Region and State in Latin America's Past

In this text on Latin American regional history, Magnus Morner examines the ways in which various sectors of Latin American society, in different regions and at different historical periods, reacted to the policies of their respective states. After an introductory discussion of the concept of the state and its transformation in Latin America over time, Morner turns to a series of interrelated case studies from periods ranging from the early 16th century to the 1930s. Morner first explores the early segregation efforts of imperial Spain, aimed at separating white Hispanic from native Indian populations in colonial Mexico - and he explains why these efforts failed. He discusses the incorporation of native populations into the newly established nation of Venezuela from 1830 to 1860. He describes the Brazilian Empire's attempts at modernization through the introduction of the metric system in the 1870s - and the unexpected riots that ensued among tradition-minded citizens of the rural northeast. And he examines government efforts of the River Plate region - comprising the city of Buenos Aires and neighbouring provinces - to promote European immigration to Argentina.