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The Battle of the Alamo took billet in early 1836 , during the Texas Revolution . It was fought between Mexican and Texan force at a fort shout the Alamo in San Antonio . During the Battle of the Alamo , K of Mexican soldier circumvent a small force of around 180 Texan rebel , who restrain out in the fort for two calendar week .
The siege of the Alamo lasted for 13 twenty-four hours , from Feb. 23 to March 6 , 1836 , when the Mexican regular army surrounded and attacked the Alamo . Between 1,800 and 6,000 Mexican soldiers besieged the fort , while the defenders numerate less than 200 , harmonise toEncyclopaedia Britannica .
The final attack of the Battle of the Alamo took place just before dawn.
The Mexican army eventually overwhelm the protector and capture the Alamo , but the Texan greyback ' stand against the prominent force became a emblematic moment and a rally cry for the rotatory movement , according to theTexas State Historical Association(TSHA ) .
Background to the battle
At the time of the Battle of the Alamo , Texas was under Mexican pattern , but its leader sought to become an sovereign nation . Many people emigrate to Texas from the United States and other countries , searching for land and opportunities after Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821 .
In October 1835 , after years of simmering tensions , many Texans , who were then foretell " Texians , " arise against Mexico , after the Mexican administration became a dictatorship under Antonio López de Santa Anna , wrote Will Fowler , a professor of Romance American studies at the University of St. Andrews in the U.K. , in " Santa Anna of Mexico"(Bison Books , 2007 ) .
Related : Alamo , San Antonio missions appoint for World Heritage Site
The Alamo was built in 1718.
The Alamo was catch by the Texan rebels in former 1835 , and Mexican forces were agitate out of Texas , but in 1836 Santa Anna mobilized another Mexican violence and moved his US Army into Texas with the purpose of ending the rebellion .
Who were the leaders?
The big Mexican force was conduct by Antonio López de Santa Anna , according to the journalThe Southwestern Historical Quarterly . Santa Anna became president of the main democracy of Mexico in 1833 and centralized tycoon in Mexico , which stimulate the country to fall into a state of polite warfare , according toAlamo.org .
Gen. Martíin Perfecto de Cos also participated in the conflict . His presence is controversial , as he had previously surrendered to the Texan force that enchant the Alamo in late 1835 . According to the San Jacinto Museum of History , in 1835 Cos agreed “ to retire to the inside of the Mexican commonwealth under parole of honour , and never again to invade Texas with arms . ” Despite this , he joined Santa Anna ’s United States Army and direct soldiers during the conflict in 1836 .
The commander of the Texan military group was Lt . Col . William Travis , a 26 - year - quondam lawyer from Alabama , according toHumanities Texas , a non-profit-making educational organization . In a letter to the people of Texas drop a line during the beleaguering , Travis drop a line : " The enemy has postulate a surrender at discretion … I have answered the demand with a carom shot and our flag still beckon proudly from the wall — I shall never surrender or withdraw , " accord to the journalSouthwest Review .
Santa Anna called himself ‘Napoleon of the West’.
Among the defenders was James Bowie , a dry land prospector , slave trader and militiaman . He is also famous for design the Bowie knife with his brother Rezin , according to Alamo.org . After move to Texas from the U.S. in 1830 , he became a colonel in the Federal Army of Texas . Bowie arrive at San Antonio on Jan. 19 , along with 30 volunteers to defend the city , according to TSHA . He was site in dictation of the volunteers during the battle .
Another notable figure to fight and perish at the Alamo was David Crockett , a famous American frontiersman and pol . He also served in the United States Army under future President Andrew Jackson during the Creek Indian War , and narration of his adventures during this time form the cornerstone of plays and novel . Crockett unite the garrison at the Alamo and was praised by Travis for " enliven the Man to do their duty , " according to TSHA .
How the battle went down
When the Texans decline to surrender to the thousands besieging them , the aggressor bring up a cherry-red flagstone , meaning " no quarter , " according toSmithsonian magazine publisher . For the Alamo ’s defender , the only two options were triumph or expiry . After a 13 - day siege , the Mexican soldiers attack at morning on March 6 .
After four failed attacks , some of the Mexican troops climbed over the north bulwark and open up a threshold for the rest of the soldiers . Meanwhile , Cos ' man gained access to the northwest niche , according to " The Encyclopedia of the Mexican - American War " ( ABC - CLIO , 2012 ) .
Who won the battle of the Alamo?
As the defender began to realize they were lose the fort , some seek to flee over the east paries but were contact by Mexican scout troop who were stationed to target escapee . Others were ordered to retreat to the fort ’s Christian church for a last viewpoint , fit in to Smithsonian Magazine . However , they were still outnumbered . finally , less than two hours after launching its attack , the Mexican regular army achieved victory . Although seven defenders are thought to have survived the struggle , they were afterwards carry through by the Mexican force , according to the TSHA . woman , children and slave were allowed to live and leave the Alamo .
The Texans did n’t win at the Battle of the Alamo , but it further motivated them to fight for their independency . As they rebuilt their USA , they adopted a novel battle call — " retrieve the Alamo ! " According to Alamo.org , the Texians ' eventual triumph came on April 21 , 1836 , at the Battle of San Jacinto , when Santa Anna ’s US Army was resoundingly defeat . The Mexican chair was captured the following day and agreed to tell apart Texas ’ independence .
Additional resources
“Fall of the Alamo” was painted by Theodore Gentilz to portray the events of 1836.
