That Time an American Lawyer Took Over Nicaragua | The Life & Times of William Walker

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Footnotes:
0:26 Shame on anyone listening to this through poor quality speakers and not getting to hear this sound design
1:15 You might rightly ask "How could he pay for such an army after being unemployed for a while?" and clearly you were never a 14-year-old college grad. You see, all he has to do is sell the land in Sonora before he takes it from Mexico! Unfortunately he invaded the wrong state.
1:54 Walker's army literally never set foot in Sonora. Just thought I should mention
2:08 There was an incident in Canada, google the Neutrality Act of 1794 for more info
2:21 I feel like I'm doing Jon Townsend dirty putting him on the gung-ho manifest destiny jury. I'll do my best to make this right some day with more positive Townsend representation.
2:34 And this time Walker was careful enough to be formally recognized as a colonist who just happens to be bearing arms, and definitely not a mercenary
2:42 And apparently that paid off because this time when the US got the news, President Pierce said "Aw, good for him!" and recognized his government as legitimate
2:42 And at first, some parts of Central America were actually on board with this! San Salvador was cheering him on, and the outed Honduran president Jose Cabañas came to Walker for help, but amazingly Walker turned him down even when he had Honduras handed to him on a silver platter! I legitimately do not understand this decision, maybe he thought he'd be pushing his luck too far but that really doesn't seem to be his style
4:12 When Walker left New York to go on tour, his co-conspirator allegedly told him "We'll meet again at Philippi". He must've been half-way through reading Julius Caesar because Cassius and Brutus DIED at Philippi and I cannot think of a more foreboding way to part with someone
4:27 They actually stop in Mobile Alabama first and the cops tell the authorities to inspect the boat for a gang of wanted criminals. Well the cops inspect the boat... and they go “Y’all seem like decent folks to me, bon voyage!” I'm telling you there's so much good stuff I had to cut from this episode, but there's a titillating (if tipped in Walker's favor) book on his life here: archive.org/details/filibuste...
Music:
0:00 Kevin MacLeod - The Parting
0:34 It's pretty well tucked into the background here, but this is Ayreon - Day Nine Playground
0:40 Kevin MacLeod - Griphop
0:43 Kevin MacLeod - Hidden Past
0:54 John Philip Sousa - Across the Danube
2:43 John Philip Sousa - The Honored Dead
3:45 John Philip Sousa - Resumption
4:53 Kevin MacLeod - Netherworld Shanty
5:51 Colossal Trailer Music - Barbary Jack
5:59 Kevin MacLeod - Beach Party
6:08 Colossal Trailer Music - Barbary Jack
6:17 Kevin MacLeod - Netherworld Shanty
6:30 Tchaikovsky - Op. 40
7:28 Kevin MacLeod - Tango de Manzana

[@JackRackam]

I'm "back"! And this time I have nordpass.com/jackrackam to thank - if you want, you can get a free month at the link provided, or use the code jackrackam to get 10% off a 2-year plan Once again the video comes out to nearly 8 minutes, and I tell you I had to cut at least another two minutes of content. I always want to revisit people as soon as I finish a video on them, but there's some stuff with Walker that really deserves animation

[@hexa3389]

Wait how did you comment 2 days ago?

[@SensaiRyu]

No need to cut them dude I would watch a 2 hour documentary by you. Congrats on the success, 100K

[@anjusanal]

@@hexa3389 probably the video was awaiting sponsor approval to get released

[@JackRackam]

@@SensaiRyu Thanks so much! Unfortunately, cutting was done less for editorial reasons and more for time. Maybe one day I'll be able to keep that kind of stuff in!

[@dionadair8195]

PLEASE do a video for Julie d'Aubginy. She is right up your alley, and got a lot done for someone who lived for 37 years.

[@ChessedGamon]

It’s like a running gag but people die

[@JackRackam]

That covers a lot of history right there

[@johndoe5432]

Much like the time the English and the French got in a war, and that other time, and the other time, and the other time, and the other time, and the other time, and the other time, and the other time...

[@merrittanimation7721]

@@johndoe5432 And the other time...

[@troodon1096]

History in a nutshell

[@Argos-xb8ek]

@@merrittanimation7721 You forgot about that other time

[@Taiyama2]

The fact that we needed a law saying "You can't invade other countries on your own" is the most delightfully American thing I've heard in a while.

[@NathanDudani]

I don't know if delightfully is the most apt word

[@Taiyama2]

@@NathanDudani No, it very much is.

[@jacobprice2579]

As a British person, this is where I awkwardly shift into the corner and try not to make eye contact with anyone.

[@Taiyama2]

@@jacobprice2579 I LEARNED IT FROM YOU, DAD!

[@justarandomtechpriest1578]

@@jacobprice2579 WE LEARNED IT FROM YOU

[@JR-gp2zk]

0:24 If you get shot TWICE in a duel, you suck at dueling.

[@Soldiereasy]

If you shoot the same person 2 times in a duel and that person is not dead, you suck at dueling.

[@tremere3337]

@@Soldiereasy I think we can all agree that duel sucked

[@Soldiereasy]

@@tremere3337 well at least he hit the target (but seriously , It will be more entertaining if those two guy didn't hit the target at all and both of them were out of ammunition)

[@nukclear2741]

@@Soldiereasy that happened in a duel once, I can't remember which one, but they ran out of ammo and called the duel off.

[@dndboy13]

i skimmed WW's wiki article and I guess they used revolvers (which were fairly new), and Walker had prior non-revolver gun experience but not those fancy new Colt Dragoon spinny things. Also, I learned a neat thing: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filibuster_(military) "A filibuster or freebooter, in the context of foreign policy, is someone who engages in an (at least nominally) unauthorized military expedition into a foreign country or territory to foment or support a revolution. The term is usually used to describe United States citizens who fomented insurrections in Latin America, particularly in the mid-19th century (Texas, California, Cuba, Nicaragua, Colombia). Filibuster expeditions have also occasionally been used as cover for government-approved deniable operations. Filibusters are irregular soldiers who normally act without official authority from their own government, and are generally motivated by financial gain, political ideology, or the thrill of adventure. The freewheeling actions of the filibusters of the 1850s led to the name being applied figuratively to the political act of filibustering in the United States Congress."

[@pisces2569]

So this is where the “lawyers are evil” jokes originate

[@flazzorb]

Nah, the problem is that lawyers are pragmatic which often means looking horrible in order to have not technically broken the law.

[@netherwalker1762]

No, no it is not.

[@pisces2569]

Flazzorb The Fictional I’m sure this guy inspired them to be like that

[@OMG3DBEAT]

@@netherwalker1762 it is clearly not to be taken literally

[@ZelZarKi]

Jokes?

[@coachgoltzbizpro23]

U.S.: There's a law saying you can't invade random countries Walker: Hey, It's free real estate

[@merrittanimation7721]

"Walker did you invade a Latin American nation again?" "Maaaaaaaaaaybe?"

[@panqueque445]

Walker: "It's not random if I know where I'm going"

[@500deathwing]

Does anyone know what that law is called? As I can't find it.

[@ShinigamiInuyasha777]

More like It's a slave real estate

[@attercoppe3904]

@@500deathwing Neutrality Act of 1794

[@thelegendarypandicorn1777]

For anyone who's curious, the law William Walker was arrested for was the Neutrality Act of 1794, which is technically still around, though heavily amended. This was followed by the Neutrality Act of 1817, which makes you pay, at maximum, a whole whopping three thousand dollars and a three year jail sentence. Funnily enough, its modern version, 18 U.S. Code § 960, which is titled "Expedition Against Friendly Nation", still has the three year penalty, and has been used three times in the last 40 years. In 1981, some randos tried to overthrow the government of the island nation of Dominica, in 2007 the U.S. thought some retired Lieutenant colonel wanted to join some Laotian Major General in overthrowing their government (the charges were dropped), and in 2014, some U.S. residents were convicted for trying to overthrow the government of Gambia. Note that 18 U.S. Code § 960 only applies to invading foreign princes, states, territories, colonies, districts, or people the U.S. is at peace with. Purely hypothetically, that means that you and the buds could get together and invade Bir Tawil in the glorious name of the United States. Just, good luck getting irrigation. Or infrastructure. Or, y'know, anything. Also hypothetically, it would be possible to carve out a piece of Bir Tawil, run a crap ton of water around it, and purchase some bird poop to place on top and claim it under 48 U.S. Code Chapter 8, the Guano Islands act. Nothing about the Guano Islands Act says it needs to STAY an island, and legally an island can be "within a river" so y'know. If you're rich, bored, and way too patriotic... www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/960 www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/48/chapter-8

[@TheIbney00]

It’s “The Gambia” smh

[@DIEGhostfish]

Does a mere ceasefire count as "At peace with?" If not, it North Korea might be a legitimate (If very stupid) target. But hey, if you win you get recreational mcnukes.

[@meshuggahlad7]

@@DIEGhostfish Armistice is temporary cease fire. Anyone that has an Armistice with their enemy nations and allies, they are still at war.

[@aboi6638]

So hypothetically I could cover all of Iceland with bird poop and it becomes legal Amarican clay?

[@cyrusthegreat7030]

@@aboi6638 yes

[@Cheekster15]

Fun fact: what walker is doing is the original meaning of a “filibuster.”

[@schris413]

That's how I learned who he was.

[@darryl47nopra]

That's how we call him here at Nicaragua.

[@VarangianGuard13]

The correct solution for W. Walker and his ilk is to toss him keister over teakettle and shoot them all. America was not founded upon the idea of taking freedom from other sovereign states. ( Sadly, individuals weren't as protected as they should have been. ) We could have ordered the disallowing of taking land, but unfortunately nobody asked me to write the laws.. good intentions, bad implementation.

[@revolutionarybroom5222]

No it doesn't. Filibustering originally referred to Hispanics including Hispanic pirates going to other Latin Anerican countries and fighting. It has nothing to do with backstabbing Anglos 🤣. Try again.

[@revolutionarybroom5222]

No it isnt. Filibustering originally referred to Hispanics including Hispanic pirates going to other Latin Anerican countries and fighting. It has nothing to do with backstabbing Anglos 🤣. Try again.

[@stevenchoza6391]

As someone of Nicaraguan descent, this is a treat.

[@johndoe5432]

As someone with the name William Walker hello there, do you like war?

[@gabrielkaplowitz596]

As a Latino I’m happy to see that cocksucker got what he had coming.

[@wesleyesq7306]

As a Costa Rican, i want to march towards Rivas and burn the meson

[@jhonyark2308]

How impactful was he really to your nation?

[@emery7301]

Amir Babs He does lmao

[@bebos1262]

Moral of the story: Don't piss off the railroad tycoon who literally is the most powerful man in the world.

[@hoseadavit3422]

Unless you are John Rockefeller

[@thomastakesatollforthedark2231]

@@hoseadavit3422 being the same thing second only to the aforementioned tycoon helps

[@choncoconcos5912]

No is Not "moral of the story" It's reality , politicians don't rule the world but " the guys with MONEY"

[@boredangel5788]

I'm a Costa Rican girl. It's funny how the invasion of Walker to Nicaragua and the Military Campaign of 1856-1857 is like the MOST IMPORTANT ANNIVERSARY IN MY COUNTRY after the independence, and for USA it's like "hey, do you know that a white lawyer tried to take the control of Central America? No? Ok!" Loved the video, by the way

[@nilothegeekydesigner4361]

Jaja que bueno ver otra tica en los comentarios de vídeos como este. :D

[@boredangel5788]

@@nilothegeekydesigner4361 hey sí hola!!! Jaja

[@abysswalker6842]

Demuestra la poca cultura que tienen los Estadounidenses

[@grey3247]

Costa Rican too, yeah, here it's like "The trial by fire of the Costa Rican nation", mostly because it created a sense of a united identity

[@LuckyBird551]

Kind of reminds me of the Korean War. In Korea (both north and south) is the most important event in their history, there are monuments, holidays, books, movies, plays, schools spend entire classes talking about it. In the USA the Korean War is basically a footnote.

[@aleksandarvil5718]

William Walker: **invades and captures Nicaragua** U.S. Law, Nicaraguans : "My Lord, Is that... legal?" William Walker (as lawyer): *"I Will Make It Legal"*

[@gamebawesome]

Cornelius Vanderbilt: Not yet.

[@aleksandarvil5718]

@@gamebawesome William Walker: *I AM NICARAGUA!*

[@quisqueyanguy120]

All of Central American armies: No you wont.

[@UsefulCharts]

Love that you're doing some more obscure folks here and there, like this guy and Leo Major. Speaking of which you should totally do Emperor Norton from San Francisco. Maybe even convince some royal genealogy channel to make a "Who Would Be Emperor of America" video at the same time 🤔😂

[@MPHJackson7]

Huh, I wonder if there's a channel that covers that kind of stuff

[@JackRackam]

What a concept!

[@pisces2569]

MPHJackson7 there is and UsefulCharts already made a video about that topic. kzbin.info/www/bejne/kKnRc6mbpNVopNE

[@UsefulCharts]

@@pisces2569 Yeah, but that's WWB King. Usefulcharts really ought to do a WWB emperor one.

[@Hunter12365]

Sam O' nella...I summon thee 😬😋

[@algutgeutschwin1511]

That guy's me playing Mount & Blade for the first time.

[@theranredguardist1949]

Yes so Real 😂

[@jimtreebob2096]

Cool profile pic.

[@thevoidlookspretty7079]

I’m just imagining Satan looking at his record and is like, “I have several questions. In fact, the only one I don’t have is if you belong down here.”

[@ayoubzoufri2003]

William walker would probably love a life and times of Christian the fourth of Denmark

[@tremere3337]

Thats a pretty good one too

[@gustav331]

He's the single best known historical character in Denmark. In my opinion he is perhaps also the most interesting man in Scandinavian history.

[@theelementalstation947]

So late for the party here, but, I´m from Costa Rica and honestly there is a few details that make this story funnier, the reason only Costa Rica was affected by the colera was because we did all the first half of the war. Long story short as soon as Walker gets control over Nicaragua he bluffs saying that his little group of mercenaries is backed up by the US army so that no other contry tries to mess with him and it worked for the most part. But, that wasnt going to stop us, so beliving we were going against the US we pulled all the stops, called a favor from France to get generals and people to set up bootcamp alongside buying the best equipment of the era. We trained and refined our troops as much as posible and the went to war. There was only 3 battles, the first 2 lasting less than an hour, the first one at la casona de Santa Rosa lasted 15 minutes and we had 0 casualties. The last one before the illness forced us back lasted a few days, and only then because they fortified a whole city, but after Juan Santamaria torched the HQ the forces fell back in a panic and we took the city, then we got sick and had to retreat, but at that point all central america wen "My god this guy is a pushover" and esencially said "You guys relax and deal with the pandemic, give us a few guys that know the zone and we take care of the rest" and like that we got to sit out the second half of the war, with the exception of sending some reinforcements to take an important port and for the final battle. Extra history: Less than a century later, after a brief civil war and the end of WWII we decided to abolish the army because it cost to much money and made military coups easy. So we got rid of it and use the money for education, universal health, and infrastructure. Wich prevented the US from destabilize us by using our arm forces similar to many central and south american nations. And thanks to that we have one of the most stable countries in all america.

[@elg6197]

I'm replying so the algorithm can put this amazing post a little higher.

[@thesymbiotenation.4552]

And meanwhile in Nicaragua **EVERYTHING IS BURNING**

[@winterworldantsgamesandleg9915]

Hey a tico

[@riverbecomesastorm375]

Sorry that our insane people caused you so much trouble in the past. I'd say we've gotten better...but we kinda haven't. Sorry, World. 😢

[@winterworldantsgamesandleg9915]

@@riverbecomesastorm375 don`t worry

[@whoareyou1034]

Imagine getting fired for arresting a bad guy.

[@someguy7723]

america irl

[@space_lemonz4561]

Tbh the snitch shoulda minded his own business. If I saw a guy attempting to overthrow a Central American government I woulda been like aight cool beans

[@goldenfiberwheat238]

Glad that never happens any more. Wait...

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

Russian laws irl

[@cv4809]

"Bad guy" that's a weird way to spell a brave pioneer and patriot

[@kimehrenschiold1693]

it's really fascinating to me that this was an actual problem for the US government, did private militias try to conquer uninhabited parts of say, canada aswell? congratulations on 100k subs also!

[@JackRackam]

Thanks! The original law was made in response to Canada, and I'm sure some people tried it, but probably fewer since Britain was a world superpower throughout the 1800s. Incidentally, did you find this video through a playlist? Because it's not actually published yet

[@silverdeathgamer2907]

@@JackRackam Irish revolutionaries did actually invade Canada though interestingly enough however their attempts failed because neither the US nor Britain wanted to be dragged into another war especially after the American civil war.

[@NADZORFM]

They tried to take over Venezuela like a week ago lol

[@elg6197]

@@NADZORFM And boy did they failed 🤣

[@ChiChiLand299]

@@JackRackam biggest reason they did that kind of stuff was because those people didn't recognize a lot of those Latin American countries, as countries. they just saw territories, because they didn't recognized them as legitimate governments.

[@-et37-]

I went down a Wikipedia rabbit hole and was thoroughly surprised to see an American as President of Nicaragua. Thanks for shedding more light on this wild man.

[@thevoidlookspretty7079]

“It’s really hard to wing national conquest with one boat full of dudes.” What is this, early May 2020?

[@JackRackam]

No, no, the Sea People don't come until August

[@mr_JackSchwarze]

@@JackRackam your off by a year, but trust me they’ll come. I’ve seen it in the visions

[@MrTheBaron]

Absolutely lost it with Jon Townsend just appearing there. Great work as always, man!

[@Drayran]

Time for some good ol' fashioned mushroom ketchup.

[@MrTheBaron]

@@Drayran Don't forget the nutmeg!

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

It's actully kinda weird how common it has been throughout history how many people have suffered a dire, but survivable setback in their lives, and come back emboldend and confident, but also stark raving mad. A good example, Hong Xiuquan, instigator, and leader of the imfamous Taiping rebellion. Speaking of which, can you make a video of this guy? He is literally the most genocidal Christian convert the world has ever seen. He literally made western Christian extremists disturbed by him! Even KARL MARX wrote about the Taiping Rebellion, originally saying, "Oh cool, a worker-class uprising!" *a few years later* "Nah, fuck those guys, they create more suffering than class-oppression!"

[@michelsand5399]

JakeSpacePirate E I think when your leader starts callin himself the brother of Jesus, you can officially say you’ve started a cult.

[@hugodelphan8638]

I think the raising rebellion is to badly depicted because the only one to talk about it are the qing who considers them as rebellious traitors and the western powers who considers them as heretics who were a threat to their interest ( the taiping had severely ban the use of opium). And most of the taiping rebels had been slaughtered by the Qing so they couldn’t tell theirs story. The taiping are the first nationalist wake up in China, and try to implement numerous reform while the Qing state was corrupted and unwilling to reform anything.

[@netherwalker1762]

And damn did Karl have to eat those words.

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

@@michelsand5399 They Chinese people did not know any better. Christianity was still very new to them at the time, so if you recently became Christian in China at the time, who better to follow than the guy claims to be related to him?

[@michelsand5399]

JakeSpacePirate E the local clergy? The jesuits? Also, I think there were christians before the taiping because of the mongols, though I have no source to support my claim so take it with a handful of salt. Op didn’t really link a source either so I’m heaitant to believe him as well.

[@johndoe5432]

As someone with the name William Walker, I'm really not sure how to feel about this episode... But I feel the strange urge to go invade a small Central American Republic.

[@dalek--ck9oy]

Dew it

[@muhammadirfanjalaluddin1018]

And maybe try conquering that Mexican peninsula under California while your at it

[@mr_JackSchwarze]

@@muhammadirfanjalaluddin1018 More land feed the south bring back slavery

[@jaelmontenegro5698]

All those countries are independent, u got your ass kicked there just like Vietnam.

[@stephenjenkins7971]

@@jaelmontenegro5698 He didn't go to Vietnam or get his ass kicked in Central America. You're conflating the US with a rando American, genius. Hell, I don't think the US ever bothered to conquer the region barring Panama.

[@peggyliepmann5248]

The more I watch this, the more I feel like this could make for a pitch black comedy with the right cast and director.

[@JackRackam]

You mean like Walker (1987)?

[@Flyingclam]

Its kinda weird how common this was in american history. Hell we have our modern version John McAfee

[@TheJingles007]

Lmao McAfee is crazy. He didn't deny allegations of having sex with a manatee.

[@iwankazlow2268]

Well, the country was founded by people loving God, guns and their own personal freedom to do what they want. Naturally being the government of such a place you would have to ban personal invasions of other countries, restrict gun laws and educate the freedom away 👮🏻‍♂️

[@james_chatman]

@@iwankazlow2268 What the hell kind of freedom involves interfering with the affairs of sovereign nations running gangs and murdering people? It sounds like the only freedom you people are interested in is the freedom to be slavers, just like Walker.

[@iwankazlow2268]

@@james_chatman Every sovereign nation is established by might and blood of other men. Every nation which is not able to stand on the world stage is crushed by all the others, or bows to some. You can believe in the myth of what is teached to the civilians in some nations, but the world stage shows another image. It was always about might makes right and always will be. Be it thousands of years ago or right now.

[@arawn1061]

@@iwankazlow2268 then everyone else has the right to shoot back. Ala what happend to walker in Mexico

[@richardgonzalez6409]

Jury duty?,so thats what Townsends does when hes not making exquisite 18th century delicacies.

[@JR-gp2zk]

Jon Townsend on the jury: "I think this Walker guy is guilty." William Walker waives around a big container of Nutmeg Jon Townsend: "That man is innocent"

[@batstoast3560]

@@JR-gp2zk snorts nutmeg

[@milkman1274]

I knew I’d find a coment about him down here

[@anonymousv1]

US government: how many invasions do you want? William Walker: YES

[@rentabullet4048]

This mans story felt like a mount and blade save

[@Attacian]

One of the rare stories where perfidious albion does the right thing at the end and the bad guy dies.

[@missingmochigumanofficial]

Central American history is beautiful. Edit: Congrats on the 100k!

[@JackRackam]

Thank you! I don't think I've done Central American history before, this was a treat. Whenever I come back to it I want to spend some more time on the people that actually lived there, Walker was just too darn good at hogging the spotlight by being insane

[@rangergxi]

@@JackRackam The story of Costa Rican independence from the US/Soviets is also pretty insane.

[@dannythepharaoh3507]

@@JackRackam well you sort of did. Remember the story of pedro the second

[@captainsinclair7954]

I'm glad one of the Townsends made a cameo in this video. That was something I was scratching my head over

[@kevinhixson1586]

2:20 haha Townsends This made me laugh more than it should have.

[@floraposteschild4184]

The man who dropped of Walker to the Hondurans was Commander (later Admiral Sir) Nowell Salmon, which I think is an adorable name. As his title hints, he was NOT fired but had an illustrious career, became a naval comander-in-chief. Good on you, Admiral Sir Nowell.

[@JackRackam]

Nowell Salmon (which is indeed and arorable name) was the British commander who arrested Walker after his stunt in Honduras, it was a different American officer who was fired after arresting Walker a previous time

[@floraposteschild4184]

@@JackRackam Hello, Jack! Love your videos. Yes, that's what I meant -- to contrast the previous commander's experience with what happened the next (was it the next? -- there were so many) time.

[@prosoblue647]

“Did I ever tell you the definition of insanity?”

[@SkatingJellyfish]

As a Central American it makes me so happy to see people caring about our history! I am not Nicaraguan but I lived there for a time in my childhood, I am actually salvadorian but I love to see content about our region ❤️

[@alfredthegreatkingofwessex6838]

William Walker: I’m president Costa Rica: well yes, but actually no

[@merrittanimation7721]

Given what happens every other time he tried to conquer a country, I think it says something about how competent Nicaragua was at that time that he managed to stay in power as long as he did.

[@JackRackam]

I mean yeah it was a very newly independent nation that was already torn apart in a civil war, although Walker was only in charge for about a year

[@merrittanimation7721]

@@JackRackam One year too much.

[@JackRackam]

@@merrittanimation7721 This is true

[@snakey934Snakeybakey]

Becomes both a doctor AND a lawyer by age 20? Shieeet, this guy is awesome!

[@AudieHolland]

Graduated Med School at 19, a lawyer in his 20s, a journalist by 25... Damn, it was really going downhill after he became an MD! If this was any other person, it would say: graduated college at 19, dropped out of university in his 20s, became ponzi schemer by 25...

[@pleasant_asymmetry]

I like the reference to the movie Walker with the helicopter

[@jorgemarques8288]

Honestly, I believe that Alex Cox had that idea in 1987 to implement an helicopter to the film after watching this video

[@estebandavidlopezmurillo2420]

Great video Jack, William Walker ks very important to Costa Rica's history, and I think he is largely ignored by American historians

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

Probably because how much of a batshit insane embarrassment he was to America. He was like the kid who stayed at the park even after everyone else had gone home, and you had to drag him back even as he is kicking and screaming to stay as night falls.

[@JackRackam]

Yeah, he didn't leave much of an impact on America so it's easy to forget about that one guy from 150+ years ago who went and did something dumb somewhere else. I'm a little surprised he's well known in Costa Rica's history, as opposed to just the cholera outbreak that followed the war

[@Elias0727]

@@JackRackam thanks for the video, he is very important in Costa Rica, and yes, here it is ignored that 10% of the population died

[@CanalTremocos]

2:20 Noo! Townsends would never let injustice prevail!

[@shymike1196]

He was bribed with nutmeg

[@rtnas2434]

"Three soldiers stepped forward to within twenty feet of him and discharged their muskets. The balls entered his body, and he leaned a little forward; but, it being observed he was not dead, a fourth soldier mercifully advanced so close to the suffering man that the muzzle of the musket almost touched his forehead, and being there discharged, scattered his brains and skull to the winds. Thus ends the life of the 'Gray-eyed man of Destiny.'" New York Times October 5, 1860

[@siekotik_4420]

Hi, I like history, and by association, I like jack rackam

[@PhantomEagle..]

US Government: Nooooo you can't just invade random countries in central America! William Walker: Haha gun go bang bang

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

Well that certainly turned out well for him lol

[@pepsdeps]

Being from Baja, the dude only actually conquered la Paz (which he didn't, he only took over the palace and held the governor hostage). And when he actually tried to "conquer" the rest of the peninsula, he kept being beaten by local militias and natives who are the ones who chased him back across the border

[@alexhess1163]

It's actually astounding how many times this guy got to try before they finally just killed him.

[@gangstascout3593]

this guy was playing mount and blade in real life

[@connormacdonald4722]

Brutal way to go after such a convoluted life, what a fuckin fascinating guy, I’m gonna do some more research on this fella and tell some of my history buff friends that he exists, this is a cool story, plus the guy was a great fool rolling nat 20s the entire time he was alive

[@iusethisnameformygoogleacc1013]

It's more like America was *super* fucking racist at the time, so enough people didn't really mind what he was doing that he could continuously get away with it, than anything to do with his luck.

[@JonManProductions]

2:20 are we going to savor the flavors and the aromas of the 18th century now?

[@JackRackam]

"You thought this was a history video but it was I, Townsend!"

[@grey3247]

Fun fact, here in Costa Rica the war against Walker is one of the defining event of the country, also little detail, the Costa Rican allies didn't join in first half of the war, which was before the cholera thing, it was Costa Rica doing the early fighting and in the entire war the "Fuck you Walker" coalition only lost a single battle

[@SamiDC]

2:19 - Not sure why but seeing John Townsend made me cackle like a witch.

[@jameswoodard4304]

Nothing in this video was incorrect, I just want to point out some things. Note: this doesn't mean I am defending anyone's actions, much less those of an ego-maniacal, emperialist, pro-slavery, war criminal which is what Walker was. 1) Yes, the US had to put laws in place to try to stop filibustering activities. But that should not be taken to imply that Americans originated the practice or were alone in practicing it. We were just later than other industrialized nations in getting it under control. We were taking control of vast swathes of new territory during this period with ceonically overstretched federal manpower and had a great deal of difficulty enforcing federal laws over an expanding frontier populace and a country that kept doubling in size practically overnight. The American Army and Navy particularly stepped up to try to bring Walker to heel on more than one occasion, but the juries of civilian courts were a different story. At earlier times, filibustering was a common plague in the Caribbean and Central America contributed to by a very diverse cast of nationalities and political and economic interests. It was not somehow a specifically American phenomenon. 2) Walker's men are largely depicted here as fairly useless idiots when it came to the battlefield. That was largely true in the adventure in Mexico, but Walker soon learned his lesson and his later forces would end up much better trained due to drill and hard experience. Many of them were former soldiers and adventurers themselves. They successfully held off the combined forces of multiple allied nations for a surprising amount of time due largely to an extreme form of the American ethic of warfare they utilized that was highly at odds with the fighting ethic of Latin American soldiers at the time. While the latter were by no means cowards as contemporary American media would often portray them, they were experienced in regional border disputes and civil wars and practiced the careful deployment of concentrated numbers against the enemy. They didn't like taking risks on the battlefield, because that is what their experience had taught them. On the other hand, the romantic adventurers among Walkers party, and especially Walker himself, were the kind of extreme minority within their country who *volunteered* to do what they were doing out of a deep desire to seek out death-defying danger and prove to themselves they were real men risking their lives doing something meaningful and daring...and maybe become rulers of their own country while they were at it. Walker was literally brought up on stories of Arthurian knights riding off to their own peril to prove their worth by killing some dragon, or facing a worthy death in the process. He insisted that if a Southern gentleman was to carry a sword (as was the fashion at the time) then he would be trained by the best instructors on how to use it. It is believed he killed multiple men with his sword before he even made it to California to begin his foriegn adventures. While Walker's enemies were normal local folks who would really rather not fight yet another dangerous and costly war, and who really just didn't want to die if they could help it, Walker and his men were in Nicaragua *specifically* to find daring and dangerous adventure even if it meant likely death. I'm not romanticizing these guys. I'm just pointing out the romantic conception of war and death they lived and breathed. It's no fluke there were always so few men to volunteer for Walker's schemes. They were not normal. My point here is that, due to their reckless bravado in the face of more circumspect and realistic-minded enemies, Walker's more aggressive forces were actually very effective in their performance. Especially relative to their size. Of course the whole plan was insane and they were practically doomed to end up dead from the start. But they actually had quite impressive performance on the battlefield for their numbers. 3) The British interests were under-stressed here. Their intervention is largely what finally brought the whole ridiculous mess to a close. The Panama Canal was not the first attempt at figuring out a way to get commercial cargo and passengers from the Atlantic to the Pacifc and vice versa via Central America. This is what made Nicaragua such an important area in international affairs at the time. There was a system of overland passages and waterways that were being utilized for just that purpose. The British Empire was very much involved in trying to have diplomatic, if not political and military, control over which ever passage proved to be the most workable and they were putting a great deal of stress on all the countries in the region. Obviously, Walker's destabilizing nonsense in the area royally pissed off the British. It was politically dangerous in certain sectors of American politics to enforce the anti-Filibuster legislation as expansionism was still very much en vogue. When the American naval commander in charge of the area made a landing with multiple gunships and a force of US Marines and warning shots from the ships cannons onto the beach Walker's men had been cornered on, and captured the "President of Nicaragua" as he insisted on calling himself, the commander was roundly chastized and punished when he got back to the States. This was ostensibly because he had illegally landed on foreign soil himself, but Walker's fame definitely didn't help. The Brits, however, were more than willing to get involved. So when the allied armies of Central America finally had Walker pinned down, the Brits sailed in and offered to accept his surrender, the commander giving Walker his word as a British officer and a gentleman, that he would not be handed over to his enemies who had vowed to execute him. It turns out he lied. Walker was unceremoniously handed over to the Hondurans who immediately put him up against a wall and shot him. Then, of course, other developments ended up putting trans-isthmian trade out of Britain's hands anyway, and America built the Panama Canal, so it was all rather pointless. 4) Interestingly, Walker just *might* have gotten away with his schemes if he didn't insist on courting the American South by supporting slavery. It is well-known that the British Empire had moved against slavery by this time, but what also put the nail in Walker's coffin was the resistance in Latin America to even the rumor of slavery's return. The region had only relatively recently gotten rid of old-fashioned forms of bondage held over from Spanish rule. Many of Walker's reforms were atually fairly in line with the Liberal faction in Latin American politics so he was not completely isolated politically, but the re-implementation of slavery that Walker was planning toward the end of his regime was a line that no one in the area on either side of the political divide was willing to see crossed. This only increased the resolve of his enemies (who also hated each other) to band together and eliminate the foriegn interloper. The fact that the destabilization he was causing was getting in the way of lucrative trade deals with the Brits also helped. Sorry about the essay, but I did a paper on Walker in college for my History degree, so I couldn't resist adding my two cents on this bizarre historical topic.

[@gummybearchewy5444]

So glad you got around to doing a video on this guy.

[@Shannon-rq2hc]

Love the footnotes. I read them in your voice and extremely fast, so I have to read them 4 more times. Congratulations on 100,000! Been with you since Eleanor!

[@herbproductions2813]

If my character in mount and blade warband was a real person he would be William Walker

[@calmcmullan3370]

Easily the most underrated channel I know, also probably the funniest

[@awildfilingcabinet6239]

“But it turns out it’s really hard to wing national conquest with one boat” Cuban revolution: “Oh really?”

[@starkillerdude1914]

Fun fact William Walker grave still exist in Honduras to this day but I bet hardly anyone knows who he is

[@jaydenhuell9436]

congrats on 100K jack

[@Ian-nl9yd]

2:21 guy second from the left runs a great cooking channel btw, does a lot of 18th century recipes with period equipment

[@1986fritzthecat]

I'm glad this story has a happy ending

[@elpear6979]

Just by reading the Title I knew this would be Gold.

[@gamingforever9121]

Never knew this guy existed thanks for another great video Jack!!

[@thebakerofbananabread3237]

I was just thinking of you and history and wondering how much time had passed since your last video. Good timing!

[@stefansmith]

Similar to this, how about a video about the White Rajahs of Sarawak - an ordinary British merchant family given control of a portion of the Empire of Brunei by its Sultan as a thank you gift for helping to fight pirates... which they then ruled as absolute monarchs for over a century! Keep up the great work!

[@coziestwall]

Honestly don't many people mentioning this. One of the people that was employed by William Walker was Frederick Townsend Ward who would later leave behind Walker for his own filibuster adventures in China. Ward created the Ever Victorious Army which would aid the Qing Dynasty during the Heavenly Kingdom war against the Taiping government.

[@degenerate3288]

I remember when you were at 12.5k Wasn't even that long ago Keep it up dude

[@baselhills865]

I remember reading about this guy on the high school library computer. I think he was my hero for a few weeks.

[@HereLiesKPBurke]

This is great content and very well executed....found this helpful in clearing up just how chaotic Walker's real life was...he's so ridiculous that he's kind of hard to follow.

[@sleepydoghistory9994]

Thanks for doing this it helps me stay sane in covid

[@aaroncohen2700]

I think the funniest thing about Walker are the writings that talk about how he walked around war zones like he couldn’t be shot and for some strange reason never was.

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

Honestly I think that duel he had were he was shot twice broke his brain. It made him delusional. It’s the best way to explain all his actions after that point.

[@DarkKing009]

Congrats on the 100k!

[@inxendere]

congrats on the 100k subs bro i've been a follower since u uploaded that mao zedong vid which came on my recommended when i was researching him for a school project and i came across my favourite history channel. you will do great and i fucking love you

[@JackRackam]

Hot damn, that's a long time! Thanks for sticking around!

[@flipmanlet8982]

Your profile pic doe

[@TheMrPits]

Grats on 100K subscribers! You deserve it!

[@JackRackam]

Thank you!

[@tremere3337]

IM IN! Do one on Rommel!

[@Dysfunctional_serenity]

Is that John Townsend in the jury?

[@kumstuke]

I love this channel so much ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@DiegoFernandez-rx4mg]

Cool vid, man. Great stuff. Just want to add that Guatemala was also part of the military coalition against Walker.

[@josiptito9412]

nice townshends reference

[@goblinbengovii1312]

congrats on 100K subs!

[@rubenzuniga7270]

Soy hondureño y me encantó el video. Excelente trabajo. En mi canal tengo un video en el que hablo acerca de cómo terminó la carrera filibustera de Walker en Honduras.

[@PrinceOfLightUnderAthenianSky]

Magnificent! We'd also love to see videos on James Harden-Hickey, Orelie-Antoine de Tounens, James Brooke of Sarawak and other such people.

[@k.s.vilrod1964]

I'm Nicaraguan and I didn't even know about this part of our history, but this is funny as heck

[@water-shrimp962]

Nah he murder too much folks

[@boredangel5788]

What? For real? I'm Costa Rican, and this is like a very important chapter in our history. I'm amazed from the differences between the education in adjacent countries

[@antfangz]

Bro I'm Nicaraguan and I honestly don't believe you didn't know about this

[@k.s.vilrod1964]

@@antfangz well I was born in America and got an education here so yeah. I haven't a single clue about any Nicaraguan history.

[@antfangz]

@@k.s.vilrod1964 My bad. I thought you lived here. So sorry

[@sizanogreen9900]

This was great:)

[@elizabethrodriguez8338]

At this point, he was basically obsessed with Nicaragua

[@NeedsMoreSubs]

When people say the truth is stranger than fiction... THAT's an understatement.

[@lukelee7967]

There is a movie about William Walker made in 1987 called Walker. It's, very odd, but I like it a lot.

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

Why is it odd?

[@ra-g7449]

Now that you've done William Walker you need to do Juan Santamaria

[@TomOhms]

Brilliant, thankyou.

[@billbonson7300]

bro took that first beating, completely changed his llife... and passed it down 1000x fold

[@stephenknizek2651]

Truly an inspiration.

[@jakespacepiratee3740]

He failed, Mr. Comstock.

[@prestonsmith9450]

Another Jack Rack: this is going to be a good day.

[@beyondborderfilms4352]

This video has only entered 20 seconds in and he's accomplished more than most of us can ever hope for. 😥 This video is still funny though🤣

[@Theturtleowl]

This man is the embodiment of the sentence 'Why the fuck not?'

[@brokenbridge6316]

This was a beautiful funny video. This guy must've had quite the adventurous life.

[@benm8214]

2:19 Random Townsend cameo is always welcome!

[@willdbo]

Nice picture of James Townsend in the jury

[@kennyhughes3880]

Im half nicaraguan this is awesome!