I love some of the old Hollywood movie battle scenes where the wagon train gets attacked by Indians, when the cavalry defends its fort, when there’s a big Roman army battle or a cowboy gunfight. But what I soon learned is that Hollywood movies are not very accurate in their history.

     For example, I grew up in the 1950’s watching TV, so there were NEVER any cowboys who were black. Years later, I found out that 25% of cowboys were black. I was shocked!
     Wagon trains were another example of inaccurate history. Hollywood always shows the big white cloth covered Conestoga wagons travelling in a single file.  But Conestoga wagons weren’t used in wagon trains as their center of gravity was too high and a good stiff plains state wind would blow them over. They used regular wagons without the big white cloth covering them. And they only traveled in single file when going thru the mountains or a very narrow pass. Travelling single file would have kicked up a tremendous of dust for any wagon that was behind the lead wagon. They normally traveled side-by-side in a long row.

They also never circled the wagons in an Indian fight. They wouldn’t have had time to do that. The Indians also never circled the wagons. Indians weren’t dumb. Circling the wagons would have made them all moving targets. Instead, Indians attacked the wagons head on. They did, however, circle their wagons at night to keep the animals in.
All of these things, the Conestoga wagons, traveling in single file, circling the wagons in an Indian attack and the Indians circling around the wagons were inventions of Hollywood writers because they all looked better on camera.

     Regarding cowboy gun duals, Hollywood became obsessed with the fastest gun winning. But when Wyatt Earp was interviewed shortly before his death in the 1920’s, he exploded this myth. He said the fastest gun that shot first generally missed their target and that the guy that took time to AIM usually won. And cowboys who “fanned” their guns almost always missed as “fanning” your gun threw off your aim.
We often hear about how violent the old West was with all those gunfights going on.  But the old West wasn’t nearly as violent as Hollywood might have us think. Read https://www.wideopenspaces.com/10-misconceptions-guns-wild-west-pics/ and https://history.howstuffworks.com/historical-events/ridiculous-history-the-wild-wild-west-was-really-the-mild-mild-west.htm.

     In the movie “Gladiator” starring Russell Crowe, they have the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius being killed by his son, Commodus, who then became Emperor. But in real life, Marcus Aurelius retired and Commodus succeeded him as Emperor. In the movie, Commodus is killed by Russell Crowe’s character but in real life, he was poisoned by his wife. When that didn’t work, his wrestling partner strangled him while he was bathing.

     Also at the end of the movie, Rome returned to being a republic. In real life, Rome NEVER returned to a republic but kept on being an empire. Finally, there is no evidence that Marcus Aurelius wanted to restore Rome to a republic. This was an obvious appeal to 21^st century democratic ideals. While Marcus Aurelius wasn’t a terrible Emperor (as Emperors went), he wasn’t the wise philosopher-king the movie made him out to be. He did violently persecute Christians.

     So, as you can see, it’s best not to get your history from the movies. Hollywood’s purpose is to entertain and to make money, not to be a history teacher. It’s a shame because their influence on gullible Americans is great. While you may like seeing battle scenes in the old West or the ancient world (I sure do), don’t trust Hollywood to be real accurate. They have got it right a few times, like in 1964’s ‘The Longest Day’ or 1970’s ‘Tora, Tora, Tora’, but overall, they’re not very accurate.

     What I learned from this little episode in my life was to watch what I accepted as truth. Was the source of a particular truth claim reliable? Did that source have an agenda? It made me appreciate the one source that I do have that guides my life…the Bible. I know when I look to that source that it is the ultimate truth that has my best interests at heart.

For His Kingdom and picky moviegoers,
Dave Maynard
https://bsssb-llc.com

He was freezing, out in the middle of a frozen lake with nothing on. No shoes, no clothes, no coat, nothing. He and 39 other members of the elite Thundering Legion of the Roman Empire.  The year was 320A.D. Emperor Licinius had demanded that all Roman soldiers worship him as a god. This was nothing new but it wasn’t enforced all that much. All his life, he had wanted to be a soldier and serve his emperor. He would die for him. He considered it to be a great honor to be in this very decorated Thundering Legion. But the last few years, he had come to know Jesus as his Messiah.He could no longer worship anybody except Him. But he still wanted to serve in the Roman army.

At first, Governor Agricola of Sevaste (in modern day Turkey) spoke mildly but firmly to the men in their barracks. “I am told you refuse to offer the sacrifice ordered by Emperor Licinius”. One of his friends said, “We will not sacrifice. To do so is to betray our holy faith”.The Governor replied, “But what about your comrades?….Think of the disgrace you bring upon your legion”. His friend replied, “To disgrace the name of our Lord Jesus Christ is more terrible still”. The Governor promised promotion to all who does his duty. No one stepped forward. The Governor said, “Then prepare for torture & death”. The 40 soldiers stood firm. They were flogged in the freezing cold. The whips tore into their flesh, bloodying them but they stood firm.

Eventually, they were taken down to a frozen lake & stripped completely naked. The Governor could hardly believe his eyes. The men ran unto the freezing lake shouting, “We are soldiers of the Lord and fear no hardship. What is our death but entrance into eternal life?” Baffled, the Governor posted guards around the lake. He then heated large tubs of water to entice the men to come in from the freezing lake.

One of the guards said, “Look (pointing to the sky), doesn’t anyone see them?…spirits hovering with golden crowns over these men’s heads, holding out rich robes for them”. No one but this one guard saw this. But it was too much for one soldier. He came in and was immediately put into one of the hot tubs. But the shock was too much for him. He went into convulsions and died. The guard who had seen the vision of crowns, shucked off his clothes and ran unto the lake saying that they would be 40 again as he just accepted the Lord.

By morning 39 of them had died but the young man was still barely alive. The guards told his mother about her son. They told her they would look the other way if she wanted to come and get him. “What kind of talk is this” said his mother. “Would you cheat him out of his crown? I’ll never let that happen”. As the wagon of dead bodies pulled away, she cradled her son’s head and said, “Go son,,,go to the end of this happy journey with your comrades so that you won’t be the last to present yourself to God”. The guards were astonished. They couldn’t believe their ears & eyes. The bodies of the 40 were burned and their ashes cast into a river. Christians collected what they could of their ashes & bones and preserved them as the honored remains of these 40 brave Christians who wouldn’t deny their Lord & Savior. The next time you have to make a decision that may cost you something, remember these brave believers. Philippians 3:8 “What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ…”

http://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/301-600/40-martyrs-of-sevaste-11629648.html

For His Kingdom,
Dave Maynard