In the center of San Antonio stands the Cradle of Texas Liberty – the Alamo. At this site in 1836 a small group of around 200 irregulars composed of Texians and volunteers from other US states and foreign nations held off a larger battle-hardened force of at least 1,800 men commanded by Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.
The thirteen day siege of the Alamo was a pivotal event in the Texas War of Independence. Several months previously, Texians had driven all Mexican troops out of Mexican Texas. Santa Anna’s attempt to retake the territory ran up against the small force at the Alamo commanded by LTC William Barret Travis. The Alamo garrison and volunteers, which included frontier legends David Crockett and Jim Bowie, eventually were surrounded by Santa Anna’s army.
Their chances for victory against Santa Anna depended on quickly receiving outside help, but fewer than 100 reinforcements ever arrived. Travis was able to send eight letters asking for assistance, and the best known of these missives reads as follows:
To the People of Texas & All Americans in the World-
Fellow Citizens & compatriots-
I am besieged, by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna - I have sustained a continual Bombardment & cannonade for 24 hours & 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, & 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 & everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid, with all dispatch - The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily & 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 & die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country - Victory or Death.
The final Mexican assault on the Alamo took place on March 6, 1836. The defenders were overwhelmed, and all were killed during the battle or put to death soon after. When word of the defeat reached the small army commanded by Sam Houston, the sacrifice which had been made by Travis, Crockett, Bowie, and the others at the Alamo became the event which motivated them to defeat Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto six weeks later and once again drive the Mexicans out of Texas.
The defense of the Alamo, like the Battle of Thermopylae, is one of history’s most memorable examples of heroic asymmetric warfare. As the words of Travis’ famous letter bear witness, the defenders knew they were doomed. But they also knew they had to stand and fight to the death so that Texas could live. To make such a sacrifice requires an unshakeable faith that others will continue the fight that you have started. Without such faith, the Battle of the Alamo might never have taken place and the Texas War of Independence might have been lost.
From Chapter 2 of No More Patriots
Copyright © 2015 by Howard T. Uhal
All Rights Reserved
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