A History of Bataan (1587-1900) Scanning its Geographic, Social, Political and Economic Terrain
Author: Cornelio Bascara
According to the subtitle of A History of Bataan, the book provides a panoramic view of the 300 plus years of Spanish colonization covering the geographic, social, economic and political terrain of the province of what then and now has been called Bataan.  
In keeping with the trend to keep local history alive, the author walks his reader through the earliest years of Christianization going back to roots in Spanish monasteries which nourished the spirit of austere adventurism of the missionaries.  The author traces the early and continuing struggles to survive economically and politically and describes the horrors of mutinies and rebellion, the limitations of the colonial bureaucratic system and the challenges confronting the principales.  Paradoxically, Mother Nature blessed the province with rich natural resources, yet the economy remained stagnant while other regions saw the promise of prosperity towards the end of the nineteenth century.  
The book acknowledges the magnificent contributions of the friars to the quality of life of the inhabitants including the efforts to bring the negritos into the fold of civilized life.  The destiny of the province was the handiwork of politicized principales-- the leading citizens who served as spokesmen for the
c2010, 478pp, 9"x6", UST