alternatehistory.com
Chapter 7 Forward to Victory
Chapter 7 Forward to Victory
"For the Republic! Remember the Alamo! Vive le Tejas!"- Battle cries of Texans during the Battle of San Jacinto 1836
"I have failed my country, my people, and El Presidente."- Jose de Urrea 1836
"Here lies our Yorktown."- San Jacinto Monument 1939
With the ongoing events of the Mexican Civil War and the Yucatan Revolution it was clear to many that Texas would remain independent for quite a while. One man who didn't get the message was Jose de Urrea. Unlike his counterpart Filisola, Urrea refused to accept the status quo and made it his mission to finish what Santa Anna started, even when word reached of the Mexico City massacre he was still undeterred, as these were his orders and he would follow them to his death. For Houston came the problem of how to take out his enemy Napoleonic style while training his army of American volunteers and Texan farmers, all he needed was one final battle to crush the Mexican army and Texas would be free. After consulting with Travis, Houston decided to head further east near the San Jacinto river where he would train his army. This move had two major reasoning's: first, if Urrea directed his attention to capturing Texan towns then that gave Houston's army additional training time and he could fight the enemy at his own leisure, if Urrea choose to pursue Houston east then his supply runs would be stretched and the Texans would be close to the border where the could receive official or unofficial aid from the United States. Due to Urrea's desire to end the Revolution quickly he choose to pursue Houston East. Historians actually contribute this move to preserving the partial stability of the early Republic as Urrea's attention on the Texan forces prevented any backlash on the civilians, preventing a mass exodus of women and children.
On March 27th Houston and his army made camp 20 miles Northwest of Harrisburg. With word of the Alamo spreading volunteers welled up the Texans ranks so rapidly that by the time the Battle of San Jacinto commenced the Texan forces would number over 2,000. With many of the Alamo veterans training the new troops, morale was high as the the weeks went by and the recruits slowly got more experience. For the Mexican army it was entirely the opposite. After news of the Alamo reached the army morale plummeted immensely as many soldiers felt they had lost the war, talk of Filisola's apparent "desertion" did nothing to help. Like Filisola's troops the men were slowly getting more restless as they had not encountered a single battle whilst in Texas with the exception of bandits and Indians. An opportunity presented itself when a defector presented information that Houston's army was heading towards Lynchburg Crossing near the Buffalo Bayou in order to escort the Texas government to Galveston. With this new information Correa marched east for the final battle. In reality, this information was falsified by Sam Houston as he had Juan Seguin order one of his Tejanos to pretend to defect in order to lure Urrea into a trap. During these crucial weeks the Texas Rangers under Deaf Smith were split between spying on Urrea's movements and scouting the terrain around the Buffalo Bayou to coordinate with Houston in order to plan the attack. The chance to strike at the enemy came when on April 21st Urrea and his men reached Lynchburg's crossing and were waiting there to catch Houston's army by surprise, unaware that Houston was only a few miles away, actively planning the surprise assault upon the enemy. When the Mexican army reached Buffalo Bayou they were in poor condition. Weeks of marching without rest along with low supplies due to the beginning of the civil war, infighitng over the last few days due to which government the soldiers would hold allegiance to once news of the civil war began, and belief spreading that the war was a lost cause, caused the army to become weak and tired with low morale; along with 259 soldiers deserting over the course of the campaign. These forces were replaced with 463 men from Filisola's force on the 14th who chose to continue to fight, bringing Urrea's force to 1694, however the reinforcements were equally in low morale and supplies . Therefore when they man set up camp all they did was prepare tents and enter into a period of much needed rest. Meanwhile, a small camp of 300 Texans was camped about 1 mile east in an area of woods. These men were reinforced by the rest of the army in the nighttime and the Texan force slowly made their way across the grass, setting up artillery and readying positions under the cover of darkness, all according to plan.
"The Battle of San Jacinto," by Henry McArdle.
The attack came upon April 22nd at approximately 7:30 in the morning. The Mexican forces were caught completely by surprised as hundreds of Texans rushed across the field shouting "Remember the Alamo!", a battle cry to show how they had achieved victory with greater odds before and would do it again. After a single volley the Texans then descended upon the Mexican camp doing what they did best, fighting brutally in hand-to-hand. Retreat was difficult to achieve as the battlefield was surrounded by Fannin's 30 cannons while Lamar's cavalry flanked any organized retreat. It took an estimated 18 minutes until any resistance on the Mexican side completely collapsed, hours until the viscous killing stopped. The aftermath was a complete Texan victory in what would be noted as one of the most one sided battles in history. 850 Mexicans were killed in action, 416 wounded, with 277 captured. The Texans only suffered 13 killed along with 35 wounded, among the wounded being Sam Houston who was shot in the ankle. On the 23rd the captured Mexican command along with Urrea were brought to Houston were they officially surrendered the last remnant's of the Mexican military in Texas. For the next few weeks while Texans celebrated the latest victory for the nation talks were ongoing between Urrea and the Texan government over the treatment of prisoners and Texas stance. Both sides reached an agreement under the unsigned Armistice of Velasco, which stated that all prisoners would be allowed to return to Mexico so long as they promised to never take arms against the Republic or cross the Rio Grande, the other important clause stating that both sides would not cross the Rio Grande under the guise of a cease fire until further negotiations between the Mexican and Texan governments could advance. With the Texans stating that their two prerequisite terms for negotiations being a recognition of independence and a respect and restoration of all private property. This was done as due to the current conflict in Mexico there was no legitimate side to negotiate with as neither faction held the upper hand, it was the hope of Governor Smith and President Burnett that by the time an outcome was decided Texas would have more than enough time to prepare for continued conflict and strengthen their positions, resulting in a weakened Mexico being more willing to allow independence. Whatever the outcome the Texas Revolution for now, was at an end.
View attachment 284661
Surrender of Urrea
As soon as the Armistice of Velasco was drafted preparations were being made for Texas to become its own nation. Elections were being planned in September for the first permanent government while diplomats were sent to Washington to gain recognition and advance possible efforts of annexation. The lives of the Texan people turned to happiness as peace arrived and they were free to live according to their own laws and lifestyle. The future while uncertain looked bright, Texas entering its own destiny for the first time. The future of the young Republic though would not be decided on the field of battle, the heart of Mexico, or the halls of congress in Washington. Rather its course would be altered forever when a young empresario by the name of Stephen F. Austin would walk on the streets of Paris, France. Where an alliance that would forever change the course of Western history was about to be made.
San Jacinto Monument (Right). San Jacinto 70th Anniversary Veterans of the Revolution Reunion 1906 (Left).
A/N: Sorry for the long wait guys but the beginning of the year was rather hectic. As of right now it looks unanimous that the future Presidents will be able to be re-elected. Thank you all for your input as we might very well have Houston continue his presidency to '41. Next update will bring something new as we'll have a Third Person POV of Austin and his aforementioned negotiations. Long live the Republic!
"For the Republic! Remember the Alamo! Vive le Tejas!"- Battle cries of Texans during the Battle of San Jacinto 1836
"I have failed my country, my people, and El Presidente."- Jose de Urrea 1836
"Here lies our Yorktown."- San Jacinto Monument 1939
With the ongoing events of the Mexican Civil War and the Yucatan Revolution it was clear to many that Texas would remain independent for quite a while. One man who didn't get the message was Jose de Urrea. Unlike his counterpart Filisola, Urrea refused to accept the status quo and made it his mission to finish what Santa Anna started, even when word reached of the Mexico City massacre he was still undeterred, as these were his orders and he would follow them to his death. For Houston came the problem of how to take out his enemy Napoleonic style while training his army of American volunteers and Texan farmers, all he needed was one final battle to crush the Mexican army and Texas would be free. After consulting with Travis, Houston decided to head further east near the San Jacinto river where he would train his army. This move had two major reasoning's: first, if Urrea directed his attention to capturing Texan towns then that gave Houston's army additional training time and he could fight the enemy at his own leisure, if Urrea choose to pursue Houston east then his supply runs would be stretched and the Texans would be close to the border where the could receive official or unofficial aid from the United States. Due to Urrea's desire to end the Revolution quickly he choose to pursue Houston East. Historians actually contribute this move to preserving the partial stability of the early Republic as Urrea's attention on the Texan forces prevented any backlash on the civilians, preventing a mass exodus of women and children.
On March 27th Houston and his army made camp 20 miles Northwest of Harrisburg. With word of the Alamo spreading volunteers welled up the Texans ranks so rapidly that by the time the Battle of San Jacinto commenced the Texan forces would number over 2,000. With many of the Alamo veterans training the new troops, morale was high as the the weeks went by and the recruits slowly got more experience. For the Mexican army it was entirely the opposite. After news of the Alamo reached the army morale plummeted immensely as many soldiers felt they had lost the war, talk of Filisola's apparent "desertion" did nothing to help. Like Filisola's troops the men were slowly getting more restless as they had not encountered a single battle whilst in Texas with the exception of bandits and Indians. An opportunity presented itself when a defector presented information that Houston's army was heading towards Lynchburg Crossing near the Buffalo Bayou in order to escort the Texas government to Galveston. With this new information Correa marched east for the final battle. In reality, this information was falsified by Sam Houston as he had Juan Seguin order one of his Tejanos to pretend to defect in order to lure Urrea into a trap. During these crucial weeks the Texas Rangers under Deaf Smith were split between spying on Urrea's movements and scouting the terrain around the Buffalo Bayou to coordinate with Houston in order to plan the attack. The chance to strike at the enemy came when on April 21st Urrea and his men reached Lynchburg's crossing and were waiting there to catch Houston's army by surprise, unaware that Houston was only a few miles away, actively planning the surprise assault upon the enemy. When the Mexican army reached Buffalo Bayou they were in poor condition. Weeks of marching without rest along with low supplies due to the beginning of the civil war, infighitng over the last few days due to which government the soldiers would hold allegiance to once news of the civil war began, and belief spreading that the war was a lost cause, caused the army to become weak and tired with low morale; along with 259 soldiers deserting over the course of the campaign. These forces were replaced with 463 men from Filisola's force on the 14th who chose to continue to fight, bringing Urrea's force to 1694, however the reinforcements were equally in low morale and supplies . Therefore when they man set up camp all they did was prepare tents and enter into a period of much needed rest. Meanwhile, a small camp of 300 Texans was camped about 1 mile east in an area of woods. These men were reinforced by the rest of the army in the nighttime and the Texan force slowly made their way across the grass, setting up artillery and readying positions under the cover of darkness, all according to plan.
"The Battle of San Jacinto," by Henry McArdle.
The attack came upon April 22nd at approximately 7:30 in the morning. The Mexican forces were caught completely by surprised as hundreds of Texans rushed across the field shouting "Remember the Alamo!", a battle cry to show how they had achieved victory with greater odds before and would do it again. After a single volley the Texans then descended upon the Mexican camp doing what they did best, fighting brutally in hand-to-hand. Retreat was difficult to achieve as the battlefield was surrounded by Fannin's 30 cannons while Lamar's cavalry flanked any organized retreat. It took an estimated 18 minutes until any resistance on the Mexican side completely collapsed, hours until the viscous killing stopped. The aftermath was a complete Texan victory in what would be noted as one of the most one sided battles in history. 850 Mexicans were killed in action, 416 wounded, with 277 captured. The Texans only suffered 13 killed along with 35 wounded, among the wounded being Sam Houston who was shot in the ankle. On the 23rd the captured Mexican command along with Urrea were brought to Houston were they officially surrendered the last remnant's of the Mexican military in Texas. For the next few weeks while Texans celebrated the latest victory for the nation talks were ongoing between Urrea and the Texan government over the treatment of prisoners and Texas stance. Both sides reached an agreement under the unsigned Armistice of Velasco, which stated that all prisoners would be allowed to return to Mexico so long as they promised to never take arms against the Republic or cross the Rio Grande, the other important clause stating that both sides would not cross the Rio Grande under the guise of a cease fire until further negotiations between the Mexican and Texan governments could advance. With the Texans stating that their two prerequisite terms for negotiations being a recognition of independence and a respect and restoration of all private property. This was done as due to the current conflict in Mexico there was no legitimate side to negotiate with as neither faction held the upper hand, it was the hope of Governor Smith and President Burnett that by the time an outcome was decided Texas would have more than enough time to prepare for continued conflict and strengthen their positions, resulting in a weakened Mexico being more willing to allow independence. Whatever the outcome the Texas Revolution for now, was at an end.
View attachment 284661
Surrender of Urrea
As soon as the Armistice of Velasco was drafted preparations were being made for Texas to become its own nation. Elections were being planned in September for the first permanent government while diplomats were sent to Washington to gain recognition and advance possible efforts of annexation. The lives of the Texan people turned to happiness as peace arrived and they were free to live according to their own laws and lifestyle. The future while uncertain looked bright, Texas entering its own destiny for the first time. The future of the young Republic though would not be decided on the field of battle, the heart of Mexico, or the halls of congress in Washington. Rather its course would be altered forever when a young empresario by the name of Stephen F. Austin would walk on the streets of Paris, France. Where an alliance that would forever change the course of Western history was about to be made.
San Jacinto Monument (Right). San Jacinto 70th Anniversary Veterans of the Revolution Reunion 1906 (Left).
A/N: Sorry for the long wait guys but the beginning of the year was rather hectic. As of right now it looks unanimous that the future Presidents will be able to be re-elected. Thank you all for your input as we might very well have Houston continue his presidency to '41. Next update will bring something new as we'll have a Third Person POV of Austin and his aforementioned negotiations. Long live the Republic!
- Kaiser Chris
- Word Count: 1.5k