William Barret Travis a hero of the Texas revolution impacted the American people with his meaningful letter requesting aid. Travis wrote a very inspirational letter addressed not only to the people of Texas but also to all the Americans in the world. Which impacted the way American’s view patriotism and cherish their liberty and their beliefs.
Travis was born in 1809, and died in battle defending the fort known as the Alamo against overwhelming Mexican forces in 1836. He was the oldest out of his 11 brothers and sisters. His parents were Mark Stallworth and Jemima Stallworth. Travis officially became a lieutenant colonel in January 1836. On that same year the governor Henry Smith ordered for Travis and 100 reinforcements to arrive at San Antonio. James Bowie also arrived at the fort. The Texas army knew that they were outnumbered; therefore, Travis was sent a very deep profound letter to all Patriot Americans for aid. On March 1, 1836 Travis received 32 men led by Albert Martin and George C. Kimball. The reinforcements arrived, due to the meaningful letter Travis sent out to any that would listen. The town of Gonzales was the few to comply to Travis’s letter to provide reinforcements even though the people from Gonzales knew it was a lost cause due to the impact of lieutenant colonel’s words stating that Travis was determined to sustain as long as possible and die like a soldier whoever forgets what is due to his own honor and that of his country –Victory or Death. The Gonzales reinforcements were the few that came to Travis’s aid.
Another set of reinforcements led by David Crockett was able to slip past through the Mexican lines on the morning of March 4. Gathering about 50 to 60 volunteers due to the impact of lieutenant colo...
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...of the crucial replies to Travis’s letter even after the lieutenant colonels’ death was the defeat a decade later of Santa Ana’s army led by Sam Houston which is currently is the backbone of the history of Texas Revolution.
Works Cited
Texas and Texans. 1. 1. New York, New York, Columbus, Ohio, Chicago, Illinois, Peoria, Illinois, Woodland Hills, California: National Geographic, Mc Graw Hill, 2003. 232-233. Print.
"The Letter." travisletter.com. The Texas General Land Office, n.d. Web. 1 Feb 2014. .
Archie , McDonald. "William Barrett Travis." Texas State Historical Association. Texas State Historical Association, 1 Feb 2012. Web. 1 Feb 2014. .
Paul Robert, Walker. Remember the Alamo. 1. 1. Washington, DC: National Geographic, Mc Graw Hill, 2007. 47. Print.
We just recently lost the Alamo and all the great men who fought for it. 189 men lost there lives fighting for the Alamo and they will be greatly remembered. The men held the fort for 13 days before Santa Anna and his army engulfed it. Santa Anna other wise know as napoleon of the west or the president of Mexico ordered his men to kill every one thou he let some women and children go to tell the tale. Soon after the lose of the Alamo general urrea executed 400 Texans under command of colonel Fannin which is known as Goliad massacre.
When studying Texas History there are names such as Sam Houston, Jim Bowie, and William Barrett Travis that are often brought up into discussion. These men had rolls of vital importance to the cause of revolution; however, other names such as Juan Nepomuceno Seguin may be much more obscure to those unaware of the rolls that such men played. Juan Seguin is mostly remembered as the currier to whom William Barrett Travis commissioned with the delivery of a letter to General Sam Houston requesting reinforcements and whose words were so inspiring that it may have given the Texans the push they needed to claim victory over the Mexican President Santa Anna. After independence was achieved from Mexico, Texas formed its own government in which Seguin served as a member of the Texas Senate. Seguin eventually lost all credibility and was forced to flee to Mexico because of accusations of betrayal. Was Juan Seguin’s participation in the Texas revolution limited to his delivery of the Travis letter to Sam Houston? Other than his participation at the Alamo and at San Jacinto, how significant of a part did Juan Seguin play in the Texas revolution? What lead to Seguin’s fall from favor in the eyes of the Texas government and earned him the label of traitor?
Under the command of Texas-born General Zaragosa, (and the cavalry under the command of Colonel Porfirio Diaz, later to be Mexico's president and dictator), the Mexicans awaited. Brightly dressed French Dragoons led the enemy columns. The Mexican Army was less stylish.
Three hours later Santa Anna arrived with his 650 men. The Texas government had escaped, but Santa Anna was confident of victory; he had reinforcements coming the next day and he knew that the Texas government's connection with the Texas army had been severed. If Santa Anna won that day the war would be over. Santa Anna gave the order to pitch camp. He chose the land between Peggy Lake and the river, the only solid ground available to him. On his right was a thick forest and behind him was a dense marsh(Hoyt 150).
Made famous by Theodore Roosevelt’s volunteer Rough Rider’s and the Buffalo Soldiers, the Battle of San Juan Hill (July 1, 1898), also known as The Battle of San Juan Heights, was the bloodiest battle of the Spanish American War. After landing on the beachhead, the US V Corps under the command of Major General William Shafter fought their way west toward the port town of Santiago. After an indecisive clash at Las Guasimas on June 24, Shafter readied his men to take the strategic heights around the city, while Cuban insurgents blocked any Spanish reinforcements arriving on the roads to the north, in what would be one of the most decisive battles of America’s “Splendid Little War.” 1
Bauer, K. Jack. “Mexican War,” Handbook of Texas Online, last modified June 15, 2010, accessed May 2, 2014, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/qdm02
Mendoza, Alexander, and Charles David Grear. Texans and War New Interpretations of the State's Military History.. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2012.
...is own. In an overall assessment of this book, Martin comes to the conclusion that “Campbell has succeeded in providing a thoughtful, very readable, and eminently useful survey of a fluid, exciting, and fascinating period of United States and Texas history through the lens of the life of the greatest Texas hero of them all” showing that Martin as well as Campbell seemed to be very fascinated by the heroism of Sam Houston (The Journal of Southern History, 60, November 1994, 796).
I have sustained a continual Bombardment and cannonade for 24 hours and have not lost a man. The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise, the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken. I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, and our flag still waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat. Then, I call on you in the name of Liberty, of patriotism and everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid, with all dispatch. The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily and will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days. If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor and that of his country. VICTORY or DEATH.” (www.tsl.texas.gov) The letter was entitled, “Victory or Death.” On March 6, 1836 the Mexican Military launched a predawn attack on the Alamo. The men brutally fought to the very end. William Travis was killed in he attack by a single gunshot wound to the head; he was only twenty-six years old. He bravely led his men into battle when they knew they would not live to see another day. His body along with all of the other Alamo defender’s was burned. On August 19, 1989, a statue was unveiled at the site of William Travis’s birthplace in Saluda, SC. It was made to honor his distinguished career in the Texas Cavalry, and for his great bravery at the Alamo Mission. There is an exhibit on William Travis at the Alamo Museum in San Antonio (Hollmann
On his twentieth birthday Sam Houston enlisted in the regular army as a private. Within the year, he was promoted to Third Lieutenant to the 39th Infantry Regiment where Houston was badly wounded twice at The Battle of Horseshoe Bend during the War of 1812. The battle took place on the Tallapoosa River near present-day Alexander City, Alabama. His courage in combat caught the attention of General Andrew Jackson who promoted him to Second Lieutenant. In 1816 Houston was named an Indian sub-agent in Tennessee and soon after was promoted to First Lieutenant. Houston led a delegation of Cherokees to Washington, D.C. to meet with Secretary of War John C. Calhoun and President James Monroe. While there...
A Texan, William B. Travis and a small group of Texans attacked a squad of Mexican troops in Anahuac with the motive that “taxes should not thus be collected from them to support a standing army in their own country” (SOS 1) and soon drove them back. Travis retreated to San Felipe and were assisted to Bexar. Skirmishes and the threat of war with Mexico soon followed.
Beginning in 1845 and ending in 1850 a series of events took place that would come to be known as the Mexican war and the Texas Revolution. This paper will give an overview on not only the events that occurred (battles, treaties, negotiations, ect.) But also the politics and reasoning behind it all. This was a war that involved America and Mexico fighting over Texas. That was the base for the entire ordeal. This series of events contained some of the most dramatic war strategy that has ever been implemented.
What makes Texas the wonderful state that it is now? The home that you feel welcomed at, and the loving people around you. We can thank our heroes that gave their lives for us to be in peace. Stephen F. Austin is one of history's heroes we would never forget about. Stephen F. Austin showed leadership during the years of 1821-1836 , he is recognized in so many ways in Texas; the capital city, a county, and a college are named after him. He made our state proud and thankful. His statue is in the national capital was put there by grateful citizens of the Lone Star State. James Bowie is another well-known hero of Texas. He was a famous formidable knife fighter and the defender of the Alamo. As a child, Jim Bowie learned how to survive on their
The Alamo, originally named Mission San Antonio de Valero, became occupied by the Americans. James Bowie, William Travis, and Davy Crockett later on arrived at The Alamo with men to help protect it. Baur discusses that Santa Anna caught the Americans by surprise. They were unprepared and had to quickly gather any supplies or food they could find. The battle lasted 12 days resulting in the victory of the Mexicans. Baur states that “The Alamo is hallowed ground in Texas and memorializes those who died in a struggle for freedom.” To honor and celebrate the Battle of the Alamo, stamps have been issued to portray
Klos, S. (2013, March 11). George Armstrong Custer. Retrieved April 30, 2014, from George Armstrong