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N0KFQ > TODAY 24.02.13 17:36l 58 Lines 2726 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Subj: Today in History - Feb 24
Path: IZ3LSV<F1OYP<N9PMO<N0KFQ<KB0WSA
Sent: 130224/1455Z 36442@KB0WSA.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.53
...
Feb 24, 1836:
Travis sends for help at the Alamo
Texan Colonel William Travis sends a desperate plea for help for
the besieged defenders of the Alamo, ending the message with the
famous last words, "Victory or Death."
Travis' path to the Alamo began five years earlier when he moved
to the Mexican state of Texas to start fresh after a failed
marriage in Alabama. Trained as a lawyer, he established a law
office in Anahuac, where he quickly gained a reputation for his
willingness to defy the local Mexican officials. In 1832, a minor
confrontation with the Mexican government landed Travis in jail.
When he was freed a month later, many Anglo settlers hailed him
as a hero. As Anglo-American resentment toward the Mexican
government grew, Travis was increasingly viewed as a strong
leader among those seeking an independent Texan republic.
When the Texas revolution began in 1835, Travis joined the
revolutionary army. In February 1836, he was made a lieutenant
colonel and given command of the regular Texas troops in San
Antonio. On February 23, the Mexican army under Santa Ana arrived
in the city unexpectedly. Travis and his troops retreated to the
Alamo, an old Spanish mission and fortress, where they were soon
joined by James Bowie's volunteer force. The Mexican army of
5,000 soldiers badly outnumbered the several hundred defenders of
the Alamo. Their determination was fierce, though, and when Santa
Ana asked for their surrender the following day, Travis answered
with a cannon shot.
Furious, Santa Ana began a siege. Recognizing he was doomed to
defeat without reinforcements, Travis dispatched via couriers
several messages asking for help. The most famous was addressed
to "The People of Texas and All Americans in the World" and was
signed "Victory or Death." Unfortunately, it was to be death for
the defenders: only 32 men from nearby Gonzales responded to
Travis' call for reinforcements. On March 6, the Mexicans stormed
the Alamo and Travis, Bowie, and about 190 of their comrades were
killed. The Texans made Santa Ana pay for his victory, though,
having claimed at least 600 of his men during the attack.
Although Travis' defense of the Alamo was a miserable failure
militarily, symbolically it was a tremendous success. "Remember
the Alamo" quickly became the rallying cry for the Texas
revolution. By April, Travis' countrymen had beaten the Mexicans
and won their independence. Travis' daring defiance of the
overwhelmingly superior Mexican forces has since become the stuff
of myth, and a facsimile of his famous call for help is on
permanent display at the Texas State Library in Austin.
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ KB0WSA.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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