A Plague of Sheep
Environmental Consequences of the Conquest of Mexico

Taking as a case study the sixteenth-century history of a region of highland central Mexico, this book is about the biological conquest of the New World.

Elinor G. K. Melville (Author)

9780521574488, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 13 July 1997

220 pages
22.9 x 15.3 x 1.8 cm, 0.335 kg

"This is a fascinating study of the effects of policy and ecology on a small region in Mexico....All who are interested in historical environmental studies should read this book. Its implications are not limited to Mexico, nor to the early modern period." John F. Schwaller, Sixteenth Century Journal

This is a book about the biological conquest of the New World. Taking as a case study the sixteenth-century history of a region of highland central Mexico, it shows how the environmental and social changes brought about by the introduction of Old World species aided European expansion. The book spells out in detail the environmental changes associated with the introduction of Old World grazing animals into New World ecosystems, demonstrates how these changes enabled the Spanish takeover of land, and explains how environmental changes shaped the colonial societies.

Preface
1. Introduction
2. Alien landscapes
3. The Australian experience
4. The Mexican case
5. The conquest process
6. The colonial regime
Appendix 1. Sub-areas
Appendix 2. Sources for population estimates
Appendix 3. Sources for land holding and land use
Abbreviations
Glossary
Bibliography.

Subject Areas: Social & cultural anthropology, ethnography [JHMC]