Remember The Alamo
America remembers many great battles that represent a turning point in a conflict that helped shaped our history. We think of D-Day in World War II that turned the tide of victory toward the allies despite horrific losses. But it is a unique battle that is remembered with pride and patriotism but is also a battle that was lost and almost everybody on our side brutally killed. But that was the case in the battle for the Alamo in 1863.
The battle for the Alamo was not a conventional battle in the sense of two equally matched armies fighting back and forth to retain property. It was, to put it bluntly, a slaughter. But the brave stand of those few hundred Texans against thousands of Mexican soldiers continues to inspire us today because it was a stand against impossible odds but it was a stand that reflected the American ethic of never giving up or surrendering when there is a principle to be defended.
The siege at the Alamo actually lasted thirteen days. It began on February 23, 1863 and it was over by March 6th. It is hard to imagine today, with Mexico to our south a trusted ally of the United States but this was a battle to stop that attempts by Mexico to invade the newly forming country of the United States which was an act of war to be sure. The brave men who stood against that vast army have become American icons of bravery and the American spirit and the names listed among those killed in that fort included Davy Crocket, Jim Bowie, the commander of the unit Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis. It was Travis that inspired his men to fight against insurmountable odds and his courage is what we celebrate whenever we say that famous rallying cry that come out of this battle which was “Remember the Alamo.” Travis wrote in a letter how he defied the Mexican attackers on the eve of the final siege.
I am besieged, by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna. I have sustained a continual Bombardment and cannonade for 24 hours and have not lost a man. The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise, the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken. I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, and our flag still waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat. I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country. Victory or Death.
It was this brave stand that actually turned the war against this invading army to the advantage of the Americans. The outrage from the slaughter of these men inspired that famous rallying cry that we remember even now centuries later when we hear those words “Remember the Alamo”. Their stand against Santa Anna gave Sam Houston the time to organize a much more potent army which went on to deliver to Santa Anna a stunning defeat at San Jacinto which was the turning point for Texas which went on from there to victory in this war.
The spirit of Texas was never the same and to this day, Texas prides itself as a people of particular courage, boldness and a unique independence that even sets them apart from the already fiercely independent American spirit. Moreover, the entire nation looks to this battle as an example of how a few good men helped deliver a victory, even if it was at the cost of their own lives. That indeed is the true spirit of patriotism.
Related topics
|
|
|
07/03/2008 08:17 PM |
|
On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress accepted the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson. The declaration came about as a result of the War of Independence. ...
|
|
|
07/01/2008 08:03 PM |
|
On July 2, 1881, President James Garfield was shot two times while waiting for a train at a train station. His assassin, Charles Guiteau, a lawyer whose application to...
|
|
|
06/30/2008 08:24 PM |
|
The Battle of Gettysburg was the costliest battle of the American Civil War based on number of casualties. Spanning over three days, from July 1-3, 1863, the Battle resulted...
|
|
|
06/27/2008 08:50 PM |
|
After three months of negotiating, the five Great Powers (Britain, France, Italy, Japan, and the United States) who participated in World War I agreed on June 28th to a post-war...
|
|
|
06/25/2008 08:07 PM |
|
On June 26, 1917, the first U.S. troops arrived in France to fight alongside Britain, France, Italy, and Russia against Germany, and Austria-Hungary in World War I....
|
|
|
06/22/2008 08:59 PM |
|
On June 23, 1683, William Penn signed a treaty with the chiefs of the Lenni Lenape tribe to guarantee the peace between the two groups. The area of...
|
|
|
06/19/2008 08:07 PM |
|
While the first industrial revolution focused on a move from hand and home-made products to machine-made goods, the second industrial revolution that was centered on America expanded on this and...
|
|
|
06/16/2008 08:25 PM |
|
1972 - Five men were caught breaking into the Watergate Hotel |
|
On June 17th, 1972, five men were caught breaking into the Democratic National Headquarters located at the office complex of the Watergate Hotel located in Washington, D.C. This eventually led...
|
|
More Articles
Related Products And FREE Videos
More Articles
... set backs. But in the context of American history, there are a number of truly phenomenal moments when everything changed. These are not just one day events, although some are that sudden. But these are events that once they transpired, Americans thought of themselves, the world and ...
... a time when it was firmly believed that man would never fly like a bird and indeed, man was meant to never fly but always be a terrestrial being. We can be grateful that the Wright brothers did not hold to that belief. The date of that first successful flight was December 17, 1903. ...
... netted him the title of commander and chief of the American Army when the continental congress created that role in 1775. Small wonder when he ascended to the presidency some years later, he carried the responsibility of commander and chief with him to the presidency where it continues ...
... wars around the world. The Soviet Unions, working with China happily contributed to the humiliating loss in Vietnam that the United States endured. But the United States then turned around and armed the Afghan Mujahideen which lead to the defeat of the Soviet Union in their occupation ...
... Beyond that the preservation of the union as one country was also in contest in the Civil War. But it was the moral issue of slavery that made the Civil War such an emotional issue and one that caused people to fight with such ferociousness to defend their side. In the end, even Abraham ...