TEXAN HISTORY

The Alamo

Texan History

The Alamo Cenotaph “The Spirit of Sacrifice”

So, the 32 men and boys left Gonzales, without Col. Fannin and his reinforcements. They rode day and night, approaching San Antonio on the 29th. It wasn’t until the middle of the night at 3a.m., on March 1st that they were able to fight and slip by the large Mexican army, not losing any of the 32.

Upon their arrival inside the Alamo walls, everyone’s morale was raised and a sense of relief was felt by their brothers-in-arms. They all assumed more reinforcements were on the way. Unfortunately, this was the only substantial reinforcement that the Alamo received.

March 3rd, more Mexican troops arrive bringing the number up to 2400+ and ten cannons. March 5th, at 10p.m. the Mexican artillery ceased their bombardment. In the early dawn hours of March the 6th, in the bitter cold, 4,000+ Mexican soldiers began preparing for the final assault.

The Alamo defenders, which included the Immortal 32, were defeated within 90 minutes with the last group fighting inside the church.

Historical Note:

The first shot of the Texas Revolution was fired in Gonzales, Texas in October 1835. 100 Mexican calvarymen were sent to retrieve a loaned cannon which was to be used to ward off Indians. The Texans, some of whom were the same men who would later be the Immortal 32, refused to give up the cannon. Some shots were fired, the Mexican army left, but what came out of that episode was the creation of the famous flag, “COME AND TAKE IT!”

Interestingly, the original cannon was recast into a bell that hangs today in the belfry of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in San Antonio, four blocks from the Alamo.