Braithwaite family

Braithwaite family
Left to right: Gerald, Catherine, Bartholomew, Gareth
Leader(s)	Catherine Braithwaite
Notable members	Bartholomew Braithwaite Gareth Braithwaite Gerald Braithwaite Gertrude Braithwaite Penelope Braithwaite
Affiliations	Lemoyne Raiders Angelo Bronte Danny-Lee
Location	Braithwaite Manor in Scarlett Meadows, State of Lemoyne
Game	Red Dead Redemption 2 Red Dead Online

The Braithwaite family is a faction featured in Red Dead Redemption 2 and Red Dead Online. Alongside their rivals, the Gray family, they serve as the main antagonistic faction of the game's third chapter.

History

Background

Originating from England, the Braithwaites established themselves in America in around 1779. By the 19th century, they had a bustling slave plantation at their manor, and became one of the richest and most powerful families in the area.

In 1806, Lucile Braithwaite gave the location of a significant sum of gold to Douglas Gray, a member of the Gray family. With Lucile's permission, he stole this gold from the Braithwaites, and stole some more gold from his own family, in order to fund the abolition of slavery. Believing that the other stole their treasure, the two families became locked in a vicious blood feud.

The abolition of slavery and defeat in the Civil War in 1865 badly damaged the Braithwaites, and they lost a large amount of their wealth, as did the Grays.

Events of Red Dead Redemption 2

The Braithwaites are first encountered when Beau Gray sends Arthur to the Braithwaite Manor to deliver a love letter to Penelope Braithwaite. She sends a letter of her own back, which tells Beau that she plans on taking part in a women’s suffrage rally. Upon hearing this, Beau begs Arthur to convince Penelope not to do it, saying it will endanger her life. She insists on participating, and so Arthur ends up driving the stagecoach in order to give her some protection.

Hosea and Arthur later go to Braithwaite Manor, to try and sell back some of the moonshine they stole from the Lemoyne Raiders. The family are initially hostile and point guns at the pair, until Catherine Braithwaite steps in and pays them $10 for it, on the condition that they give it out for free at the Gray-owned saloon in Rhodes.

On contract from Catherine Braithwaite, Sean and Arthur burn down the Gray family's tobacco fields at Caliga Hall, being promised gold in return. The Van der Linde gang simultaneously make a deal with Tavish Gray to steal the Braithwaites' prized horses, a job which is carried out by Arthur, John Marston and Javier Escuella. Realizing that they have been played by the gang, the Braithwaites kidnap Jack Marston from them. In response to this, the gang launch a major assault on the manor.

Upon arrival, they are met by all the sons of Catherine Braithwaite, as well as their cousins and hired guns. When the Braithwaites refuse to give Jack back to the gang, the standoff descends into a large gunfight between the Braithwaite family and the gang. The gang eventually go into the house and search all the rooms for Catherine Braithwaite. Some of her hired guns, sons and relatives remain in the house, but are cleared out by Arthur Morgan, Dutch van der Linde, Hosea Matthews and John Marston. A boarded up room is presumed to be where Mrs Braithwaite is hiding, but an onslaught of Braithwaite guns soon occurs, leading to Arthur along with other members of the gang having to fight them off.

After the wave of Braithwaites is fended off, Arthur and John find an alternative route into the room and find Catherine Braithwaite holed up in a walk-in wardrobe of sorts. After killing Gareth and Gerald, they eventually find Catherine. She refuses to say where Jack is, so Dutch takes her and drags her down the stairs, kicking and wailing. She is hauled out in front of the manor and threatened with death if she does not reveal the location of Jack Marston. She eventually reveals that they gave the boy to Angelo Bronte, and that he is either in Saint Denis or on a boat to Italy. The gang set the manor ablaze, and as they leave, Catherine runs back into the burning manor in tears, and promptly dies.

Penelope writes to Arthur, and asks him to come to Braithwaite Manor. He arrives at the manor, and Penelope tells him that he needs him to take her to Rhodes train station, where she and Beau will elope together. Arthur takes her to Beau, where the two embrace and talk about how they cannot wait to go to Boston together. However, problems soon occur when Iain and Scott Gray, cousins of Beau, confront them. They attempt to drag Beau away, but Arthur quickly steps in and fights the two, knocking them both unconscious.

The three then board the train and set off. Unfortunately, their troubles are not yet over; some of the Braithwaites notice that Penelope stole some valuable gems before embarking, and they decide to chase the train on horseback. Arthur fights them off, before taking control of the train and bringing it to Riggs Station. They then disembark, and the two lovers get on a stagecoach bound for Boston.

Members

• Lucille Braithwaite
• Catherine Braithwaite - head of the family
• Gertrude Braithwaite - daughter of Catherine Braithwaite
• Penelope Braithwaite - niece of Catherine Braithwaite
• Gerald Braithwaite- son of Catherine Braithwaite
• Gareth Braithwaite - son of Catherine Braithwaite
• Bartholomew Braithwaite - son of Catherine Braithwaite

Trivia

• In Undead Nightmare, during the mission" Curious Tales from Blackwater", Mordecai Robbard's niece will mention a Mister Braithwaite, who had been dead a year as of 1911.
• In the post-Civil War era, longstanding personal disputes were often exacerbated by newfound political divisions arising from Reconstruction policies, through which the federal government tried to rebuild the devastated South and install local polities that were friendly to Northern demands. Many wealthy families (represented by the Braithwaites) tried to re-consolidate their power along traditional Southern lines, while others (represented by the Grays) sought new opportunities in aligning with Northern Reconstruction governments. Hence, the Braithwaites ally with the Lemoyne Raiders, while the Grays operate the local law enforcement.
• Geographically, politically, and socioeconomically, the Braithwaite-Gray feud shares many similarities to the real-world Liddell-Jones feud among wealthy plantation dynasties of postwar Louisiana. The Liddells opposed the local Reconstruction government, while the Jones family supported it.
• Beau and Penelope are not the first lovers from the opposing families. Douglas Gray and Lucile Braithwaite had a similar relationship, which ultimately caused the feud to happen.