Waco Crisis

Historical Context Note

Lucas Paul Richert (University of Saskatchewan)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 3.2.4: American (US) Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Emory Elliott (University of California, Riverside), Dale Enggass (University of Utah), Christopher Hugh Gair (University of Glasgow), Matthew Hofer (University of New Mexico), Stephen E. Meats (Pittsburg State University), Kerry Myler (Newman University), Justin Parks (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway), Nick Selby (University of East Anglia)

Domains

Terrorist activities

Dates

Date of occurrence 1993-02-28

Places

United States (Location)

On 28 February, four federal agents were killed during an unsuccessful raid on the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas. This sparked a 51-day siege of the compound. On 19 April, the siege ended when the compound burned down, leaving more than 70 cult members dead. On 26 February 1994, 11 Davidians were acquitted of charges in the deaths of the federal agents. David Koresh (real name Vernon Howell), the leader of the group, took his name from King David and Koresh, an ancient Persian king. David Koresh believed in the imminence of the endtime revelation of Christ. David Koresh also believed that it was right to marry numerous ‘spiritual’ wives, many of whom were young teenagers. This drew unwanted attention on the Branch …

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217 words

Citation: Richert, Lucas Paul. "Waco Crisis". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 November 2008 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=5737, accessed 26 November 2024.]

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Waco Crisis

Domains

Dates

Places

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