instead of reading Blond or whomever read eye witness accounts, as many as possible and one will find out shocking news, ...
Neither the Spanish or the Portuguese lived in a system of terror before the French invasion. ...

Naturally I would love to read nothing but first hand accounts. At my age, my time to do so is limited; much of it would be exhausted in learning the additional languages. There is the additional problem of deducing the bias of the eye witness. Sit on one U.S. jury and you will never believe an eye witness again.

The Spanish (and Portuguese) lived under the Spanish Inquisition which was controlled by the Spanish kings. I think it is a mistake to say it was not a system of terror.