Modifier-ZAPATA

Question

At the time of the Mexican agrarian revolution, the most radical faction, that of Zapata and his followers, proposed a return to communal ownership of land, to what had been a pre-Columbian form of ownership respected by the Spaniards.

What is the role of to what had been a pre-Columbian form of ownership respected by the Spaniards & What does it modify?

Thanks

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

...proposed a return to communal ownership of land, [a return] to what had been a pre-Columbian form of ownership respected by the Spaniards.

Pokh · Answer

Mister Micawber...proposed a return to communal ownership of land, [a return] to what had been a pre-Columbian form of ownership respected by the Spaniards.

Thanks Mister Micawber...

However I was just thinking if any of the sentence below would be better than using appositive with ellipsis...What you say?

At the time of the Mexican agrarian revolution, the most radical faction, that of Zapata and his followers, proposed a return to communal ownership of land, a form of ownership of the pre-Columbians and respected by the Spaniards

At the time of the Mexican agrarian revolution, the most radical faction, that of Zapata and his followers, proposed a return to communal ownership of land that had been a pre-Columbian form of ownership respected by the Spaniards

At the time of the Mexican agrarian revolution, the most radical faction, that of Zapata and his followers, proposed a return to communal ownership ofland in which a pre-Columbian form of ownership was respected by the Spaniards.

Mister Micawber · Answer

Certainly, none is 'better' than the orginal (which is a quite common, natural structure).  Your first alternative is as good, but your other two are not.

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