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Chapter 4 The Shot Heard Round the World
Chapter 4. The shot heard round the world
EL PRESIDENTE ESTA MUERTO! EL PRESIDENTE ESTA MUERTO!- Unknown Mexican soldier 1836
I got him! I got that bastard!- Davy Crockett 1836
After Santa Anna died the Tejanos swarmed upon us like a pack of viscous dogs, all around, mi compadres were being hacked down one by one in the most horrible manner of deaths. I think the Lord and our Blessed Mother everyday that i got out of that hellhole alive.- Pvt. Juan Gonzales 1851
For a single second the fighting stopped, for a single second everyone watched as the most powerful man in the southwest fell to the ground, never to rise up again. Then the battle resumed with the entire Mexican army panicking in massive fright and hysteria. Most of the remaining soldiers for the Mexican army were made up of raw recruits who until just a few months ago were simple farmers tending to their land in the Mexican countryside. The sight of seeing their leader brought down by one of the most legendary marksmen of the enemy was the final straw in this long bloody battle. Not wanting to fight for a cause anymore that was seen as pointless, and now a loss for Mexico, most Mexican soldiers scrambled in a massive stampede towards the north wall, determined to get off the battlefield and back to their homes. Unfortunately for them the death of Santa Anna lit up a fire in the Texan troops and gave them new determination to take the fight to the enemy and claim victory. The men who until just a moment ago were fleeing to the chapel, were now charging wildly at the highly demoralized foe, shooting left and right at any Mexican they could find, taking the fight in hand-to-hand when running out of ammunition. At the same time Fannin's artillery was cutting down entire squads of the enemy as they tried desperately to climb over the walls that just minutes ago they were trying to get in from. For a whole 20 minutes this carnage took place until the last of the enemy scrambled over the walls.
View attachment 284233
"The Alamo Stands" by Robert Jenkins
However conditions would be made worse once the Mexican remnants escaped outside. By that point in the battle most of the senior officers were killed off during the assault, the highest ranking officer remaining was Colonel Morales, who was too badly wounded to provide any sense of order during the retreat. Left and right chaos was on the rampage as hundreds of soldiers found themselves in enemy territory with no sense of where to go. Some of the remaining cavalry attempted to help cover an escape but with the large loss of cavalrymen during the assault, many horses went wild and stampeded due to a number of recruits attempting to take the horses and escape for themselves, the main issue though was that most of these men hadn't ridden a horse properly before and only helped to make the horses go wild. A small contingent of men decided to take out their anger upon the town of San Antonio as they saw the place as a filthy nest of traitors. During the early morning some of the town's stores were looted or burned to the ground while the remaining Tejano civilians were being beaten or raped by the deranged renegades. Thankfully these deplorable actions would stopped at 7:00 AM when Travis rode out of the Alamo with his group of regulars to secure the town. Approximately 45 men would be hanged the next day for their crimes against the townspeople. The remaining Mexican forces who didn't escape surrendered around noon under the leadership of Captain Eduardo Rivera. Rivera was able to gather the remaining men who were too wounded or weren't able to escape in the morning, he was able to convince them that by surrendering to the Texans they had nothing to lose and just because Santa Anna offered terms of no surrender it didn't men that the Texans wouldn't show them the same mercy. So on 12:15 P.M March 6th 1836, the battle of the Alamo officially ended.
View attachment 284234
Davy Crockett, slayer of Santa Anna
While many of the defenders were jovial and celebrated the fact that not only did they win a major battle against a superior force, they also brought down Santa Anna, the cost of victory was still high. During the battle 219 Texans died with 100 wounded in Action. Among the dead was Colonel James Neill, the man who made it his mission to defend San Antonio from Santa Anna and who gave courage to the Texan troops to fight on in the name of independence. Although unconfirmed it was said that he was wounded during the third wave in a pistol shot by General Juan Amador. He lasted roughly until the retreat after the fourth wave, his last words where "The Alamo stands". On the Mexican side the casualties were more severe, with 1021 dead, 536 wounded in action, and 348 taken prisoner. Along with the death of Santa Anna this battle would be remembered throughout Mexico as one of the single most devastating defeats in the nations history, for Texans it would be known through generations as the battle that protected their independence.
The Alamo Monument
After a few days of tending to the wounded and civilians, and sending couriers throughout Texas to inform them of their victory, the men of the Alamo set out on March 11th. During this time Travis took command in Neill's place, though he was outranked by Bowie and Fannin both men agreed to it since Travis was the main force that kept the men together throughout the assault, especially after Neill was wounded during the third wave. Approximately 613 Texans marched out of San Antonio with the remaining prisoners and a number of civilians who were either families of the defenders or lost their property in the pillage of Bexar. Along with the men were the Alamo's 23 remaining cannons, which they had taken to prevent the enemy coming back and adding more firepower to their arsenal. Their destination was Gonzales, Texas; which the men sought to go to after the remaining Gonzales volunteer survivors informed them of the remaining 300 men who were waiting on the outcome of the battle. Their goal was to link up with the volunteers and possibly form a combined army under Houston to drive out the remaining Mexican forces. Little did these men know of the far ranging effects their victory would have upon the Western world.
EL PRESIDENTE ESTA MUERTO! EL PRESIDENTE ESTA MUERTO!- Unknown Mexican soldier 1836
I got him! I got that bastard!- Davy Crockett 1836
After Santa Anna died the Tejanos swarmed upon us like a pack of viscous dogs, all around, mi compadres were being hacked down one by one in the most horrible manner of deaths. I think the Lord and our Blessed Mother everyday that i got out of that hellhole alive.- Pvt. Juan Gonzales 1851
For a single second the fighting stopped, for a single second everyone watched as the most powerful man in the southwest fell to the ground, never to rise up again. Then the battle resumed with the entire Mexican army panicking in massive fright and hysteria. Most of the remaining soldiers for the Mexican army were made up of raw recruits who until just a few months ago were simple farmers tending to their land in the Mexican countryside. The sight of seeing their leader brought down by one of the most legendary marksmen of the enemy was the final straw in this long bloody battle. Not wanting to fight for a cause anymore that was seen as pointless, and now a loss for Mexico, most Mexican soldiers scrambled in a massive stampede towards the north wall, determined to get off the battlefield and back to their homes. Unfortunately for them the death of Santa Anna lit up a fire in the Texan troops and gave them new determination to take the fight to the enemy and claim victory. The men who until just a moment ago were fleeing to the chapel, were now charging wildly at the highly demoralized foe, shooting left and right at any Mexican they could find, taking the fight in hand-to-hand when running out of ammunition. At the same time Fannin's artillery was cutting down entire squads of the enemy as they tried desperately to climb over the walls that just minutes ago they were trying to get in from. For a whole 20 minutes this carnage took place until the last of the enemy scrambled over the walls.
View attachment 284233
"The Alamo Stands" by Robert Jenkins
However conditions would be made worse once the Mexican remnants escaped outside. By that point in the battle most of the senior officers were killed off during the assault, the highest ranking officer remaining was Colonel Morales, who was too badly wounded to provide any sense of order during the retreat. Left and right chaos was on the rampage as hundreds of soldiers found themselves in enemy territory with no sense of where to go. Some of the remaining cavalry attempted to help cover an escape but with the large loss of cavalrymen during the assault, many horses went wild and stampeded due to a number of recruits attempting to take the horses and escape for themselves, the main issue though was that most of these men hadn't ridden a horse properly before and only helped to make the horses go wild. A small contingent of men decided to take out their anger upon the town of San Antonio as they saw the place as a filthy nest of traitors. During the early morning some of the town's stores were looted or burned to the ground while the remaining Tejano civilians were being beaten or raped by the deranged renegades. Thankfully these deplorable actions would stopped at 7:00 AM when Travis rode out of the Alamo with his group of regulars to secure the town. Approximately 45 men would be hanged the next day for their crimes against the townspeople. The remaining Mexican forces who didn't escape surrendered around noon under the leadership of Captain Eduardo Rivera. Rivera was able to gather the remaining men who were too wounded or weren't able to escape in the morning, he was able to convince them that by surrendering to the Texans they had nothing to lose and just because Santa Anna offered terms of no surrender it didn't men that the Texans wouldn't show them the same mercy. So on 12:15 P.M March 6th 1836, the battle of the Alamo officially ended.
View attachment 284234
Davy Crockett, slayer of Santa Anna
While many of the defenders were jovial and celebrated the fact that not only did they win a major battle against a superior force, they also brought down Santa Anna, the cost of victory was still high. During the battle 219 Texans died with 100 wounded in Action. Among the dead was Colonel James Neill, the man who made it his mission to defend San Antonio from Santa Anna and who gave courage to the Texan troops to fight on in the name of independence. Although unconfirmed it was said that he was wounded during the third wave in a pistol shot by General Juan Amador. He lasted roughly until the retreat after the fourth wave, his last words where "The Alamo stands". On the Mexican side the casualties were more severe, with 1021 dead, 536 wounded in action, and 348 taken prisoner. Along with the death of Santa Anna this battle would be remembered throughout Mexico as one of the single most devastating defeats in the nations history, for Texans it would be known through generations as the battle that protected their independence.
The Alamo Monument
After a few days of tending to the wounded and civilians, and sending couriers throughout Texas to inform them of their victory, the men of the Alamo set out on March 11th. During this time Travis took command in Neill's place, though he was outranked by Bowie and Fannin both men agreed to it since Travis was the main force that kept the men together throughout the assault, especially after Neill was wounded during the third wave. Approximately 613 Texans marched out of San Antonio with the remaining prisoners and a number of civilians who were either families of the defenders or lost their property in the pillage of Bexar. Along with the men were the Alamo's 23 remaining cannons, which they had taken to prevent the enemy coming back and adding more firepower to their arsenal. Their destination was Gonzales, Texas; which the men sought to go to after the remaining Gonzales volunteer survivors informed them of the remaining 300 men who were waiting on the outcome of the battle. Their goal was to link up with the volunteers and possibly form a combined army under Houston to drive out the remaining Mexican forces. Little did these men know of the far ranging effects their victory would have upon the Western world.
- Kaiser Chris
- Word Count: 1.1k