Tuesday, March 27, 2012

The Fountain Of Freedom...!

No revolution is bloodless! The cost is paid with lives every time!

Sometimes the revolution starts unorganized, with no clear leaders, no clear plan. More often than not, all it takes to pull people together is an act of murder. Such was the case in the Goliad Massacre!
Mar 27, 1836:
Mexicans execute defenders of Goliad

In a disastrous setback for the Texans resisting Santa Anna's dictatorial regime, the Mexican army defeats and executes 417 Texas revolutionaries at Goliad.

Long accustomed to enjoying considerable autonomy from their Mexican rulers, many Anglo Texan settlers reacted with alarm when Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna proclaimed himself dictator of Mexico in 1835. Santa Anna immediately imposed martial law and attempted to disarm the Texans. Yet, this move merely fed the flames of Texan resistance.

In November 1853, Texan leaders proclaimed their resistance to Santa Anna's dictatorship, though they stopped short of calling for independence. The next month, the Texans managed to defeat 800 Mexican soldiers stationed in San Antonio. However, the rebel leaders remained deeply divided over what to do next, making them vulnerable to Santa Anna's ruthless determination to suppress dissension.

While the Texas rebels dallied, Santa Anna moved decisively. In mid-February he led a massive Mexican army across the Rio Grande, and after a 13-day siege of the Alamo, crushed the rebels in San Antonio. Meanwhile, to the south, Santa Ann's chief lieutenant, General Urrea, moved to destroy another faction of the rebel army attempting to defend the town of Goliad.

Disagreements among the Texans had led to a division of the rebel forces. James W. Fannin was left with only slightly more than 300 Texans to protect Goliad, a position the rebels needed in order to maintain their supply routes to the Gulf Coast. As Urrea's much larger 1400-man army approached, Fannin acted with indecision, wondering if he should go to the aid of the besieged men at the Alamo.

Belatedly, Fannin attempted to fall back from the approaching Mexican army, but his retreat order came too late. On March 19, Urrea surrounded the small column of rebel soldiers on an open prairie, where they were trapped without food, water, or cover. After repulsing one Mexican assault, Fannin realized there was no chance of escape. Rather than see his force annihilated, Fannin surrendered.

Apparently, some among the Texans who surrendered believed they would be treated as prisoners of war. Santa Anna, however, had clearly stated several months before that he considered the rebels to be traitors who would be given no quarter. In obedience to Santa Anna's orders, on this day in 1836 Urrea ordered his men to open fire on Fannin and his soldiers, along with about 100 other captured Texans. More than 400 men were executed that day at Goliad.

Ironically, rather than serving to crush the Texas rebellion, the Goliad Massacre helped inspire and unify the Texans. Now determined to break completely from Mexico, the Texas revolutionaries began to yell "Remember Goliad!" along with the more famous battle cry, "Remember the Alamo!" Less than a month later, Texan forces under General Sam Houston dealt a stunning blow to Santa Anna's army in the Battle of San Jacinto, and Texas won its independence.

All through history, when tyrants try to use massacres and murder to cure the thirst for freedom, the results are not what the tyrants expected! This type of thirst can only be quenched at one place...the fountain of freedom!

How about fresh coffee on the patio? To go along with it, fresh baked wheat bread with butter and jam...or honey, if you prefer!

12 comments:

Gorges Smythe said...

Ironic that I'd never heard of Goliad. Guess history books weren't all that dependable even in MY day!

HermitJim said...

Hey Gorges...
The town of Goliad actually has quite a rich history. A small town, it shares a large part of the story of Texas independence!

Not very often mentioned in the history books, it's well worth looking up if you are a history buff.

Hey, thanks for the early morning visit today!

Ben in Texas said...

I believe that the school systems in Texas ( at least when I was in them )Taught more Texas History than US, and a helluva a lot more than World History for sure.

BBC said...

I've given up on my delusion of world peace and encourage everyone to get guns.

I don't know what WW3 will be fought with but WW4 will be fought with sticks and stones. - Albert Einstein

I've been to the Alamo, it's cool, loved the river walk.

Dizzy-Dick said...

Same thing could happen today if the government tried to disarm Texas residents.

HermitJim said...

Hey Ben...
They probably taught the same when I was in, but I didn't pay very much attention.

Funny how we change over time!

Thanks for the visit, buddy!



Hey BBC...
The Alamo is a very cool place to visit. The River Walk is nice, but I would avoid it after dark!

Thanks for coming over today!



Hey Dizzy...
I have a feeling you are right! Some other states probably feel the same way!

Thanks, my friend, for dropping by today!

BBC said...

Texans have some serious weapons compared to my puny guns. But all I'm interested in is close personal protection if things go to hell.

I'm getting old and won't be joining any rebellion, I'll just be a cheerleader and sit on the porch and take pot shots at those passing by just to keep everyone alert. Gotta have a little enjoyment in your old age. :-)

HermitJim said...

Hey BBC...
Some of my friends here in Texas do have a good selection of "home defense tools" at their disposal, perhaps more than our brothers in other places.

It isn't what you have, but how effectively you can use it that will make the difference.

Thanks again for coming by!

BBC said...

My wife's sister lived in downtown San Antonio, we stopped there returning from Florida, I was pulling a big load of new pickup canopies and parked it in a downtown lot.

That evening it occurred to me to call the police and see if it was okay, they advised me to leave town or that load may disappear, so we did.

BBC said...

Being a cheap bastard I wasn't going to take the load back out to a truck stop and bring a taxi back into town. ... LOL

Greg Fannin said...

Don't be dissin' my cousin (distant).

Greg Fannin said...

Don't be dissin' my cousin (distant).