Table of ContentsIntroduction The Inquisition and the Campo de Calatrava in the Sixteenth Century Literacy, Education, and Social Mobility Justice and the Law From Heretic to Presbyter: the Herrador Family, 1540-1660 Official Rhetoric versus Local Reality: Propaganda and the Expulsion of the Moriscos Opposition to the Expulsion of the Moriscos Those Who Stayed Those Who Returned Rewriting History Good and Faithful Christians: the Inquisition and Villarrubia in the Seventeenth Century Assimilation: Reality or Fiction? Glossary Bibliography Index
