John Glanton & the REAL Blood Meridian

The Wild West Extravaganza

Wild West Josh

Education, History

4.8 • 667 Ratings

🗓️ 7 August 2024

⏱️ 55 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

“It makes no difference what men think of war. War endures. As well ask men what they think of stone. War was always here. Before man was, war waited for him. The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner.” – Blood Meridian Blood Meridian, set mainly in the American Southwest during the late 1840s, tells of an unnamed protagonist known only as the Kid. We follow the Kid as he runs away from home and makes his way to Texas before becoming involved in an ill-fated adventure into Mexico. He survives a massacre at the hands of the Comanche and is eventually recruited into a gang of scalp hunters led by John Glanton and his second in command – the absolutely terrifying Judge Holden. The gang then proceeds to cut a murderous swath of destruction throughout northern Mexico before reaping their just rewards. Here’s the fun part: Blood Meridian is loosely based on real-life people and events, including John Glanton and Judge Holden. Today, we’re going to focus mostly on Glanton, an ex-Texas Ranger and War hero turned homicidal maniac. What was John Glanton’s life like before he became a scalp hunter? And how did Glanton really die? Was it as gruesome as portrayed in Blood Meridian? We’ll also take a look at a young soldier by the name of Samuel Chamberlain, as well as discuss the true identity of the honorable Judge Holden. Check out the website for more true tales from the Old West https://www.wildwestextra.com/ Email me! https://www.wildwestextra.com/contact/ Buy me a coffee! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/wildwest Free Newsletter! https://wildwestjosh.substack.com/ Join Into History for ad-free and bonus content! https://intohistory.supercast.com/ Join Patreon for ad-free and bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/wildwestextra Victory and Death: The Battle of San Jacinto - https://youtu.be/pHPsnHlEAdM?si=5LLlsXv2CSfqPO0J Blood Meridian Christmas Miracle - https://youtu.be/QqHZOzbPvDQ?si=mSIqWjCR6T09PGl5 The Night Does Not End | Professor Gwyn - https://bloodmeridian.substack.com/ My Confession: Recollections of a Rogue - https://openlibrary.org/works/OL3290424W/My_confession Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	It makes no difference when men think of war.
0:03.0	War endures.
0:05.0	As well, ask men what they think of stone.
0:08.0	War was always here.
0:10.0	Before man was, war waited for him.
0:12.0	The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner.
0:16.0	That was a quote from Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian, a novel considered by some to be one of the
0:21.8	greatest literary works of all time. Set mostly in the American Southwest during the late
0:27.1	1840s, Blood Meridian tells of an unnamed protagonist known only as the kid. We follow the kid as
0:33.5	he runs away from home and makes his way to Texas before becoming involved in an ill-fated
0:38.1	adventure down in Mexico. He survives a massacre at the hands of the Comanche, winds up in jail,
0:44.0	and eventually is recruited into a gang of scout hunters led by John Glanton and his second
0:49.1	in command, the absolutely terrifying Judge Holden. The gang then proceeds to cut a murderous swath of
0:55.1	destruction throughout Northern Mexico before reaping their just rewards. There's a lot more
1:00.6	involved, obviously, and I don't want to give too much away, but what many may not be aware of is
1:05.6	that Blood Meridian is loosely based on real-life people and events, including John Glanton and Judge Holden.
1:13.3	Yes, they and their gang of butchers did exist.
1:17.0	Now today, we're going to mostly focus on Glantin,
1:19.6	an ex-Texedxed Ranger and War Hero turned homicidal maniac.
1:23.4	What was Glantin's early life like before he became a scalp hunter?
1:26.9	Are the stories true of him waging a one-man war against the hostiles when he was still a teenager? And how did Glanton really die? Was it really as gruesome as portrayed in Blood Meridian? We'll also take a look at a young soldier by the name of Samuel Chamberlain. And you bet your ass we're going to discuss the true identity of the
1:45.1	Honorable Judge Holden. So trust me, whether you're a fan of Blood Meridian or just morbidly
	...

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