 Home Index Freedom Documents Constitution In-Depth About Us Contact Us Education Site Map Links Archives E-Mail The History of America 
Chapter VII - Americans Head West, The Alamo Falls
Americans Head West, The Alamo Falls 1836 - 1841
With the Indians successfully removed and the cotton boom in full swing, clever speculators eagerly pushed into western territories to lay claim to as much virgin land as possible. In the 1840s, "Manifest Destiny," the belief that American expansion westward was "inevitable, divinely ordained and just," was the cry and driving force of many Americans.
One of the expansionists' central objectives was the Mexican-controlled Republic of Texas. The Mexican government offered a generous land policy permitting thousands of Americans to settle there as long as they became Mexican citizens, obeyed Mexican law and adopted the Catholic faith. By 1835, thirty-five thousand Americans, many of whom were slave holders, lived in Texas. Since slavery was illegal in Mexico, aggressive settlers attempted to establish their own republic. The first confrontation between Mexican soldiers and these determined settlers took place on December 10, 1835, when Mexicans came to retrieve a cannon they had given the Texans for protection against the Indians. The feisty Texans unfurled a battle flag that read, "Come and get it!" On that day, Mexican troops left without the cannon and without engaging in combat.
However, on February 26, 1836, General Santa Ana led the Mexican Army to put down the American and Texan volunteers who were fortified at an abandoned mission called the Alamo. The Americans fearlessly held of the Mexican assaults for twelve long and bloody days. During one of the attacks, a bold volunteer leader from South Carolina drew a line on the ground and cried, "Those prepared to give their lives in freedom's cause, come over to me!" Every man crossed that line. But on March 6, with ammunition running dangerously low, the brave volunteers simply could not hold off the Mexicans' final attack. Santa Ana, after storming and capturing the old Spanish mission, ordered the wounded to be put to death, stacked the bodies like cordwood with the other corpses and burned them. In this fierce Battle of the Alamo, 188 Americans and 1,544 Mexicans died.
Approximately one week later, General Santa Ana captured three hundred Texas soldiers and executed every one of them by firing squad. On April 21 with the vengeful cry of "Remember the Alamo!" American forces led by Sam Houston overran a detachment of Mexicans as they slept, killing 600 hundred and capturing Santa Ana who was reportedly "enjoying the company of his mistress, Jenny." With no resistance, General Santa Ana signed a treaty recognizing Texas as an independent state. Though Jackson was determined to get Texas into the Union, Congress voted down the territory's request for statehood.
|