Chapter 7: Road to the Alamo: 1836
Section 3: The Fall of the Alamo
Texan Control
• Texans had taken charge of all of the
harbors north, which is why no force
could invade by sea.
• The Texans also controlled the Alamo
(after their seige of San Antonio), and
the Presidio La Bahia in Goliad.
The Government Falls Apart
• Because the governor and the General
Council were not getting along, James
Grant came to San Felipe with a plan to
split the government.
• Grant wanted Texans to attack
Matamoros.
– Governor Smith and General Houston were
both against his plan.
– Most of the Council members liked it.
The Government Falls Apart
• The Council told Col. Johnson, the
commander of the volunteer army at
San Antonio, to go ahead with the
attack.
– Johnson refused and the Council chose
James Fannin as his replacement.
• When Grant complained, they put him in
charge, too. Now there are multiple
leaders of the volunteer army.
The Government Falls Apart
• Governor Smith tried to take control of the
army away from the Council, but he failed.
• Smith learned that Grant and Johnson had
Removed most of the men, cannons, and
supplies from the Alamo
• When Smith tried to disband the Council,
they ordered him removed as governor and
ordered that Robinson replace him
• Smith refused to give up his post. He seized
the government’s records and vowed never to
return them. The government fell apart.
Disorganized Armies
• Houston, Grant, Johnson, and Fannin we
technically all leaders of the volunteer
army at this point.
• To solve disagreements, they decided to
split up the troops.
• Houston was sent to Goliad to take
charge at the Council.
– Houston did not agree with splitting the
troops, but the three men agreed to follow
Houston’s leadership if he turned against
Smith and sided with the Council.
The Mexican Army Advances
• Meanwhile, Santa Anna
decides to personally
lead the attacks on
Texas to punish them
for the siege of San
Antonio
• Feb 1836: Santa Anna
reaches the Rio Grande
with 6000 forces and
heads towards San
Antonio
General Antonio López de
Santa Anna
The Mexican Army Advances
• Texans unprepared for
Mexican advance
• Col. James Neill had just
over 100 troops in San
Antonio
The Alamo and Its Defenders
• While Houston was in Goliad, a message
from Neill was sent asking for
reinforcements. Reinforcements are
extra soldiers sent to a place to make
the force there stronger
• Houston sent Jim Bowie to San Antonio.
– He told Bowie to decide if the Texans
should defend the fort or destroy it.
The Mexican Army Advances
• Jim Bowie—
sent by
Houston to
the Alamo to
evaluate the
situation
there in Jan
1836
James “Jim” Bowie
The Mexican Army Advances
• Sam Houston
recommends the
Alamo be
destroyed
• Gov. Smith
disagrees noting
improvements
made to its
defenses
Statue of Sam Houston
The Mexican Army Advances
• The Alamo was located along the Old San
Antonio Road—one of the two major
routes through Texas—it would be one of
the first locations Mexicans reached
Evaluation of the Alamo
• Bowie arrives at the Alamo; 104 troops were at the
Alamo
– Except for nine Tejanos, none were Texans.
Most of the men had just arrived in Texas. They
came from almost every American state, and
some even came from Europe.
• Neill, did not want to abandon the Alamo…The
fort stood as the only barrier between the Mexican
enemy and the Anglo towns north of San Antonio.
• Bowie wrote that he would rather die in the Alamo
than give it up.
“The
salvation of Texas
depends on keeping
Bexar (San Antonio)
out of the hands of the
enemy…we will rather
die in these ditches
than give them up to
the enemy.”
—Jim Bowie
Smith Responds
• Col. Smith sent a
small force led by
William Travis to
San Antonio after
reading Bowie’s
letter.
• Travis gathered
30 volunteers
William B. Travis
William B. Travis
• Born 1809 in
South Carolina
• 1817 family moved
to Alabama
• Assistant Teacher
• Lawyer
William B. Travis
• 1828: Married a
former student
• Started a
newspaper
Restored Law Office
of William B. Travis
• Officer in state
militia
William B. Travis
• 1831: Abandoned wife, son, and
unborn daughter
• Entered Texas and started a law
practice at Anahuac
• Active in War Party politics
Additional Texan Troops
James Bonham & the
Mobile Grays from
Alabama
Davy Crockett led a
dozen volunteers
from Tennessee
Davy Crockett
• Life full of tall tales!
• Born 1786 in TN
• Killed a bear at age
3
• Ran away from home
to avoid a beating
from his father
Davy Crockett
• 1806: Married Polly
Finley
• 1813: Joined the TN
militia
• 1815: wife dies and
remarries
• 1817: elected
Justice of the Peace
Davy Crockett
• 1821: elected to the TN legislature
• 1827 & 1829: elected to U.S.
Congress
• 1831: defeated for re-election
• 1833: elected once again to the U.S.
Congress
• 1835: lost bid for reelection by 252
votes
Davy Crockett
• “You may all go to
hell and I will go
to Texas!”
• Like many who
came to Texas,
Crockett Came to
Texas to start a
new life.
At the Alamo
• Crockett’s fame came from his
expert skill with a rifle.
• Bowie’s reputation came from
the big knife he carried.
At the Alamo
• Col. Neill leaves the Alamo to care
for sick family in east Texas.
• Neill puts Travis in command
because he was an officer in
Houston’s regular army.
Internal Disputes
• Bowie and Travis argue over control and
agree to share command.
• Bowie leads the volunteersman
• When Bowie became seriously ill Travis
took full command of the Alamo
The Siege Begins
• Built up defenses:
– Walls built to 12 feet high and 2
feet thick
– Palisades—high fences made of
stakes behind which soldiers could
fight
– 21 cannons placed around the Alamo
The Siege Begins
• Alamo originally a mission, not a fort
• 3 acres
• 1000 soldiers to properly defend
The Siege Begins
• Santa Anna is moving north with more than
6,000 troops!
• Knowing the Texans divided their troops, Santa
Anna ordered Gen. Urrea to take several
hundred soldiers with him to find and destroy
the rebel forces and seize Goliad
• Feb 23: Mexican troops spotted heading
towards San Antonio (crossing the Rio Grande)
Surprise!
• Santa Anna’s arrival was a surprise to
Travis because they did not expect a
fight until mid-March… still waiting on
reinforcements.
• Santa Anna was surprised too. He did
not think defenders would still be at the
Alamo
The Siege Begins
• Santa Anna
demands surrender
• Texans reply with a
cannon
shot
Flag flown over the Alamo
•Santa Anna raises blood red flag atop the San
Fernando Cathedral.
•The flag was a signal that he would show no
mercy to the rebels if they chose to fight.
The Siege Begins
• Feb 24: Mexican troops
begin to fire
• Cannon fire and the Mexican
military band noisily
bombarded the troops for
12 days.
• Travis and his men could have fled when the siege began.
• However, Travis made it clear that he would defend the
fort at all costs.
• Travis writes a letter to Gonzales, ending it VICTORY OR
DEATH
• Day 4: Travis orders troops to stop firing
Fall of the Alamo
• Juan Seguin escaped to search for help.
• March 1: 32 men arrived from Gonzales as
reinforcements.
• James Bonham brought back bad news from
Goliad: Fannin could not come to the aid of
the Alamo
• Travis could not defend the Alamo with the
men he had because the walls extended nearly
a quarter of a mile and he had fewer than 200
men to spread over the distance.
• 189 troops inside the Alamo… Santa Anna had
at least 1800 forces
Fall of the Alamo
• March 5: one account stated that
Travis drew a line in the dirt in front of
the Alamo chapel. He asked those who
wished to stay to cross over the line.
Only ONE man decided to leave the
Alamo.
• Santa Anna knew leaders were meeting
at Washington-on-the-Brazos. His plan
was to move north and capture them.
Fall of the Alamo
•
March 6 at 5am: Texans awakened suddenly
as about 1,800 Mexican soldiers march
towards The Alamo carrying ladders and
bayonets.
–
–
•
•
Bayonets are long blades attached to the end of
their guns
The men carried ladders to help the troops climb
up and over the walls
Santa Anna’s army played “El Degüello”
Mexicans shouted “Viva Santa Anna!”
Fall of the Alamo
•
•
•
•
four columns of Mexican soldiers
attack
Low on ammunition, the Texans shot
nails, chopped-up horseshoes, and even
door hinges out of their cannons.
The Mexicans were halted by Texas
artillery and had to fall back twice
Mexican soldiers regroup and
overwhelmed the Texans
Fall of the Alamo
• Travis was among the dead. While
helping to defend the weakened north
wall, he had been one of the first to
fall.
• At about 8 AM, a third attack began.
This time, ladders went up at the north
wall—and stayed. Hundreds of Mexican
soldiers scrambled over the wall and
into the fort.
Fall of the Alamo
• Mexican soldiers enter the
Alamo by the hundreds
• Mexicans capture a cannon
• Hand-to-hand combat follows
until almost all defenders killed
Fall of the Alamo
• The defenders retreated into the Alamo’s
buildings to make a final stand. Most shut
themselves inside the Long Barracks.
• A barrack is a building in which soldiers live
• Crockett and some others took shelter in
the Alamo’s chapel.
• Jim Bowie was killed in bed.
• Santa Anna ordered the execution of the
surviving defenders.
Fall of the Alamo
• At least 182 Texans killed
• At least 8 Tejanos killed at
the Alamo while fighting for
Texas
• Approximately 600 Mexican
casualties
Fall of the Alamo
• Survivors:
–
Susanna Dickinson
Susanna Dickinson
and her daughter
Angelina were among
the survivors. Also
among the survivors
were several slaves.
They included Joe,
the slave of William
Travis.
Fall of the Alamo
• Santa Anna allowed the women,
children, and slaves to go free because
they had not taken part in the
fighting…he also wanted them to
spread the word of what would happen
to those who stood in Santa Anna’s
way.
Aftermath
• The fight had helped the struggle for
Texas independence… they had held up
Santa Anna’s army for two weeks. This
gave the leaders at Washington-on-theBrazos time.
• Leaders of Texas used this time to
declare independence, write a
constitution, and set up a new
government
Fall of the Alamo
• Santa Anna wanted to make a clear
example of the men in the Alamo. Santa
Anna wanted to scare the rebels so
badly that they would all leave Texas.
• Santa Anna believed that after taking
the Alamo he had achieved a total
victory against Texas…
• “Remember the Alamo!”