The Battle of The Alamo
February 23-March 6, 1836

This calendar has been setting on my desk for almost 30 years, reminding me every day of significant events in the history of our country. For two days in early March, these are the reminders on the calendar:

March 5
On this night in 1836, in the courtyard of the Texas mission church known as The Alamo, some 180 men stared into campfires. Cannon fire had breached the outer wall, and while they had filled the hole with sandbags, they knew it would be over in the morning. And there would be no survivors; Santa Anna had made that clear. He had commanded his trumpeter to play "Deguello" – the song of no quarter – all night long. Some men drew warmth from the renowned Davey Crockett and Jim Bowie. Some wrote letters to loved ones and hoped someone would forward them. Some prayed. One man wrote on the wall: "Thermopylae had its messenger, The Alamo had none. "

March 6
On this morning in 1836, enemy soldiers stormed through the breach in the outer wall of The Alamo. The defenders, fighting heroically, were eventually slain to the last man. But the example of their willingness to die for freedom inspired thousands to join the ranks of Sam Houston’s army, and in two years the Lone Star waved proudly over the Texas Territory.

From "The Glory of America, " Peter Marshall & David Manuel, Published by Garborg’s Heart ’N Home, Inc., Bloomington, MN 55420, 1991, SPCH 5-5044-0164-X

Most of us who know anything at all about The Battle of The Alamo are inclined to think of the battle as a one- or two-day event. In reality, the siege of The Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Bexar, modern day San Anton\io, TX, began on February 23 and ended on March 6 in 1836, so the battle lasted for almost two weeks. March 6 is really the date on which the siege ended.

A Mexican force of between 1800 and 6000 troops led by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Ana began the siege of the mission/fort which was defended by no more than 200 men including James Bowie, William Travis, and famous frontiersman and former Tennessee congressman Davy Crockett. While a small handful of the fort’s inhabitants were spared, all of its defenders were killed and their bodies burned.

Santa Ana and his army of approximately 1500 men were subsequently defeated by an army of about 800 Texans led by Sam Houston at San Jacinto, near present day Houston, TX, on April 21, 1836. The Texan’s rallying cry as they attacked was "Remember the Alamo! " Click here to read about The Battle of San Jacinto.

Texas had declared independence from Mexico on March 2, 1836, forming the Republic of Texas. The defeat of Santa Ana at San Jacinto ended the war and assured Texas’ independence from Mexico. Texas was annexed by the United States in 1845 and became the 28th state on December 29, 1845.

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