The The Perhaps one of the most significant events in U.S. history took place way back in March of 1840.

It ignited 30 years of brutal unrelenting guerrilla warfare in

America's southeast and the subsequent effect on the national psyche lies

somewhere immeasurable and astronomical.

It is a tale of desperation, hope, greed, and revenge, all steeped in the incomprehensible man-made

horrors of the Old West.

This is the story of the Great Comanche raid. In early 1840, times were tough

for the tribe of Native Americans known as the Comanche. Several years of war with their rival Apache as well as a catastrophic outbreak of smallpox had severely weakened the numerous Comanche warbands.

Another year of fighting might see their people wiped from the earth, so instead they

sued for peace. Three Comanche Emissaries wrote out to the newly Texan city of San Antonio to meet

with city officials, and we're told that if the

Comanche returned a dozen Anglo-American captives unharmed then peace would be

forthcoming. The emissaries agreed to return with captives in just over three weeks, but it was a promise they couldn't keep.

Throughout their history, the Comanche were never a single unified people.

Despite being united by language there were at least 12

different subdivisions of the tribe operating almost entirely independent of one another

as well as up to 35 independent war bands with shifting loyalties to the larger groups.

On top of that, the Comanche differed from their fellow Native Americans

and that there was no official power structure within their war bands.

If a young Comanche warrior was skilled and charismatic enough,

he could defy the wishes of his tribal elders,

then lead a raid against just about whoever the hell he wanted, and the Comanche were prolific raiders.

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