The Real Red Dead Redemption: How the Wild West Came and Then Disappeared in America

The Wild West refers to the central and western lands of the United States from the mid-19th century to the early 1920s. In this article, we will tell you how this phenomenon developed in America and how reliable westerns are from the point of view of real history.

After defeating Great Britain in the War of Independence (1775-1783), the United States became an independent country. However, at that time, the territory of this state was limited to the east coast of North America. In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson acquired the colony of Louisiana from France. 43 years later, Great Britain ceded Oregon. And as a result of the Mexican-American War (1846-1848), Texas and California joined the United States.

However, the new territories turned out to be poorly developed. But people moved from the densely populated eastern states to the west in search of a better life. They founded cities, which were later connected to each other by railroads. The process of land development lasted throughout the 19th century. Of course, it was not easy to control the implementation of the law in such vast territories. Instead of state representatives, the role of local sheriffs was often performed by private firms. Moreover, representatives of these organizations did not stand on ceremony and shot without warning. All large cities were under their control. Therefore, robberies of banks that were built in large settlements were a rare occurrence — only 15 such cases were registered before 1910. Mostly, bandits lived in rural areas, from where they attacked passing stagecoaches and rustled cattle. But cowboys who herded herds were often armed with cheap firearms. With their help, they scared off horse thieves and wild animals. However, avengers who pursued criminals and deliberately killed them were almost never encountered. Usually it was about self-defense during an attempted robbery.

On the side of the criminals was the fear of their cruelty. Many sheriffs feared for the lives of their loved ones, so they tried not to mess with bandits. At the same time, if they found the strength to challenge the cutthroats, then they had cruel laws on their side, because horse theft and other seemingly not very serious crimes were punishable by death by hanging.

Clashes with Indians are worth mentioning separately. Not only the regular army fought the Apaches and other indigenous tribes of America, but also mercenaries, who were paid $ 25 for each killed Indian. As evidence, they brought scalps that they cut off from the dead.

The American Civil War (1861-1865) played an important role in the formation of the Wild West. The armed conflict between the northern and southern states led to the emergence of thousands of refugees and deserters, many of whom had firearms with them.

Until about the 1850s, cowboys herded their herds wherever they wanted. They were limited only by the possibility of encountering Indians or bandits. But in the second half of the 19th century, land began to be divided between private owners, who, since 1876, had the opportunity to limit their territory with barbed wire. Cowboys tried to fight farmers, but the latter had the law on their side in the form of judges, as well as sheriffs and other law enforcement officers.

There are other factors. The advent of railroads, the growth of cities in new states, and the virtual victory over the Indians — all of this turned the United States into a relatively modern country of the European type at that time. Those who still lived by the laws of the Wild West at the beginning of the 20th century had to adapt to the new reality.

The disappearance of the Wild West coincided with the appearance of the first films. It is not surprising that many filmmakers decided to dedicate their work to cowboys and bandits. It all began with The Great Train Robbery in 1903 and continues to this day.

You need to understand that cinema was much simpler back then than it is today. For example, we can recall the comedies with Charlie Chaplin. The directors who made Westerns did not strive to repeat reality exactly — they needed to captivate the viewer with brave heroes, insidious villains, as well as dynamic scenes of chases and shootouts. Therefore, historicity gave way to spectacle. This is how many Western cliches were formed, which are still used today.

Bright examples:

Rockstar San Diego in the Red Dead Redemption dilogy showed the death of the Wild West under the pressure of civilization. From this point of view, the game cannot be called a standard western in the spirit of the dollar trilogy by Sergio Leone. Before us is a much more realistic farewell to the era in the spirit of the film «The Wild Bunch». In addition, we were shown how ideals and high-flown speeches turn out to be a way of manipulation by gang leaders.

But at the same time, Red Dead Redemption uses stereotypes from films about the Wild West. Duels, bank robberies, bandits who keep entire cities in fear, and many other features of classic westerns appeared in Rockstar games. It turns out that they go beyond the usual framework, but at the same time, they refer to the favorite cowboy movie.

***

Do you like movies about the Wild West? Or do they seem too simple to you? Share your opinions in the comments!