David Koresh
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| “ | I have been appointed to defend the gospel. Will you follow me? | „ |
| ~ David Koresh |
David Koresh (real name: Vernon Wayne Howell; August 17th, 1959 – April 19th, 1993) was the leader of a Branch Davidian religious sect, believing himself to be its final prophet. Howell legally changed his name to David Koresh on May 15th, 1990. He is responsable for the Waco siege which resulted in the deaths of 76 Branch Davidians, including Koresh himself.[1][2]
Biography edit
Early Life edit
Koresh was born in Houston, Texas to Bobby Wayne Howell and Bonnie Sue Clark. Koresh's father left his mother for another teenage girl before Koresh was born, and the two never met. Meanwhile Koresh's mother moved in with a violent alcoholic who abused the young Koresh. Koresh's mother later left this individual and left Koresh with his grandmother for three years. She later married a carpenter named Roy Haldeman and the couple retook custody of the young Koresh.[3]
A dyslexic with poor study skills, Koresh did not fare very well in school, and was placed in special education classes. He dropped out of high school in his junior year.[4]
At the age of 22 Koresh impregnated an underage girl. At about the same time he claimed to have become a born again Christian in the Southern Baptist Church, and joined the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Having an eye for the pastor's daughter, he tried to talk the pastor into making his daughter sleep with Koresh, but the pastor would not have it and forbade Koresh from seeing his daughter. He ultimately expelled Koresh from the congregation a year later.
Branch Davidians edit
Koresh made his way to the Branch Davidian compound, and reportedly seduced the group's leader and described prophetess Lois Roden.[5] The couple claimed that she had become pregnant (when she was nearing 70) through their relationship, but that Roden had miscarried. Koresh claimed the miscarriage was God punishing Roden for stealing money. Koresh was able to usurp control of the group from Roden and her family through armed means. Following Roden's death in 1986 Koresh expelled Roden's supporters from the group, cementing his control over the group.[4]
During the 1980s Koresh took a 14 year old girl as his first wife.[6] He would sleep with a large number of women and girls, with some being as young as 12 years old.[7]
In 1990 a California court granted Koresh's petition to formally change his name from Vernon Howell to David Koresh. He took the name David to symbolize a connection to the biblical King David.[1] His last name Koresh was the biblical name of Cyrus the Great.[4]
Koresh exercised near absolute control over the Branch Davidians, ruling every aspect of their lives and funding the group through buying and selling firearms. Children were beaten for the slightest offense, and grownups were required to engage in back breaking labor.[1] Koresh himself often slept until early afternoon, and would engage in pleasures that he denied his people on the grounds that "God" said it was OK. Koresh also advocated polygamy and developed a harem of women consisting of under-age girls in the cult compound- fathering around a dozen children as a result of this depravity.[7] All the other men on the compound had to be celibate.
Raid and Siege edit
By the early 1990s government authorities had become aware of reports of child abuse - both physical and sexual - occurring within the compound. A 1992 investigation into Koresh by the Texas Child Protection Services failed to turn up any evidence.[8]
Government officials also became aware that the Branch Davidians were stockpiling a large amount of armaments and related parts when the UPS passed on a report from a driver that the Davidians had taken delivery of a number of packages, one of which had broken open at delivery to reveal weapons.[9]
The investigation into this stockpiling of weapons led the ATF to request a search warrant of the compound in 1993. The subsequent raid by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the subsequent siege by the FBI ended with the burning of the Branch Davidian ranch outside of Waco, Texas, in McLennan County. Koresh, 54 other adults and 28 children were found dead after the fire. Only nine Davidians survived the fire.[2]
Post Mortem edit
Following the fire, the remains of David Koresh were found in the burned out compound. Post mortem examinations showed that he had died from a gunshot to the head. After his death, Koresh was buried in Memorial Park Cemetery.[10]
After bombing the Murrah building in Oklahoma City, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols claimed it was in revenge for the Waco and the Ruby Ridge sieges.[11]
A small Branch Davidian church still exists in Texas, with its leaders claiming that Koresh was a false prophet. Another small group of Davidians still believe that Koresh was a genuine prophet of God and continue to stand behind Koresh.
References edit
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Who was David Koresh: Ex-followers describe life inside apocalyptic religious sect involved in 1993 Waco siege, ABC News
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Waco tragedy, explained, Vox
- ↑ David Koresh’s Parents, Bonnie Haldeman & Bobby Howell: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know, Heavy
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Why David Koresh Might Be History’s Most Disturbing Cult Leader, All That's Interesting
- ↑ The Messiah Of Waco, Newsweek
- ↑ Rachel Koresh, David Koresh’s Wife: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know, Heavy
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 'We weren't brainwashed': Waco cult survivor claims in new memoir that Branch Davidian leader David Koresh had 19 wives and slept with girls as young as 12, The Daily Mail
- ↑ REPORT TO THE DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL ON THE EVENTS AT WACO, TEXAS: CHILD ABUSE, United States Department of Justice
- ↑ The True Story of ‘Waco’ Is Still One of Contention, Smithsonian Magazine
- ↑ Cult Leader's Body Identified; Death Is Attributed to a Bullet, The New York Times
- ↑ Apocalypse in Oklahoma: Waco and Ruby Ridge Revenged, Office of Justice Programs