Harris County Information
Battle of San Jacinto (21 April
1836)
Sam Houston and the meager army of
Texas retreated eastward following the fall of the Alamo in the spring of 1836.
The troops were becoming increasingly impatient to fight the Mexicans who had
been responsible for atrocities at the Alamo and at Goliad. For the most part
they were volunteer farmers who had little military training. However, they wanted
to get back at the Mexicans despite their disadvantage in numbers. Sam Houston
retreated to buy time, in the hope of getting more volunteers, and probably to
get closer to the U.S. troops on the east side of the Sabine River.
On the morning
of April 19, the Texans crossed over and marched down the right bank of Buffalo
Bayou to within half a mile of its confluence with the San Jacinto River. Here,
the army prepared their defenses on the edge of a grove of trees. Their rear
was protected by timber and the bayou, while before them was an open prairie.
The following morning, Mexican General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna came marching
across the prairie in battle array. A volley from the Texans' "Twin Sisters" artillery
brought him to a sudden halt. Falling back to a clump of trees a quarter of
a mile distant, Santa Anna formed in line of battle and ordered substantial
barricades to be erected. Colonel Sidney Sherman, at the head of the Texas
cavalry, charged the Mexican army, but accomplished little except to inspire
the Texans with fresh enthusiasm for the following day.
The 21st of April 1836 dawned bright and beautiful. At eight o'clock that morning,
General Cós joined Santa Anna with an additional 500 men. The main forces of the Texas army were there, totaling about 750 men. They faced over 1500 of the enemy, secure and confident of their next victory. After the minor skirmishes on the previous evening, the element of surprise was now gone and Houston had to decide whether he should attack or fight a defensive battle, which is generally considered easier. Houston had no way of knowing if General Cós was the only reinforcement available to Santa Anna. Days before, he had known the location of Ramírez
y Sesma and Filisola, but where were they now? Also unknown was the location
of Santa Anna's ablest commander, General Urrea. Houston sent Deaf Smith, the
celebrated Texas spy, with two or three men, to destroy Vince's bridge over
which General Cos' army had just passed. This would make escape - or reinforcement
- more difficult.
Shortly before noon General Houston held his one and only council of war. Those
present were Joseph Bennet, Edward Burleson, Henry Milland, Alexander Somervell,
Sidney Sherman and Lysander Wells, and probably Thomas Rusk as well. Houston
gave no indication as to his own preference, but informally polled these officers
as to their judgments. Should the Texans attack, or should they defend? The
majority favored defense, but Houston did not commit either way. Meanwhile
the Texas forces waited. By mid-afternoon Santa Anna was convinced that the
Texans would not attack. Accordingly, without apparent concern, he decided
that it would be a good idea to let Cós' weary troops rest. Santa Anna, with his usual confidence, was certain that mañana
he could cut off any Texans trying to escape to the west and could easily execute
the stragglers as they fled on foot.
Legend has it that Santa Anna spent his afternoon with a mulatto beauty named
Emily Morgan. Emily, in later years, supposedly inspired the once-popular song
the "Yellow Rose of Texas". In any event, he relaxed, and so apparently did
his troops.
At 3:30, Houston finally ordered the assault. Since the Texans were 1000 yards
away from the Mexican barricades, he wanted them to advance stealthily. Remarkably,
the Mexicans were completely unprepared. When the Texans were within seventy
yards, the word "fire" was given, and shouts of "Remember the Alamo" and "Remember Goliad" rang
along the entire line.
According to Houston's report, "The rout commenced at 4:30 and the pursuit by the main army continued until twilight." Several
sources indicate the battle lasted only 18 minutes. The losses were as follows:
Mexicans: 630 killed, 208 wounded, 730 captured; Texans: 8 killed, 25 wounded
(several of whom later died of their wounds).
Santa Anna was captured the following day and brought before the wounded Sam Houston. Despite the wishes of his more outspoken men, Houston had no intention of executing his bloody--handed prisoner. Santa Anna was worth much more to Texas alive than dead. This wisdom was attested to by the Treaties of Velasco signed by Texas President Burnet and Mexican President Santa Anna less than a month after the Battle of San Jacinto. That document stated that hostilities would cease and never be renewed, that Mexican troops (numbering over 5,000) would be removed from Texas soil and that the Rio Grande River would mark the boundary between the Republic of Texas and Mexico.
A panel on the side of the impressive monument at San Jacinto today underscores
the importance of the battle after more than a century and a half of reflection: "Measured
by its results, San Jacinto was one of the decisive battles of the world.
The freedom of Texas from Mexico won here led to annexation and to the Mexican
War, resulting in the acquisition by the United States of the States of
Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California, Utah, and parts of Colorado,
Wyoming, Kansas and Oklahoma. Almost one-third of the present area of the
American nation, nearly a million square miles of territory, changed sovereignty."
Source material:
Lone Star Junction website, "Battle of San Jacinto".
Visit their home page Lone Star Junction
Pohl, James W., "The Battle of San Jacinto" .
Hemderson, H. M., "Acritical Analysis of the San Jacinto Campaign".
Houston, Sam, Commander in Chief, "Report of Battle" .
Friends of the San Jacinto Battleground
P.O. Box 940536
Houston, TX 77094-7536
Sponsers of annual The Battle of San Jacinto Symposium
The San Jacinto Museum