Introduction The siege, fall and ensuing massacre of nearly two hundred Alamo defenders at the hands of Mexican General, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna y Perez de Lebron’s army of over five thousand was a defining moment in both Texan, and American history. For 13 days against insurmountable odds, a small, but very determined Texan garrison force fended off an equally determined Mexican Army ordered to capture it. I’ll discuss the events and political climate leading up to the siege, key historic figures involved on both sides, the siege itself, along with events immediately following the battle. The iconic phrase, “Remember the Alamo!” would later go on to become a rallying cry at the Battle of San Jacinto. On that fateful day in March 1836, when the sounds of battle had ended, tales of fearsome fighting, cowardice and sacrifice would spread swiftly across the Republic of Texas and Mexico. Men who stood, fought, and more importantly fell on the battlefield would become legends, ostensibly for their willingness to fight even when all hope was lost. Both attacker and defender had soldiers who were hailed as heroes, as well as villains known for their cruelty. History The year was 1699, and two Spanish missionaries accompanied by a contingent of Spanish soldados were sent to northern Coahuila. Their instructions were to establish missions for the primitive tribes, hunters and nut gatherers that lived along the Rio Grande, the great river of the north. Gold, glory and God, essentially in that order, had motivated the founding of the missions. The Alamo itself was founded in 1718; however, due to disease and a reluctance of the locals to embrace Christianity the mission was abandoned in 1793. It wasn’t ... ... middle of paper ... ...n, his blatant disregard for prisoners further enraged the Texan army when they learned of his mass executions. Santa Anna’s hubris gained from early victories and political posturing would come back to haunt him. The month following the siege of the Alamo, Santa Anna would meet his fate. On 21 April 1836, Sam Houston’s vengeful soldiers attack and rout Santa Anna’s isolated detachment at San Jacinto in 20 minutes. The Texans slaughter 650 enemy troops and capture 700 more. Santa Anna escaped; however, he was captured the following day. Works Cited J.R. Edmonson, The Alamo Story, From Early History to Current Conflicts (Plano, TX. Republic of Texas Press 2000) Stephen L. Hardin, The Alamo 1836, Santa Anna’s Texas Campaign (Oxford, United Kingdom, Osprey Publishing 2001) Lon Tinkle, 13 Days to Glory (New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company 1958)
"BROWN, HERMAN," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fbr86), accessed November 30, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
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.
Ramos, Raul A. Beyond the Alamo: Forging Mexican Ethnicity in San Antonio, 1821-1861. The University of North Carolina Press. 2008.
Santa Anna was a marvelous war hero and even addressed himself as “the Napoleon of the West.” With this confidence and his experience as a leader and war hero, it was a surprise to everyone when he lost the Battle of San Jacinto against the Texicans. There were many factors at play leading to this loss. Had Santa Anna been smarter and more careful with his leadership and his war strategies, his loss could have been avoided; the battle all together could have even been avoided.
In the afternoon of February 23, 1836, Santa Anna’s army arrived in San Antonio. The Texan defenders retreated to the well-fortified Alamo. Santa Anna had given the defenders time to escape if they wanted, but the Texans stayed, confident with their weaponry. With the few soldiers he had, Colonel Travis sent requests to Colonel James Fannin for reinforcements, but received none. Fannin thought that the 300 men he had wouldn’t make a difference and may not arrive in time. Of the 200 defenders, there were settlers who wanted independence as well as a dozen Tejanos who joined the movement. Although they believed in ind...
8. Meyer, Michael C., et al. The Course of Mexican History, 7th ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
When looking at the vast lands of Texas after the Civil War, many different people came to the lands in search for new opportunities and new wealth. Many were lured by the large area that Texas occupied for they wanted to become ranchers and cattle herders, of which there was great need for due to the large population of cows and horses. In this essay there are three different people with three different goals in the adventures on the frontier lands of Texas in its earliest days. Here we have a woman's story as she travels from Austin to Fort Davis as we see the first impressions of West Texas. Secondly, there is a very young African American who is trying his hand at being a horse rancher, which he learned from his father. Lastly we have a Mexican cowboy who tries to fight his way at being a ranch hand of a large ranching outfit.
“Did you know that Juan N Seguin was a Texas Senator, Mayor, Judge, and Justice of the Peace? Seguin was born in 1806 into a long-established tejano family in San Antonio. After Mexico won independence from Spain in 1821, Stephen Austin a friend of Seguín’s father received Mexican approval to found settlements of English-speaking people in the Mexican territory of Texas. Seguín and his father, convinced that Spanish-Mexican unrest and Mexican governmental interference were contributing to
...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).
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.
Texas prides itself on a strong heritage and history. Events that happened when Texas fought to gain independence will forever remain preserved and idolized in the heart of every true Texan. One of the most famous events that occurred during the fight for independence happened at a place that was not well-known and did not hold much importance at the time, but because of the events that occurred there, it will forever be a place of remembrance and pride. This place is known as The Alamo. This paper focuses on the articles written by Brian C. Baur, Richard R. Flores, and Paul Andrew Hutton over The Alamo.
Imagine this: A man who was a politician, a soldier and a texas patriot. This man was known as
In 1836, Almeron was told that they needed more people to help fight in the Alamo. Susanna, Angelina, and Almeron took off to the Alamo. The Mexicans had more than 1600 men fighting while the Alamo only had around 300 men. A siege went on for 13 days straight till March 6th the Mexicans tore down a wall and started fighting. Susanna and her daughter, Angelina, were hiding in a church while this was happening. On March 7th all the Texans were gone except two. Susana and Angelina were the only ones that survived during the attack. They were found because a man was trying to hide in the church but later they found him. Santa Anna told Susanna Angelina could come back to Mexico with them and learn the Mexicans traditions, but Susanna turned down that offer. Instead Angelina and Susanna had to go off and tell Sam Houston that the Mexicans were coming and they were going to run ever...
for revolution. The American Settlers were tired of Mexican dictatorship and wanted the same freedoms they enjoyed back in America. So with a little bit more influence from America a revolt was formed. Eventually Texas would capture Santa Anna the Mexican
Michner’s use of historical fact is extremely accurate in his portrayal of events in Texas history. Particularly when he writes of the fight for Independence from Mexico. Michner only strays to fiction in an attempt to illustrate to the reader what the lives of early Texans must have been like. His characters interact with actual historical figures and create very believable scenarios of the events depicted in his novel.