About the Alamo: Texas

The Battle of the Alamo in Texas Was No Small Affair

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Every year on March 6 people gather in front to the Alamo in Texas before sunrise. They gather there for a solemn ceremony marking the anniversary of the Battle of the Alamo. A prayer is read and a salute is fired before the participants and audience go off to breakfast and prepare for other commemorative events that take place that day.

What is there about the Battle of the Alamo draws this crowd together year after year? General Antonio López de Santa Anna, president of Mexico and the battle’s victor, pronounce it as a “small affair.” Texans soon claimed that the fight at the Alamo rivaled or even surpassed the famous stand of the Spartans at Thermopile. While the second claim may be excused by the Texan propensity to boast, the battle was certainly no small affair.

The Texas Revolution began as part of a Mexican civil war. Mexico, under Spain’s rule for nearly 300 years, had declared its independence in 1821. As is usually the case in new nations, independence ushered in a period of political upheaval over what type of government should be implemented and who should fill its offices. One faction emerged called the Centralists because they favored a centralized system that resembled the old Spanish monarchy. The opposing faction, the Federalists, saw that federal republic with its power sharing arrangement and check and balances as the system right for Mexico. These factions were destined to struggle against each other for nearly thirty years.

In 1824, the Federalists rose to power and adopted a federal constitution which spelled out the relationship between the national and state governments. One of their major supporters was General Santa Anna, who became a hero to the Federalists when he helped restore the republic after a Centralist coup. In 1833, Santa Anna had risen to the post of president. It seemed the Mexican republic was safe.

The Centralists had not lost hope, though. Representatives approached Santa Anna and convinced him to throw out the Federal Constitution of 1824, an act which essentially stripped all Mexican states of their governors and legislatures. Santa Anna later explained his switch saying that he realized that his people were not ready for self government and needed a stronger hand like his. Revolts flared up throughout Mexico, including the Department of Texas in the state of Coahuila y Tejas.

The revolt in Texas began with a call for Santa Anna’s removal, the reinstitution of the Constitution of 1824, and separate statehood for Texas. As the revolt progressed, though, talk of complete separation and an independent Texas became more and more popular. Thus, what began as a Mexican civil war end with the creation of the Republic of Texas.

The revolt in Texas started at Gonzales on October 2, 1836, when Mexican soldiers arrived at the town to take back a small cannon that had been loaned to the Texans. They refused and instead fired on the troops who then left. Flushed with victory, the Texans quickly captured Goliad and marched on San Antonio de Béxar. After several days of fighting in early December, the Texans had succeeded in capturing the town, including an old fortified mission then know as the Alamo.

The Alamo’s importance was connected with it’s perceived ability to command and protect the town. Thus, it was not the Alamo that was the prize — it was the strategic crossroad town, San Antonio de Béxar. The Texans split, however, on what to do next. Some thought Béxar had to be defended. Others, however, disagreed, beleiving that all Texas troops should be withdrawn to the east and put into winter quarters where they could be trained and formed into a real army. Strong-willed Governor Henry Smith sided with those calling for the continued occupation of Béxar and did what he could to forward men and supplies to this frontier post.

Despite the efforts of the garrison at Béxar, they were not ready when Santa Anna arrived in town on February 23, 1836. The garrison’s commander, twenty-six year old William B. Travis, wrote that he only had about 150 men to face the 1,500 troops Santa Anna had brought.  For the next twelve days, the Texans waited for reinforcements while Santa Anna tightened his siege lines. His numbers grew when an additional 1,000 man column arrived on March 3. A small band of thirty-two Texans made their way from Gonzales and inside the Alamo. The ultimate outcome seemed clear to Travis, though: “Victory or Death!” Santa Anna’s final assault came early on the morning of March 6 before sunrise. The Alamo’s surprised garrison, which had held on hoping for relief, was overwhelmed and almost every defender killed. 

To Santa Anna it was a small affair that cleared the way for Texas’ subjugation. To the Texans, shocked by the defeat, it was a hard blow.  Additionally, the Texans suffered a crushing loss at Goliad in late March. The divided Texans wanted a chance to even the score as well as halt Santa Anna as he swept across Texas toward the Louisiana border. Travis’ cry of “Victory or Death!” rang true to them.

The Texans’ chance arrived on the afternoon of April 21, 1836, when a force of about 1,000 men led by Sam Houston attacked an overconfident Santa Anna camped near the San Jacinto River modern day Houston. Within twenty minute, Houston’s men had broken the Mexican lines. Shouts of “Remember the Alamo!” and “Remember Goliad!” rang out as the Texans exacted their revenge. When the day was over, the Texans had suffered thirty wounded and nine killed. The Mexican casualties testify to the power of the Alamo: 630 soldados killed and another 730 captured, many of them wounded. Far from just a small affair for the Texans, the Alamo proved to be a powerfully event that drove them over the battlefield as San Jacinto and onto independence.

“The Alamo Was No Small Affair” first appeared in the March 2010 issue of Destination San Antonio.

Dr. Richard Bruce Winders has been the Historian & Curator at The Alamo since 1996.  A specialist in United States-Mexico borderlands, he is the author of numerous books and articles on the Texas Revolution and the Mexican War.

The Alamo is owned by the State of Texas and under the custodianship of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas.

“The Alamo Was No Small Affair” first appeared in the March 2010 issue of Destination San Antonio.