Cowboys & Indians interviews S.C. Gwynne, the author of "Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History," a critically-acclaimed book about Quanah Parker and the Comanche Tribe.

"Cowboys & Indians: You’ve received both praise and criticism for producing a revisionist history of the Texas frontier. Did you set out to do that?
S.C. Gwynne: I never thought about it. I have been a reporter for a long time. I’ve always tried to be unbiased. I didn’t think I was being extremely revisionist. I now see it and I get it. People read the book and say, “This totally changes my idea of the victimization of Indians. I don’t see them as victims anymore.”

C&I: Do you worry about less positive reactions to that?
Gwynne: Books like Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee  ... that period of the ’60s and ’70s and into the ’80s you get a terrific focus on the victimization of Indians. There is no question Indians were victims with a capital V. Obviously, you look at the Trail of Tears and things that were done with them.

I hope my book doesn’t overbalance it. I point out that whites were just as nasty — more so in many ways. But from an objective perspective, the Comanches were a very powerful and war-oriented tribe and engaged in the destruction of Native American tribes for several hundred years. … It’s objectively true. I appreciate that I am revising history to some extent, but I didn’t set out to do it. I had no political motive.

C&I: Other than Cynthia Ann Parker and Quanah, who was the most interesting figure for you to write about?
Gwynne: Jack Hays. I believe he should be a household name like Davy Crockett. He was one of the greatest military heroes this country ever produced. He was the über Ranger. The guy who adapted the five- and six-shooter and figured out how to fight the Comanches."

Get the Story:
Comanche Kingdom (Cowboys and Indians April 2011)