The College of Mexico (El Colegio de México) publishes a condensed history of Mexico (in Spanish) that gives a rapid-fire overview of the history of this key Latin American country from the times of the early Mesoamerican civilizations (c. 2500 BC) through to the modern years after the Mexican Revolution. The latest version of this condensed history is titled Nueva Historia Mínima de México Ilustrado.
The book is available online for viewing in pdf form. In addition, for those people who can’t get their teeth into a good history book, the college has produced a seven-part video series that wends visually, audibly, and enticingly through the labyrinth of Mexican history.
The Nueva Historia Mínima de México Ilustrado won the Premio Nacional de Periodismo, 2009 (National Prize for Journalism, 2009).
The videos, done by Enrique Strauss, Claudia D’Agostino, Eduardo González, Enrique Quintero-Marmol, Roberto Bolado, Juan Prieto, y Luigi Lupone, divide Mexico’s history into seven parts. What a splendid way to learn about the history of Mexico! Each video is just under thirty minutes long:
- Ancient Mexico: Mesoamerican cultures and first settlements: the Olmecs, Teotihuacan, Mayas, Toltecs, Chichimecas
- The colonial era to 1760
- The Bourbon reforms
- Consolidation of the Republic of Mexico
- The Porfiriato (Mexico under Porfirio Diaz)
- The Mexican revolution
- The final stretch: After the revolution; modern Mexico
The first segment is embedded below; view all segments of the video series at http://2010.colmex.mx/videos/hmmi/index.html.