Chapter 9
The Road to Revolution
1826-1835
Essential Questions
Did the change in the government of Mexico justify
the rebellion of the Texans?
Were the Texans justified in declaring independence
from Mexico?
Was the Texas Revolution inevitable?
The Road to Revolution
1826 The Fredonian Rebellion erupts
1830 Mexico passes Law of April 6, 1830
1832 Colonists and Mexican troops
clash at Anahuac
1833 Stephen F. Austin imprisoned
1835 The Battle of Gonzales fought
1835 Texans and Mexican troops face
off at Battle of San Antonio
Section 1
Tensions Mount Between Mexico and Texas
Not long after colonization began in Texas,
conflicts erupted between the Mexican
government and the colonists. Even though
Mexican officials attempted to control the
conflicts, their efforts served to anger and
unify the colonists
MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES IN 1824
Section 1 Vocabulary
• States’ Rights: idea that a state could choose
to obey or enforce federal laws
• Nationalist: person who supports policies of a
nation; loyal to country
• Provision: a specific requirement set by a law
• Customs Duty: tax on things taken into or out
of a country
Differences Arise
• Texas settlers from other areas (different
cultures) didn’t always like Mexican
government; kind of did their own thing
regardless of what Mexican government
wanted
A Question of States’ Rights
• Tension rose over balance of power between a
state and a nation
– Mexico divided into states (like US)
– Mexican Constitution of 1824: established a states’
rights government….most decisions and power is
given to individual states
• Texas settlers liked this because they had more control
over decisions in their state
• Texas was in state of Coahuila y Tejas. Capital: Saltillo
States’ Rights, con’t
• Some Mexican leaders thought that Mexican
government should have the most power
– These were called Nationalists
– Didn’t like so many settlers from US moving to Texas
• Afraid that so many settlers from US would encourage
everyone in Texas to want to join the US
• These fears caused conflict
Competing Lands Claims
• Empresario Haden Edwards (1825) received land grant near
Nacogdoches
• When he got there, found people already living there
– Mexicans who had settled in area
– Cherokee families (Tah Chee—Cherokee leader)
• Edwards had to honor the fact that people were already living there
but he wanted them to show proof of ownership…threatened to take
land if didn’t show ownership
• People wrote letters to Mexican government and complained about
Edwards
– Mexican officials sided with settlers already in area
– Edward’s brother, Benjamin, wrote angry letters back to Mexican officials
The Edwards Brothers
• Haden Edwards overturned an election for alcalde of
Nacogdoches
• Mexican Governor Victor Blanco was tired of
Edwards…revoked his land grant..told Edwards and
his brother to leave Texas
• Edwards spent a lot of money to get land grant and
didn’t want to lose it
– Negotiated a treaty with some Cherokees who were
unhappy with not getting their own land title
The Fredonian Rebellion
•
Tensions built up between Texans (Edwards brothers) and Mexican government and
finally resulted in a conflict called The Fredonian Rebellion
– See Multicultural Connections on page 193
– Occurred near Nacogdoches in 1826
– Mexican nationalists thought Texas settlers were trying to take over Texas
– Cherokee leaders John Hunter and Richard Fields joined with Benjamin Edwards
and formed the Fredonian Republic and declared area free from Mexico
• Took over a building in Nacogdoches called the Old Stone Fort and removed
the alcalde
• Occupied building for a month and called the capital of their newly freed
area Fredonia
The Fredonian Rebellion, con’t
• Mexico sent in soldiers to try to stop the rebellion (led by
Mateo Ahumada)
• Stephen F. Austin was worried Edwards and Fredonian
Rebellion would look bad for all Texas colonists
– He sided with the Mexican government
– He organized troops to fight with the Mexicans against the
Fredonian Republic
• Conflict ended quickly
– Edwards brothers fled to Louisiana
– Cherokees executed Hunter and Fields
• Result of Fredonian Rebellion
– Increased Mexican concern about what was happening in Texas
An Attempt to Purchase Texas
• Because so many US settlers had come to Texas, US
offered to buy Texas from Mexico in 1826
– US President John Quincy Adams sent a man named
Joel R. Poinsett to Texas and he offered 1 million dollars
to buy Texas…US wanted to expand westward
• Poinsett handled deal badly and it made Mexico
mad
• FYI: Poinsett introduced poinsettia to US
– (see page 194)
The Mier y Teran Report
• Fredonian Rebellion and US offer to purchase Texas
concerned Mexico
• Sent Mier y Teran (Mexican general) to Texas to find
out what was going on. He spent a year touring
Texas
• Wrote report
– Anglo colonists outnumbered Mexicans in Texas by 10-1
– US influence was spreading in Texas
– Stated that Mexico must gain control of Texas
Teran Report, con’t
• As a result of the report
– Mexico President Vicente Guerrero abolished
slavery in Mexico
– They thought this would keep Anglo Americans
from wanting to come to Texas…most of them had
slaves
Law of April 6, 1830
• Outlawed immigration from US to Texas
• Cancelled all empresarial grants
• Encouraged Mexican and European settlers to
come to Texas…provided money for them to
come
• Slaves could not be brought into Texas
• New forts and presidios started to stop
immigration from US
• Put customs duties on goods entering Texas
from US
Law of April 6, 1830, con’t
• Anglo Texans didn’t like law
– Needed slaves to work cotton fields
– Custom Duty taxes would hurt Texas economy
– Friends and relatives from US could not join family
members already in Texas
– States’ Rights activitists thought Mexican national
government had gone too far and made too many
laws that states should have say so in
– Increased tensions between Texas and Mexican
government
Tah Chee
Cherokee Leader
Haden Edwards
and his wife
Old Stone Fort
http://www.tamu.edu/faculty/ccbn/dewitt/fredonian.htm
http://www.lib.utk.edu/spcoll/spcoll/native.htm
http://nacogdochescountytexas.us/
http://www.tamu.edu/faculty/ccbn/dewitt/fredonian.htm
Mier y Teran
http://revistabicentenario.com.mx/wp-content/gallery/bicentenario-12/Manuel-Mier-y-Teran-1832.jpg
Flag of the
Fredonian Rebellion
Section 2
A Bitter Division Evolves
Clashes between Texas colonists and Mexican
leaders over states’ rights led Texans to
petition for a separate state.
Section 2 Vocabulary
• Allegiance: loyalty
• Centralist: supporter of strong national
government and weak state power
• Resolution: a formal statement of a decision,
opinion, or course of action by an
official group
• Delegate: person who represents others
Unrest in Texas
• After Law of April 6, 1830, was passed, things
got bad between the Texas colonists and the
Mexican government
– Mexico sent additional soldiers into Texas to collect
the customs duty taxes
• Already had soldiers in Nacogdoches, San Antonio, and
Goliad
• Sent soldiers into Fort Teran, Velasco, and Anahuac for the
first time
– Colonists did not like more soldiers in Texas and they
did not like having to pay new taxes
Santa Anna’s Rise to Power
• Mexican president, Anastasio Bustamante, did
not support Constitution of 1824…he believed in
a strong national government and very weak
state government
– This belief made Texans mad
– This led to more conflict between Texans and the
Mexican government
Santa Anna, con’t
• Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
– Born in Mexico in 1794
– Joined Spanish army in 1810
– Served on mission to defeat the Guiterrez-Magee
expedition (filibusters)
– Stayed in “favor” with both the Spanish government
and then with the Mexican government
• Right before Mexico became free from Spain, he switched
his allegiance from Spain to Mexico
• In 1832, he decided he wanted some political power
– Opposed the centralist idea (said he believed in states’ rights) and
launched a revolution against President Bustamante
Santa Anna, con’t
• Santa Anna sent Colonel Jose Antonio Mexia to
Texas to check out the problems there
• Stephen F. Austin met with Mexia and told
Mexia that Texans supported Santa Anna’s ideas
(of states’ rights)
• But, the Texans soon found out that Santa Anna
was really a centralist…he wanted all of the
power himself (didn’t believe in states’ rights
after all)
Conflict at Galveston
• George Fisher
– Mexican official stationed in Texas
– Created problems among Texas colonists
– Was appointed by Mexican government to collect
customs duties and to stop the smuggling of goods
in/out of Texas without paying customs duty
• Tried to stop smuggler’s ships by making all ships carrying
goods go through a customs house at Anahuac to tell
officials what was on the ships
– This was not convenient or easy for ships….treacherous waters,
long ways out of the way, etc….ship captains ignored this and didn’t
think it was fair
Bradburn Increases Tensions
• John Davis Bradburn
– Mexican official
– Anglo American who supported centralists in
Mexico
– Job was to enforce Mexican laws dealing with
settling in Texas
• Land titles
– Forced Texans to work for free to build a new fort at
Anahuac and used colonist’s slaves to work for his
public works programs
The Disturbance at Anahuac
• William T. Logan
– Came to Anahuac from US looking for 2 of his slaves who
had run away
• Bradburn had the slaves and wouldn’t give them back to Logan
without a proof of ownership
– Logan hired attorney William Barrett Travis to help him
• Travis (only 22 years old) tried to trick Bradburn to get him to
release the slaves
– Note to a guard saying Logan was back and had brought armed troops
– Bradburn rallied his soldiers but was embarrassed when Logan didn’t
have soldiers
– Bradburn had Travis arrested (Travis’ parter, Patrick Jack, was arrested
also)
Disturbance at Anahuac, con’t
• Texans demanded the release of Travis and Jack
– Sent a group of 150 settlers to Anahuac to protest
• Bradburn said he would release Travis and Jack if settlers
would retreat
• Settlers retreated but Bradburn did not release Travis and
Jack
• Settlers decided to set up camp between Anahuac and
Liberty on Turtle Bayou
• Bradburn reinforced his troops
Turtle Bayou Resolutions
• Settlers camped at Turtle Bayou sent John
Austin to Brazoria to get a cannon
• While waiting for him to come back, they
drafted (wrote) the Turtle Bayou Resolutions
• The resolutions
– Colonists pledged loyalty to Mexico
– Stated support for Santa Anna (who seemed to be
on the same side as the colonists but wasn’t)
Turtle Bayou Resolutions, con’t
• Before John Austin got back with the cannon, a
Mexican colonel, Jose de las Piedras, went to
Anahuac to see what was going on
• When he got there, he
– Ordered Travis and Jack released from jail
– Dismissed Bradburn from his command
• Peaceful solution to problem…peacefulness
didn’t last long
The Battle of Velasco
• When John Austin was trying to get the cannon
back to Anahuac, he put the cannon on a ship and
sailed it down Brazos River to Gulf of Mexico at
Velasco
• When they got to Velasco, the Mexican colonel ,
Domingo de Ugartechea, wouldn’t let them
continue on
• Fighting broke out…soldiers shot at each other for
first time
Battle of Velasco, con’t
• Both Mexicans and Texans died in the Battle of
Velasco
• Mexican troops ran out of ammunition and had
to surrender and returned to Mexico
• Texans continued on down Brazos River to
Anahuac
– Got there and found out the problem at Anahuac
had already ended
The Conventions of 1832 and 1833
• Texans felt good about victories at Anahuac and
Velasco but were still not happy with Mexican
government
• 56 delegates met in San Felipe de Austin in
October 1832 to draft a set of resolutions to give
to Mexican government
– Stephen F. Austin was president of the delegates
Conventions, con’t
• Resolutions of 1832
– Supported Mexican Constitution of 1824 (states’s
rights)
– Wanted Law of April 6, 1830 repealed
– Wanted Mexico to allow immigration from US
– Wanted Texas to be exempt from customs duties
– Wanted protection from Native Americans
– Wanted public schools created
– Wanted state of Coahuila y Tejas to be divided so
each territory could have its own government
Conventions, con’t
• After they drafted the resolutions, Stephen F.
Austin went to San Antonio to get support of
resolutions there
• But San Antonio officials wouldn’t send the
resolutions to Mexican officials in Mexico City
• When Austin was in San Antonio, the delegates
met again on April 1, 1833
– Elected William Wharton as president
Conventions, con’t
• 1833: Drafted same resolutions as in 1832
• Difference: they drafted a constitution for the Mexican
state of Texas. They wanted Texas to be its own separate
state and be able to make its own rules/laws and have its
own constitution
• Followed same steps as any new state in the US
– Mexico saw this as defying the Mexican
government
Austin in Mexico
• After Convention of 1833, Stephen F. Austin
went to Mexico City to give the new Texas
resolutions to Mexican officials
– Trip took 3 months
• When he got to Mexico City, city was in turmoil
after a revolution led by Santa Anna
– Santa Anna (through his representative Valentin
Gomez Farias) attempted to make changes
– Cholera epidemic swept through city; thousands died
Austin in Mexico, con’t
• Austin presented the resolutions to Gomez
Farias
• Farias wasn’t in a hurry to address Texan’s
problems
• Austin got impatient
– Wrote a letter to the Texans suggesting that they
establish a new state government that would
make Texas separate from Coahuila but still be a
part of Mexico
Austin in Mexico, con’t
• Austin then met with Santa Anna
• Santa Anna agreed to most of Texan’s requests
– Allowed US immigration to Texas again
– Agreed to improve mail service and court system
– Promised fairer taxes on goods coming to Texas from
US
• Santa Anna would NOT agree to separate
statehood for Texas
Austin’s Arrest
• After Austin met with Santa Anna, he left Mexico
in December 1833 to return home
• Was arrested when he got to Saltillo
– Farias intercepted Austin’s letter to Texans and
thought it challenged Mexican authority
• Austin was accused of treason and spent one
year in prison in Mexico City
– First few months in solitary confinement
Austin’s Arrest, con’t
• Even in prison, he remained hopeful that the situation between
Texas and Mexico would improve
• 2 lawyers, Spencer Jack and Peter Grayson, went to Mexico City in
October 1834 to request Austin’s release
• He was released on December 25, 1834 but was under house arrest
and had to stay in Mexico City for several more months
• Finally returned to Texas in summer of 1835
• Things didn’t really heat up between Mexico and Texas until right
before Austin got back to Texas….but then they got bad in the
summer of 1835
Section 3
The Conflict Escalates
When Santa Anna gained control of the Mexican
government, he sent Mexican troops into
Texas once again. His actions convinced many
Texans that independence was the solution.
Section 3 Vocabulary
• Faction: a group of people who share a
viewpoint on an issue; think the same
• Siege: lengthy military attack on a fortified place
• Provisional Government: a group of people
who make laws and
provide services on
a temporary basis
Mexican Troops Return to Texas
• Texans soon realized that they disagreed with
Santa Anna
• Santa Anna took over control of Mexico
• Santa Anna sent General Martin Perfecto de
Cos to command troops in Texas in 1835
• De Cos’ mission was to support Santa Anna and
squelch any rebellion
• De Cos also sent Antonio Tenorio to Anahuac to
start collecting customs duties again
Mexican Troops Return, con’t
• In Anahuac, 2 Texans were arrested for not
showing respect to Tenorio
• Some Texans met and figured out that Santa
Anna had overthrown their state government
in Texas
• Then they decided to force Tenorio out of
Anahuac
• They named William B. Travis as the leader to
force Tenorio out
Mexican Troops Return, con’t
• When Travis and his men got to Anahuac, he
fired a shot to let Tenorio know he was there
• Some people disagreed with Travis for being
so aggressive
• But, Tenorio surrendered and agreed to leave
Texas
War and Peace Parties
• When Travis and his men were leaving
Anahuac with Tenorio, they stopped in
Harrisburg
• The Texans there were celebrating July 4
• Tenorio was treated with respect; Travis was
treated with disdain
– People wanted to show their loyalty to Mexico
and their disgust with Travis’ aggressive actions
War and Peace Parties, con’t
• What did this mean?
– Texans still couldn’t decide what they wanted to
support….Santa Anna/centralism or states’ rights
• There were a group of Texas men who formed
a “war party”
– Supported Travis and wanted to fight for Texas’
independence
• Three-Legged Willie Williamson(page 204)
• William B. Travis
• Henry Smith
War and Peace Parties, con’t
• There was also a group of people who weren’t
ready to fight yet…they wanted to wait and
see what happened with Santa Anna
– They were known as the “peace party”
• These factions were not political parties but
just had different opinions about how to deal
with government
Centralist Reaction
• When Tenorio was “escorted” into San Antonio,
Cos wanted Travis arrested for what he did
• Cos also wanted to arrest Lorenzo de
Zavala….he was a Mexican who disagreed with
Santa Anna…he fled to Texas for safety
• At the time Stephen F. Austin returned to Texas
after being in prison, disputes between Cos and
the Texans continued
Centralist Reaction, con’t
• Texans wanted Stephen F. Austin to help them
handle the situation
• After being in prison, Stephen F. Austin realized
that the only thing Texans could do was to fight
the Mexicans
– See Texas Voices p. 205
• Cos wanted to arrest more Texans but then he was
reminded that the Texans had a cannon in the
town of Gonzales
– (Empresario Green De Witt had it to protect people from Indians)
Centralist Reaction, con’t
• The Mexicans sent an army to seize the
cannon at Gonzales
The Battle of Gonzales
• October 2, 1835
• When Mexicans reached Gonzales, the alcalde would not
give up the cannon without written orders; the Mexicans
waited across the Guadalupe River for the written orders
to come in
• In the meantime, the Texans buried the cannon!
• When word got out that the Mexicans were going to take
the cannon, about 160 settlers joined the fight
– They elected JH Moore as their leader
– They dug up the cannon and flew a banner over it that said
“Come and Take It”!!
Battle of Gonzales, con’t
• Mexican Lieutenant Castenada led 100 men to
Gonzales to take the cannon
• JH Moore’s men crossed the Guadalupe River first
and fired the cannon at the Mexicans
• Mexico retreated to San Antonio; Texas won the
battle
• Significance of the Battle of Gonzales:
– Showed that the Texans were very defiant toward the
Mexicans and they weren’t afraid to use military force if
necessary
The Army of the People
• When other Texans heard about the Battle of
Gonzales, the quickly came to Gonzales ready to
fight
• They decided to move on to San Antonio to drive
out the Mexican soldiers permanently
• In the meantime, Cos sent 30 soldiers to Goliad to
guard the Mexican fort there
• But, about 50 Texans led by George Collingsworth
attacked the fort
The Army of the People, con’t
• Why was this little battle at Goliad important?
– It showed that the Mexican army could be defeated
easily
– With Texans controlling Goliad, a major supply route
for Mexican army was cut off
• October 1835: 300 Texans at Gonzales organized
themselves into the Army of the People
– Selected Stephen F. Austin as their commander
The Army of the People, con’t
• As the Army of the People moved to attack the
Mexicans at San Antonio, more settlers
joined…about 600 in all
• When the Army of the People got to San
Antonio, a brief fight broke out near Mission
Concepcion
– Mexican soldiers retreated further into San Antonio
– Texans began a month long siege of the city
– During the siege, many colonists met and discussed
what was happening in Texas
The Consultation
• Delegates met in San Felipe de Austin on
November 4, 1835 to decide what Texas
should do (some were for battle; some wanted peace)
– Their meeting was called the Consultation
• On November 6, 1835, the Consultation voted
against a declaration of independence from
Mexico with a vote of 33-15
The Consultation, con’t
• The next day they voted to adopt the
“Declaration of the People in Texas in General
Convention Assembled”
– Stated they would remain loyal citizens of Mexico
– Said they fought only to stand up for Mexican
Constitution of 1824 (states’ rights)
– Encouraged other Mexicans to also support the
Constitution of 1824
– Texans set up a provisional government
• Elected Henry Smith as governor
The Consultation, con’t
– Set a date to meet again on March 1, 1836
– Asked Stephen F. Austin, Branch T. Archer, and
William Wharton to go to US and ask for money to
support the Texans
• When Austin left, Edward Burleson became
commander at San Antonio
• Appointed Sam Houston as overall commander of the
Texas military forces
The Attack on San Antonio
• As the siege of San Antonio dragged on and no fighting was
going on, many men started leaving to go back home to their
farms, etc
• Grass Fight
– Erastus “Deaf” Smith (Burleson’s scout) told Texans in San
Antonio that Mexican soldiers were bringing horses and
mules to San Antonio…mules were carrying silver with which
to pay the Mexican soldiers
– Texans attacked and figured out that the mules were only
carrying grass to feed the Mexican horses
– Texans were humiliated
Attack on San Antonio, con’t
• Then the Texans heard that Cos’s troops were
low on supplies and not very organized
– Ben Milam asked the Texans “Who will go into San
Antonio with old Ben Milam?”
– About 300 of the remaining 500 men did and
attacked on the Mexican soldiers
– Hendrick Arnold (mixed-race free man) led
Milam’s men into battle
– Ben Milam was wounded and died
Attack on San Antonio, con’t
• The fighting was fierce; lasted 5 days
• Fighting stopped when Cos surrendered
– Cos agreed to give Texans all of the money, supplies,
arms, and property held by the Mexicans in San Antonio
– Agreed to support the Constitution of 1824
– In exchange, Cos was allowed to take his remaining
soldiers out of San Antonio
• Texans then thought that the problems were
solved…but Santa Anna started gathering an army
south of the Rio Grande River to deal with the Texas
Revolutionaries