Everyone in the USA knows or should know the basic history of the Alamo located in San Antonio, Texas. Also known as the Mission San Antonio de Valero, the Alamo as of 7/5/2015 became a UNESCO World Heritage site. Very recently, my wife Sandra and I had the privilege of walking on this sacred ground. For us, it was an emotional experience.
The siege of the Alamo lasted 13 days. On 3/6/1836, about 5:00AM, General Santa Anna launched his final assault. He gave the order that all rebellious Texicans must be killed; it was a brutal hour and a half with no quarter given. Eyewitness accounts put the total dead of the Alamo defenders at somewhere between 182 - 257. And historians put the Mexican army dead at one third of the total of Santa Ana's troops (about 600). Colonel William Travis died thinking that his letters for help were ignored. They were not, but the politics of that time left the decision makers impotent. But when the right time came about, General Sam Houston evened the score, and then some; it was payback time.
On 4/21/1836, Houston and his small army attacked Santa Anna at San Jacinto. Catching Santa Anna and his troops off guard, the fight lasted all of 18 minutes. Travis's letters had their effect; the howl of "Remember the Alamo" caused Santa Anna to suffer at least 850 casualties and his very own capture as a prisoner of war. Houston's army had less than a dozen casualties; legend has it that the San Jacinto River ran red with blood for days. In a few days, Santa Anna gave up Texas and retreated south of the Rio Grande River, now the natural boundary between Texas and Mexico. The history of this event in its' totality cannot be written in a short blogpost. I urge you the reader to investigate; professor Google can be a big help.
There will be those people who will question why my wife and I had an emotional experience at the Alamo. The answer is a simple one: we value our freedom. The men at the Alamo in 1836 died to make Texas free from oppression. We value their sacrifice. Walking in their shadow makes their sacrifice an emotional one, at least for us.
Copyright @2015 Terry Unger
