The prophecy’s recording of the activities held on this date is historically correct. A portion of the Prophet’s history for Saturday, May 6, 1843, reads:

There is a conflict concerning the weather conditions between the Prophet’s history for May 6, 1843, and the White Horse Prophecy. The latter asserts that the weather was hot while the former says the day was windy and cold. While his record does not indicate that he was giving a toast, the Prophet did record comments which could have been given in such a manner and which were of a similar nature:

The Prophet’s history records several visitors for the following morning but gives only a meager clue as to the topic of discussion. The stranger’s visit recorded by the White Horse Prophecy could easily have been the visit of one of the men who came to call concerning the Kinderhook plates (a set of metal plates uncovered in an excavation in Kinderhook, Illinois), since these men would most probably be non-Mormons and strangers to Nauvoo:

The Civil War occasioned the fulfillment of this prophecy. When that war began, Missouri was the only slave state above the Mason-Dixon line and was surrounded on three sides by free states. Continual skirmishes were fought between communities in Kansas and Missouri over the question of slavery. Although it had been a slave state, Missouri entered the war as a free state to protect itself from the conquest it knew would be forthcoming. A large group of Southern guerrilla fighters, however, established themselves in western Missouri and especially in the Jackson County area. Aided by the pro-South citizens they continually harassed the Union army from their hideouts. A state of continual warfare existed in western Missouri. Finally, the Union army issued the famous “Order Number 11,” which ordered the residents of Cass, Jackson, and Bates counties to evacuate their homes so the guerrillas could be wiped out. The Union soldiers then swept down upon the area killing the animals, burning homes and fields, and molesting the inhabitants. This brutality often was in the form of pillaging mobs rather than organized military companies. The order was ruthlessly carried out, and became but a re-enactment on a larger scale of what had happened to the Saints there thirty years before.

About a month before the White Horse Prophecy was supposedly made, the Prophet Joseph suddenly became interested in the book of Revelation. This may well have been the result of his association with Orson Hyde. On Sunday, April 2, 1843, Joseph recorded Orson Hyde’s talk based on the 19th chapter of Revelation, in which reference is made to Christ’s coming on a white horse:

That afternoon the Prophet spoke from a text in Revelation, and commented that it was the first time he had ever done so:

Later that afternoon he continued to study Revelation, and he again used it as his text in the evening meeting:

The following day Joseph again recorded that he was “reading the Book of Revelation with Elder Hyde.”25History of the Church 5:326. Again, a week later, during the morning session of conference, he gave an extended discourse based on the book of Revelation and the book of Daniel.26History of the Church 5:339–45.

In the light of his sudden but extended interest in the writings of St. John it is not difficult to see how he could have given the White Horse Prophecy in an allegorical form based on figures found in Revelation.

Brigham Young always held that the westward movement of the Saints had long been the plan which Joseph Smith had advocated. In 1856 he said:

On another occasion Erastus Snow stated that

The Congress of the United States passed a number of laws during the period from 1862 to 1890 outlawing the practice of plural marriage. These bills were expressly the work of enemies of the Church. Among these laws was an “Anti-bigamy Law” signed by President Lincoln in 1862, punishing the polygamist with a fine of $500 or five years imprisonment or both. The law also had a provision forbidding any religious body to hold real estate valued at more than $50,000. This provision enabled the government later to confiscate all church properties and require the Church to pay a high rent for the use of them.

In March, 1882, Congress passed the Edmunds bill, which amended the previous law in that it prohibited those living in plural marriage the right to vote or hold public office. It also made vacant all registration and election offices, which deprived Utah of the rights of self-government.

The persecution continued and hundreds of men were tried and sent to the penitentiary. In 1884, a “segregation ruling” was developed that enabled the courts to find a separate indictment for every day a man was found guilty of living with a plural wife. Through the accumulation of the separate charges a man could be sent to prison for life. This ruling caused the leaders of the Church, President Lorenzo Snow included, to go into exile. However, the United States Supreme Court did not uphold this ruling in a case against President Snow in 1887.

In March, 1887, Congress passed the strongest law, the Edmunds-Tucker law. This disincorporated the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Perpetual Emigration Fund Company. The Church was placed under very heavy financial stress.

After the death of John Taylor while he was in exile in July, 1887, the crusade against polygamy continued but with more Federal tolerance. The Idaho and Arizona governments did continue to pass laws against the church members. With the writing of the Manifesto by Wilford Woodruff in 1890, the attitude of most officials became changed and most men had their prison sentences pardoned. When Utah received statehood in 1896 all the properties of the Church were restored to their rightful owner.

Several non-Mormons provided valuable assistance to the Saints and proved to be true friends to them in the period shortly after their exodus to the West. Col. Thomas L. Kane gave valuable advice to the brethren concerning the inadvisability of Utah seeking to become a territory rather than a state. He had previously been instrumental in obtaining governmental permission for the Saints to winter at Council Bluffs. In 1858 he came to Utah to intercede during the Utah War and gave counsel and assistance at that time.

Several federal appointees who were sent to Utah when it became a territory proved to be good friends to the Saints. These were Lazarus H. Reed, of New York, who became the territory’s Chief Justice, and Benjamin G. Ferris, the Territorial Secretary. President Abraham Lincoln signed Congress’s Anti-bigamy law in 1862 which made the contracting of a plural marriage punishable by a $500 fine or by imprisonment for a term of five years or both. But out of friendship for the Mormons, with whom he had become acquainted in Illinois, he did not appoint officers to enforce the law.

Congress established Utah as a territory and named Brigham Young as the first territorial governor. A large number of the other territorial offices were filled by federal appointees from the East. Many of these men were prejudiced against the Church and sought to bring it into difficulties. Chief Justice Brandebury, Associate Justice Brocchus and Territorial Secretary Broughton D. Harris, three of the earliest appointees, resigned their posts and returned to the East. There they spread rumors that Governor Young was acting in a lawless and seditious manner and that he was wasting the federal funds allocated to the Territory.

In 1855, two unprincipled men were given federal appointments in Utah and their actions brought about the Utah War. Judge William W. Drummond appeared in Utah accompanied by a harlot, whom he introduced as his wife. His drunkenness and immorality caused the Saints to dislike him almost from his arrival. George P. Stiles, a Mormon apostate, also received an appointment as a judge. These men circulated a number of false reports about the Church and its leaders and submitted affidavits to Washington which were false and misleading. They made it appear that the Mormons were in rebellion against the United States.

This prophecy speaks in allegorical terms of four “horses.” Three of them can be readily identified from clues within the prophecy itself. The “White Horse of Peace and Safety” is obviously the Church in the Rocky Mountains (see No. 6), the “Pale Horse” is defined as the “people of the United States” (see No. 34), and the reference to the “Black Horse” says that “they will have fear of becoming slaves again” (see No. 33), which would identify them as the American Negroes. The “Red Horse” is not so clearly identified. Some have interpreted it as being England because of the Prophet’s reference to the red coats of the English soldiers (see No. 28) and because of his statement that it will appear as if England had taken possession of this country (see No. 32).

In the author’s opinion, the “Red Horse” of the prophecy is the Indian people of America. These are his reasons:

1. The other three horses are all references to groups in the United States. This would lead one to expect the fourth group to be similarly located.
2. The Prophet apparently used skin color as a guide for determining the coloring for his horses. If the black horse refers to the negro, it would be expected that the red horse would be the “redskin,” or Indian. The term “Pale Horse” could easily relate to the term “paleface,” and the “White Horse” could easily be a term symbolizing the purity of the Saints.
3. The “Red Horse,” according to the prophecy, is to combine with the Church. What would be a more logical combination than the Church and the Indian people? The missionary effort of the Church has been largely directed toward that people since its inception, and Mormondom regards the Book of Mormon as having been written to convert the Lamanites to the history of their fathers. The Church today is making a major effort to cultivate its relationship with the Indian people, as is witnessed by its Indian missions and Indian program in the Seminaries. By way of contrast, there is nothing at all which would lead one to expect any special relationship between the Church and England.
4. A large-scale conversion of the Lamanites is expected shortly after the period in which the “Red Horse” and the “White Horse” are to unite—in the early days of the New Jerusalem period. People often ask why they would suddenly start to join the Church in large numbers after resisting, to a large degree, its missionary efforts for so many years. What would be a more logical preparation for this conversion than an alliance during the internal wars?
5. It is prophesied that the Lamanite will rise up against the Gentiles in the Americas. If the White Horse prophecy is valid it provides an important clue to the manner in which this uprising will take place. Mormon 5:24 is an example of the prophecies dealing with the Lamanite uprising, in which the Gentiles receive the warning: “Therefore, repent ye, and humble yourselves before him, lest he shall come out in justice against you—lest a remnant of the seed of Jacob shall go forth among you as a lion, and tear you in pieces, and there is none to deliver.”

The author is unaware of any statement or prophecy referring to England’s vaults. Orson Pratt, however, asserted that the rich will bring their wealth to the West:

In 1917 British forces, under the direction of General Allenby, conquered Palestine and wrested it from the grasp of the Turkish empire, which had controlled it for four centuries. This opened the way for the return of the Jews to Palestine in greatly increased numbers.

Many members of the Church who are of English descent have patriarchal blessings indicating that they are of the House of Israel. England has, since the time of this prophecy, maintained a position of world power in spite of the damage she has incurred during the two World Wars. England today serves as a balance of power between the United States and Russia.

England and France are now united, both politically and economically, to oppose the Russian goal of world conquest.

It should be noted that, in the light of the current trend towards the merging of many of the churches, fulfillment of this prophecy would be in keeping with the spirit of the times. The present Roman Catholic Pope has stressed the idea of other churches merging with the Roman church on several occasions.

This is clearly the spirit which has characterized the alliance between France and England during the twentieth century.

This condition is expected to exist on a worldwide scale later, during the period of universal conflict. The prophecy would definitely apply to this period if this portion was dealing with the United States in particular.

Only the idea of the Church being separated from the rest of the United States can be substantiated. Said Heber C. Kimball, for instance:

This is a restatement of Doctrine and Covenants 84:4–5:

Concerning this passage Orson Pratt said,

The Proclamation issued by the Quorum of the Twelve called upon the kings of the earth to supply their wealth to help build up the kingdom:

Chapter six explains that three groups will participate in the building of the New Jerusalem. While no other prophecy is known which says that the Ten Tribes will help build the temple, it is known that the Gentiles who will be gathered in to the New Jerusalem after the coming of the Ten Tribes will still have to help construct the city. It is logical that the Ten Tribes would also have to participate in the construction work since they will come before the majority of the Gentiles.

As Chapters four and six indicate, the cutting off of the mountains from the rest of the country will immediately precede the return of the Saints to Jackson County.