Mi történt az Alamñnál? (Érvek, ellenérvek és érdekességek David Crockett, 19. századi amerikai szabadsághős halála körül kialakult vitában)
What Happened at the Alamo? Arguments, Counterarguments and Facts about the Debate Surrounding David Crockett`s Death

Summary/Abstract: David Crockett is a widely known national hero in the United States, an iconic figure in his native state, Tennessee. His remarkable achievements as frontiersman won him a seat in Congress for three terms (1827–1829, 1829–1831 and 1833–1835). In 1836, after failing to win for the fourth time, he decided to explore Texas and soon found himself in the middle of the Texas revolution defending the fort of Alamo. Crockett and his fellow defenders were outnumbered by the Mexican army led by Santa Anna and died a heroic death. Immediate-ly, various accounts started to spread of the final moments of the brave men, most notably Crockett. Some reports claimed he had been taken captive and executed by the Mexicans, others rumoured he had fought until his last breath. At the time the latter version gained huge popularity that lasted well into the mid-twentieth century when numerous movies and a TV series depicted the battle scene with a bravely perishing Davy Crockett. Shortly after the media-generated interest in the iconic frontiersman and hero, evidence appeared that contradicted common beliefs about his death. These stated that he had been executed after the battle, an outrageous claim to many fans, which, however, inspired scholars to re-vise some aspects of the battle of the Alamo. The paper intends to introduce these new findings as well as the heated professional and public debate they created. It also aims to investigate the reasons for such negative reception on the execution theory, and to show how the recently emerging data further complicate, yet do not compromise the image of the historical David Crockett.

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