The following is a timeline of events that occur or are mentioned in Red Dead Redemption, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Red Dead Online. Although the games are set at separate points between 1898 and 1914 inclusive, the background of the characters and the world spans well over a century of American history.
The city of Saint Denis is founded and serves as the capital of the French New World until the territory is purchased by the United States of America in the early 1800s.
27 November: Cardinal Blanco of Madrid writes a letter to Brother Rodolfo, a Jesuit missionary in California, asking him to refrain from leaving his mission to travel east.[10] Rodolfo later receives the letter, but ignores Blanco and dies in New Austin.[11]
Douglas Gray and Lucille Braithwaite conspire to steal large sums of gold from their families to fund the abolition of slavery. The Grays and Braithwaites, each believing that the other family had their missing gold, begin a blood feud that endures until 1899.
25 April: The Mexican-American War begins. Fort Mercer is built in New Austin to exert control over disputed territory on behalf of the United States of America.[27]
6 September: Elijah, a runaway slave, writes a letter to his uncle Lewis after escaping both the Pennington family and the owner of Old Harry Fen. He later dies near Shady Belle before he can mail the letter.
30 March: A Confederate charge led by Major Hobart Crawley is routed by Union troops, resulting in the deaths of 3,202 Confederate soldiers. Major Crawley is the only survivor. The battle is later memorialized with a statue in Rhodes.
8 May: A Confederate Army force under General Quincy T. Harris attacks Fort Brennand under cover of night and massacres the Union Army garrison.
Death of Joseph Charlesworth, of unknown cause.[2]
The Battle of Scarlett Meadows occurs at Bolger Glade in Lemoyne. Despite suffering massive casualties, Confederate troops successfully repel a major Union Army offensive. General Quincy T. Harris participates in the battle.
Death of Edgar and Lila Shelton, struck by a lightning bolt.[18]
The American Civil War concludes, with the Union victorious over the Confederacy. Lemoyne and other seceded states are subsequently readmitted to the United States of America.
3 April: Tavish Gray receives a letter from Edinburgh University historian Malcolm Moffat revealing that his ancestor Ross Gray was not an exiled Jacobite as he had believed, but a spy for the Duke of Cumberland who had been forced to flee Scotland to escape the Jacobites' reprisals against informers.[68]
12 October: Death of Estella Blankenship, of unknown cause.[19]
The Spanish-American War occurs. Of note, Colonel Thaddeus Waxman captures San Juan Hill in Guarma.[75]
1899[]
The Wilder Publishing Company publishes the Atlas of the United States of America 1899. This edition features maps of the states of New Hanover, Lemoyne, Ambarino, West Elizabeth, and New Austin compiled and drawn by cartographer N.J. Worthingham.
An outbreak of Scarlet Fever occurs in Armadillo.
Irish flees to the United States after being caught in bed with his brother's wife. On the boat to America he meets Leander Holland and Alwyn Lloyd
23 February: Death of Orla Gaston, hit by a car.[14]
14 August: Death of Alejandro Fortuna, killed by the Mexican Army.[34]
19 November: Death of Hart Cummings, from a respiratory illness.[18]
1910s[]
1910[]
Death of Mr. Braithwaite, of an unknown cause.
Ignacio Sanchez overthrows his brother in yet another bloody coup and becomes President of Mexico.
Crops in New Austin were ruined by an unknown personnel, and farmers were forced to sell their lands at a cheap price. The culprit behind this was rumored to be Jeremiah Somerset.
The map of the frontier, later used by John Marston in 1911 and passed on to his son Jack Marston, was drawn.
1911[]
25 March: The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire occurs in New York City, the southwest hears news of this disaster sometime later.
Harrison Cherry's gravestone in 1911 writes that he dies on December 7, 1968.[14]
Apparently this could be a very elaborate Beatles reference. To wit: In 1968, Eric Clapton gave George Harrison a cherry red guitar. At the time, Harrison was 25 (1943 + 25 = 1968) and Clapton was 23 (1945 + 23 = 1968), which averages to the age of 24. That guitar had serial numbers that corresponded to a batch that had shipped from a factory in a December, with 7 being the first number in the serial. Harrison then used the guitar through many of the Beatles' most famous works. See this page for more info on the guitar. Also, Harrison apparently named the guitar 'Lucy' in homage to comedienne Lucille Ball, and this could be why Jeb Blankenship's 'love' is named Lucy.
Captain Maxwell Laskey died on August 24 in an unknown year. He was 31 when he died. He is mentioned briefly in a newspaper story at the end of Red Dead Redemption.
↑Billy West states to have been married for 50 years by the time of Red Dead Redemption.
↑In "The New South", Hosea and Dutch mention that Arthur was roughly 21 in an event that transpired 15 years prior to 1899, meaning Arthur was born around 1863.
↑Mentioned in a converation between John Marston and Bonnie MacFarlane in "Women and Cattle": John:"My mother died during childbirth. She was a prostitute and he was her, well I don't know what he was."
↑Mentioned in a conversation between John and Jack Marston in "Wolves, Dogs and Sons": Jack:"What was your father like?" John:"I didn't really know him. He died when I was just a boy." Jack:"Died of what?" John:"Why do you want to know?" Jack:"Oh it just sounds like a good story, that's all." John:"It really ain't. He died in a barfight. At least, that's what they told me." Jack:"Cards or women? John:"I ain't sure. Probably both. Definitely liquor. Drank like a camel after a long walk."
↑The letter in the catalogue states that West Dickens began his relationship with the Moncriefs while their daughter, T. Bernadette was away at school. Considering that Ms. Moncrief returned in fall of that year, and that the Wheeler, Rawson and Co. Catalogue is dated 1899, it can be concluded that these events occurred circa 1898.
↑Mentioned in a conversation betweeen John Marston and Bonnie MacFarlane in "The Burning": Bonnie:"I had six brothers. But five of them died, either from sickness or foolish choices." John:"And the other one?" Bonnie:"He left for the East and never came back. Must be getting on for 10 years ago now. He's a high-and-mighty banker in New York, according to his last letter."
↑During Part 1 of the Epilogue, John and his family are hired at Pronghorn Ranch, but during the mission "Motherhood," Abigail and Jack leave, and John works at the ranch for "Several months." Following this, free roam is opened up to the player, and thus Idealism and Pragmatism for Beginners can be completed, where Mayor Henri Lemieux's second letter is marked with the date "June 1907" when received during the Epilogue, meaning Epilogue Part 2 takes place in June, and Part 1 begins "Several months" prior.
↑The timeline of events in Red Dead Redemption is deduced from the timing of release of the weekly newspaperThe Blackwater Ledger. The article "Nate Johns Elected Governor" in the 57th issue describes the American gubernatorial election as having recently concluded, meaning it must have been published between November 1 and November 8 inclusive. The 53rd issue is released after the mission "Political Realities in Armadillo", which takes place shortly after the beginning of the game. This confirms that John arrives in Armadillo around five weeks prior to the election of Governor Nate Johns in early November, meaning it must be set around early October of 1911.
↑The Blackwater Ledger article "Europe at War" mentions that Great Britain is at war with the Ottoman Empire, narrowing the date down to November 1914.