This book describes the established pattern of regional studies of colonial Spanish America with a study of the social history of colonial Quito rooted in the experience of its lower strata. It shows what the James Orton described as a colonial history "as lifeless as the history of Sahara".
Dellplain Latin American Studies -- Preface and Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- Structures and Continuities -- The Organization of Urban Space1 -- The Social Formation of Colonial Quito, 1534–1720 -- Artisan and Confraternity: The Socio-Economic Role of the Church -- The Popular Dimension of Eighteenth-Century Fiscal Reform and Economic Change -- The Informal Economy: The Urban Marketplace and the Petty Traders -- Demographic Change and Social Structure -- Socio-Racial Status and Mobility: The Declarations of Mestizo -- Religious Riots and Civil Disturbances1 -- Conclusions
