The Battle of San Jacinto was the conflict that established the independence of the Republic of Texas. In the wake of the Mexican victory at The Alamo on March 6, 1835, General Sam Houston commanded fewer than 400 recruits in his Texas army, all wretchedly trained, poorly equipped, and no match for the professional forces of General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. He therefore, over the protests of his men, commenced a strategic withdrawal to buy time to train his force and add additional volunteers before risking a confrontation.
Having encamped on the banks of Groce’s Ferry for 12 days, the Americans were strengthened by the welcome addition of the “Two Sisters,” a pair of 6-pounder cannons, on April 11, 1836. Houston kept a close watch on Mexican movements through an active and intelligent scouting service. He then learned that Santa Anna had split up his army into small detachments and fanned out across the countryside to intimidate the civilian population. Thousands of American settlers fled before them in what became known as the “Runaway Scrape.” When Houston learned that Santa Anna himself was leading a small detachment on the banks of the nearby San Jacinto River, he immediately decided to engage him. The choice was well received by the Americans, who were clearly spoiling for a fight and whose numbers had since swelled to 900. On April 20 Houston marched to the confluence of Buffalo Bayou and the San Jacinto River, where the Mexicans were encamped, and the two forces briefly exchanged fire. That night Santa Anna was reinforced by the arrival of General Perfecto de Cos, which brought his numbers up to 1,400 men and dissuaded him from taking any security precautions against surprise.
On the afternoon of April 21, 1836, Houston led his ragged band in two columns across the river, infantry on the left and cavalry on the right, and plunged into the Mexican camp nearly undetected. Their advance was screened by a high river bank that had been left unguarded, and they took the defenders completely by surprise. The ensuing battle was more of a massacre, as the vengeful Texans swept all before them, killing 630 Mexicans and taking 730 captive at a cost of two killed and 30 wounded. Houston himself was wounded in the foot. On the following day a patrol captured Santa Anna himself, disguised as a common soldier, and he was forced to sign an order for all Mexican forces to withdraw south of the Rio Grande. The Republic of Texas was thus preserved in a single blow, although Mexico did not relinquish its claim on the area until the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848.
Further reading: Gregg J. Dimmick, Sea of Mud: The Retreat of the Mexican Army after San Jacinto (Austin: Texas State Historical Association, 2004); Stephen L. Moore, Eighteen Minutes: The Battle of San Jacinto and the Texas Independence Campaign (Plano: Republic of Texas Press, 2004).
—John C. Fredriksen
Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez de (1794-1876) soldier A leading military and political figure in the history of Mexico for more than half a century, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was born in Veracruz. In 1810, at the age of 16, he joined a Veracruz regiment of the Royal Spanish Infantry, where he initially fought against the Mexican independence movements. As the rebels became stronger and Spanish resistance in Mexico and elsewhere in the New World declined, Santa Anna moved to the side of the rebels, fighting in the final struggles to establish an independent Republic of Mexico. In 1821, he allied himself with Agustin de Iturbide, a self-appointed leader of the revolution, who soon crowned himself Emperor Agustin I of Mexico. Augustin’s reign was characterized by growing discontent over his excesses, as a result of which Santa Anna turned against the emperor and joined with others to overthrow him.
Mexico became a republic and drafted a constitution in 1824. Santa Anna retired from public life, living as a country squire while remaining in touch with his military friends. In 1829, King Ferdinand of Spain mounted a military expedition to regain control of his former colony. Santa Anna returned to lead the Mexican army in resisting the invasion. The Spanish military force attempted a landing at Tampico that was plagued by poor organization and bad luck. The Mexican army’s victory was overwhelming, and Santa Anna was proclaimed the “hero of Tampico.” Now tremendously popular, he went to Mexico City, deposed the president, and installed his friend, Anastasio Bustamante, as president.
After Bustamante had governed for three years, Santa Anna overthrew him in 1832 and chose Valentin Gomez Farias as the new president before again retiring to his estate. Gomez Farias was a reformer whose policies alienated the Catholic Church, the large landholders, and the military. Once more, Santa Anna stepped in to remove the president, but this time he assumed the office himself. In 1833 he was elected president in a popular election, and he began to consolidate his power in a series of campaigns to destroy his opposition. He extended his presidential term to eight years and abolished the constitution of 1824. His authority was now absolute, but there was much opposition to him in liberal circles in Mexico.
In 1835 Santa Anna turned his army toward Texas, which he found in a state of rebellion. Since the late 1820s, factions in Texas had long talked of secession and independence from Mexico, followed by union with the United States. Stephen F. Austin, the voice of moderate loyalty to Mexico, opposed this policy. Santa Anna’s abolition of
Drawing showing Texan leader and soldier Sam Houston accepting the surrender of General Santa Anna and Perfecto de Cos after the Battle of San Jacinto during the Texan War of Independence (Hulton/Archive)
The constitution and his invasion of Texas in 1835 strengthened the hand of the rebels. That same year, under the leadership of Sam Houston, Texans called a convention that issued a declaration of independence. Angered by this expression of disloyalty, Santa Anna intended to crush the revolution and force Texans to accept their former status within the nation of Mexico.
The advance guard of Santa Anna’s army crossed the frontier into Texas on October 2, 1835. The first serious objective was the old Spanish mission at The Alamo in San Antonio. Rebellious Texans had seized the mission, and in spite of orders to evacuate, they fortified the place, convinced that they could defeat a force several times larger than their own. Santa Anna would give them the opportunity. After a prolonged artillery bombardment, he ordered a frontal assault, which overwhelmed the Alamo’s defenders. Santa Anna ordered that no survivors should be taken alive. None were, and the handful of prisoners was immediately executed. Next, he ordered the execution of prisoners recently taken at Goliad. These brutal tactics confirmed him in his belief that the Texas Revolution could be put down by ruthless force.
For Texans, Santa Anna’s actions offered conclusive proof that they must come together, appoint a commander, train an army, and defeat him in the field. The commander was Sam Houston, and he quickly assembled and trained a small force of some 800 men. Houston retreated up the coast, and Santa Anna followed with an army three times the size. On April 21, Santa Anna confronted Houston at the San Jacinto River, and in a brief and savage battle, the Texans routed his Mexican army. Although disguised, Santa Anna was recognized and taken prisoner. After he had signed the Treaty of Velasco that recognized Texas independence, and against the advice of many who wished to execute Santa Anna for his treatment of prisoners, Houston permitted him to leave for Veracruz. In Mexico, Santa Anna immediately repudiated the treaty of Texas independence, and the two sides faced one another for nine years in an uneasy truce across the Rio Grande.
With the outbreak of the Mexican-American War in 1846, Santa Anna offered his service to his nation once again. With an army of some 20,000, he attacked General Zachary Taylor at Buena Vista. In one of the bloodiest engagements of the war, Taylor defeated Santa Anna after two days of hard fighting. He then engaged the American army under General Winfield Scott at the Battle of Cerro Gordo, where he was defeated. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed in February 1848, set the boundaries of the State of Texas and added the northern third of Mexico to the expanding American continental empire. Santa Anna’s long campaign to preserve Mexico’s North had failed.
With the close of the war, Santa Anna went into self-imposed exile. The Conservative Party recalled him in 1853, and he was once again appointed president. To support his empty treasury, he sold 45,000 acres (the Gadsden Purchase) to the United States for $10 million. Two years later, the Liberal Party overthrew his government, and Santa Anna was forced into exile. Forbidden to return to Mexico, he traveled, including one trip to the United States. He continually petitioned the government to return to his native land, and his request was granted in 1874. Santa Anna died at the age of 82.
Further reading: Will Fowler, Santa Anna of Mexico (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2007); Oakah L. Jones, Santa Anna (New York: Twayne Publishers, 1968).
World History
