The Battle of the Alamo

In the struggle and war of Texas settlers seeking independence from Mexican rule, few of the battles are as well remembered as the Battle of the Alamo. Though the battle was bloody for both sides, and though the Federalist army lost the garrison, the battle served to galvanize the other soldiers fighting for their independence. The Battle of the Alamo was less important for the strategic victory of the Texas Army than it was for the boost in determination, inspiration, and vengeance among the soldiers fighting in the face of an inconvenient war. 

Geographically, the Alamo stood as an old fort guarding one of two major roads into the Texian-settled areas of Texas, one that ran toward the settlement established by Stephen F. Austin, and the other that ran through San Antonio. The Alamo was one fort, and the Presidio La Bahía was the other. “Each installation functioned as a frontier picket guard, ready to alert the Texas settlements of an enemy advance;” however, “without speedy reinforcements, neither the Alamo nor Presidio La Bahía could long withstand a siege” (Hardin 2013). Having advance warning of an enemy’s approach is an important capability for an army, and it is understandable why the Federalist army would wish to keep it manned and defensible. However, the fact that neither fort could withstand a siege without speedy reinforcements means that the Federalist army would need to quickly dispatch mounted troops if the fort were attacked. Such a commitment of resources detracted from the fort’s strategic importance.

Sam Houston, leader of the Texas army, received a letter from James Neill, commander of the garrison at the Alamo. In it, Neill worried that “unless we are reinforced and victualled [sic], we will become easy prey to the enemy, in case of attack” (Zwerling 2002, p. 33). Houston’s response was to consider removing the men and armaments and blow up the Alamo, and though he was dissuaded from doing this, he did not answer Col. William Travis’ call for reinforcements when the fort was under siege from General Santa Anna (Zwerling 2002, p. 33).

The reasons why the other commanders and government leaders did not send reinforcement is unclear. While Houston did not think the Alamo worth saving, it is unlikely that he would commit 200 able soldiers to their death. Hardin (2013) points out that during the siege, there was the “formation of a revolutionary government and the drafting of a constitution. If Santa Anna had struck the Texan settlements immediately, he might have disrupted the proceedings and driven all insurgents across the Sabine River.” Whether the government leaders understood this as well is unknown, but it is clear that much was happening at the time of the siege, and the fledgling Texas government was overwhelmed with creating a government and fighting a strong and well-provisioned Latin American army.

While the popular myth of the Alamo is that the soldiers bought time for Houston to raise an army, but Hardin points out Houston spent most of that time at the Convention of 1836. Thus, the military significance of the Alamo was achieved through the time Travis, Jim Bowie, and others bought for the delegates to draft a constitution and for the heavy casualties inflicted on Mexican forces—estimated between 600 and 800 dead during the siege—that Zwerling (2002, p. 33) considered “quite high” for such a military operation. This military achievement is not insignificant, but the Battle of the Alamo was not a victory for the Federalist army, and its loss did not negatively impact the final outcome of the conflict. 

As made evident by the numerous letters he wrote, Col. Travis was ever hopeful that relief was on the way, as had been promised. The letters he sent to Houston and other commanders were eloquent, passionate, and patriotic. For example, in the letter he sent to the Convention president, Travis writes, “Their threats have had no influence on me or my men, but to make all fight with desperation, and that high-souled [sic] courage which characterizes the patriot, who is willing to die in defense of his country’s liberty and his own honor [sic]” (2013). And to Houston he wrote, “If they overpower us, we fall a sacrifice at the shrine of our country, and we hope prosperity and our country will do our memory justice… Victory or Death!” (Travis 2013). Finally, to a friend Travis wrote, “if my countrymen do not rally to my relief, I am determined to perish in the defense of this place, and my bones shall reproach my country for her neglect” (2013). These letters are equal parts propaganda as they are requests for aid, and it is easy to imagine that the common soldiers in the Federalist army would have been moved by the words and deeds of Travis and the others to fight, and the politicians would have found in these words inspiration to move forward with the formation of an independent government and as propaganda to rally support by showing the sacrifices that soldiers such as Travis and others made. In this way, the Battle of the Alamo is more important for the political and motivational impact it had instead of the military. At the Battle of San Jacinto, Federalist Texian soldiers cried, “Remember the Alamo!” as they charged into battle (Hardin 2013). 

The Alamo has become more of an icon in popular culture than almost any other fort or object of military significance in American history. The largest reason for this is not the military role that the Alamo played in the Texas war for independence, but because of the public and eloquent sacrifice that the soldiers stationed there made. “ The sacrifice of Travis and his command animated the rest of Texas and kindled righteous wrath that swept the Mexicans off the field at San Jacinto” (Hardin 2013). The sacrifice at the Alamo helped focus the spirit of the troops, leading to a decisive victory over the Mexican Army.

Bibliography

Hardin Stephen L. "ALAMO, BATTLE OF THE," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/qea02), accessed September 15, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.

Travis, William B. “William Barrett Travis—Alamo Letters,” NTANET, n.d., (http://www.ntanet.net/travis.html), 

Zwerling, Phillip. “Alamo.” In Mexico and the United States, ed. Lee Stacy. (New York: Marshall Cavendish, 2002), pp. 32–33.