The Battle of the Alamo - Research Paper Example

Remember the Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (1836), a pivotal episode in the Texas Revolution and American history, has been the most celebrated military engagement which created an essential myth of heroism and insubordination. This battle which occurred in San Antonio de Bexar, Texas (today San Antonio) on March 6, 1836 has become one of the most heavily mythologized events in Texas and the U.S. history. Following a twelve-day siege, a large Mexican army under President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna slaughtered the defenders of the Alamo on March 6, 1836. Several legendary figures of the Texas Revolution and American history, including William B Travis, James Bowie, and Davy Crockett, were killed in this event. The invasion by the Mexican army was triggered by the success of the emerging Texas revolutionary movement in the year 1835. In the Mexican occupation of the symbolically significant Alamo, around 189 Texan defenders were killed, whereas the final assault witnessed the assault of approximately 600 Mexican soldiers. Although the battle was an utter defeat to the Texan defenders of the Alamo, this defeat was transcended by the significance of the battle. Thus, the Texan defenders who were killed in the battle were anointed as martyrs to the Texas Revolution and their heroism and insubordination leave a legacy that lives today. As Ballard C. Campbell maintains, “the outsized legacy of the Battle of the Alamo and the physical site itself have since become symbolic of Texas and have served to transform this battle into a cherished if complex myth of heroism and defiance.” 1 Therefore, it is essential to comprehend that the Battle of the Alamo has created an essential myth of heroism and insubordination which leaves a legacy that lives today. This paper makes a reflective exploration of the events leading up to the Battle of the Alamo, the actual battle, and the aftermath of the battle, etc. in order realize the importance of the battle as a myth of heroism and insubordination. In a profound investigation of the events leading up to the Battle of the Alamo, it becomes lucid that the seeds of the battle were scattered during the time of the tension between the American immigrants in the Mexican border region of Texas and the Mexican government. Significantly, the crucial context of the siege and battle of Alamo was set by the blazing Texas revolution and there was a vital conflict between independent-minded American settlers and the Mexican government in the region of Texas, then a part of Mexico. Ever since Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was appointed as the president of Mexico in 1834, the Mexican government started to shift away from a federalist model to adopt various dictatorial policies and many federalists revolted against these policies. The Texians who felt differently about the laws of the Mexican president came mainly from the United States and they were not ready to give up their rights. Thus, the Texian leaders, who wanted Texas to break free of Mexico to become an independent nation, started a rebellion in the region. To combat the rebellion in Texas, Santa Anna sent his army under General Cos in late 1835 in order to deal with the Texians. However, following several battles between the two groups, the Mexicans were forced out of Texas in the battle on December 9, 1835. “The battle of the Alamo is, in effect, Santa Anna’s response to the siege of Bexar and the disgrace and embarrassment brought on him by his brother-in-law, General Cos.” 2 It is important to realize that the battle of the Alamo was preceded by small, intermittent, and unorganized revolts against the Mexican government in 1826, 1832, and the final revolt in the fall of 1835. Therefore, the events leading up to the battle of the Alamo have been closely connected to the dictatorial policies of the Mexican government under Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna and the rebellions by the American immigrants in the Mexican border region of Texas. Although the place of the Alamo has been silent about this crucial episode in the history of Texas and the United States, this attempt to ‘remember’ Alamo as a myth of heroism and insubordination brings out the various events leading up to the battle. A critical analysis of the causes of the Battle of the Alamo confirms that the several revolts under the leadership of the American immigrants in Texas played a crucial role in the events leading up to the battle. It is important to realize that the sources of the revolt were several. Thus, the Mexican government suspected the intention of the American settlers in Texas as it considered that the settlers served the United States expansionist ambition in the region. Significantly, the American immigrants in Texas, in the beginning, did not seek independence from Mexico, but merely a return to the old order of the land. However, soon the demand of the angry Texians turned out to be independence from Mexico and they were not willing to submit to the authority of the Mexican dictatorship. During the siege of Bexar in December 1835, the Texian immigrants, together with the American volunteers and their Tejano allies, captured the town from the Centralist force. In retribution, Santa Anna’s enormous army attacked the Alamo in late February, 1836. Santa Anna announced an assault on the day twelve of the siege and, on March 6th, 1,800 assault troops advanced into the region, where face-to-face fighting occurred. “By dawn the Centralists had carried the works. The assault had lasted no more than ninety minutes. As many as seven defenders survived the battle, but Santa Anna ordered their summary execution... By eight o’clock every Alamo fighting man lay dead. Currently, 189 defenders appear on the official list, but ongoing research may increase the final tally to as many as 257.” 3 Although Santa Anna had his victory, the Battle of the Alamo is more remembered for the heroism and insubordination of the Texian immigrants. The myth of the battle considers the men of the Alamo as valiant soldiers and icons of heroism and defiance. All through the thirteen-day siege, these leaders of the Alamo never attempted to appeal to the government for the promised support. Significantly, the defenders of the Alamo willingly accepted death as a risk, but they were not ready to submit. “Even stripped of exaggeration, however, the battle of the Alamo remains an inspiring moment in Texas history. The sacrifice of Travis and his command animated the rest of Texas and kindled a righteous wrath that swept the Mexicans off the field at San Jacinto. Since 1836, Americans on battlefields over the globe have responded to the exhortation, ‘Remember the Alamo!’”4 In a careful investigation of the aftermath of the Battle of the Alamo, one realizes that the siege and the defiance against the Mexican army created a new history in the Texas independence and American culture as a whole. Significantly, the Battle of the Alamo created a fundamental symbol of sacrifice, heroism, and defiance in the culture as well as history of the United States and the legacy of this defiance lives in the present day as an icon of inspiration to millions of Americans. “This siege and defeat served to galvanize the Texas independence movement at a critical time, provided the opportunity for political independence to be declared, and supplied a rallying battle cry and thirst for revenge that aided Texans in their successful bid for independence. The memory and myth of the Alamo have become potent symbols of heroism and defiance in American culture.”5 Therefore, the Battle of the Alamo has become a symbol of heroism and defiance in American and its legacy is survived in the present day. Significantly, the symbol of Alamo incorporates significant intangible entities such as ‘sacrifice’ and ‘manifest destiny’ and this sacrifice gives life to the history of Texas and the U.S. in general. Similarly, the ‘Remember-the-Alamo’ myth represents violence as well as sacrifice and “the Alamo myth serves as an archetype of America’s mythological ‘regeneration through violence’ as the Anglos conquer the western frontier; the Alamo has emerged as the site of the supreme sacrifice necessary to birth a new society.” 6 One of the most significant impacts of the Battle of the Alamo has been that it brought about a crucial status for San Antonio de Bexar, Texas, and it left a substantial legacy and influence within the American culture and history. Although the Alamo has served different functions at different times throughout its history, it is the Battle of the Alamo which provided a remarkable legacy to the place in Texan, Mexican, and American history. “It is the short-lived 1836 battle and twelve-and-a-half-day siege of the Alamo that catapulted the Alamo to its monumental status in Texan, Mexican, and American history… The men who died fighting to retain the Alamo have been elevated to a martyr status, and they include such famous icons of American frontier culture as Davy Crockett and James Bowie.”7 Thus, the Battle of the Alamo has left an everlasting emblem of heroism and defiance which lives in the hearts of millions of Americans through the modern period. The massacres at the Alamo on March 6, 1836 have created an everlasting myth and symbol of heroism and defiance. Significantly, the defeat and the massacres in the Battle of the Alamo created new spirit of revenge in the Texan army and the victory for the Mexican army was short-lived. Thus, on April 21, 1836, the Texan Army under Sam Houston defeated Santa Anna’s Mexican army at the battle of San Jacinto and Houston’s famous yelling ‘Remember the Alamo!’ designates the spirit of the Battle of Alamo. The victory at San Jacinto has redeemed the Alamo sacrifice in the Texas creation myth and this myth created an emotional symbol in the American history. “If the Alamo siege failed, in a strategic sense, to buy the time the Texans needed to regroup, it succeeded as an emotional rallying cry. The massacre at the Alamo powered the Texan rout at San Jacinto, galvanized American opinion against Mexico, and invested a Texas identity that endures today.”8 Therefore, it is important to recognize that the memory as well as the myth of the Alamo has become compelling symbols of heroism and defiance in American culture and history as a whole. In conclusion, a profound analysis of the Battle of the Alamo suggests that this battle is not only a pivotal episode in the Texas Revolution and American history, but also a significant legacy of heroism and insubordination that lives in our day. In a careful investigation of the events leading up to the battle of the Alamo, the actual battle and the aftermath of the battle, it becomes lucid that the legacy and myth of the battle convey a significant message to the modern generation: “Remember the Alamo!” Today, the Alamo in Texas survives as a shrine to liberty and a symbol of heroism and defiance in American culture. On account of the legacy of the Battle of Alamo, the Alamo in Texas remains as a cherished myth of heroism and insubordination which motivates millions of Texans and the Americans today. Bibliography Brear, Holly Beachley. 1995. Inherit the Alamo: myth and ritual at an American shrine. University of Texas Press. p.2. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=O0UJK_OB0nwC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false Campbell, Ballard C. 2008. Disasters, accidents, and crises in American history: A Reference Guide to the Nation's Most Catastrophic Events. Infobase Publishing. p. 74. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=VitlO1mWxzAC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false Candelaria, Cordelia., García, Peter J., and Aldama, Arturo J. 2004. Encyclopedia of Latino Popular Culture. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 7. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=STjcB_f7CVcC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false Flores, Richard R. 2002. Remembering the Alamo: memory, modernity, and the master symbol. Austin: University of Texas Press. p. 28. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=Rc4mtLSzu9oC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false Hardin, Stephen L. “Alamo, Battle of the.” Handbook of Texas Online. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/qea02 accessed December 20, 2010. McEnteer, James. 2004. Deep in the Heart: The Texas Tendency in American Politics. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 25. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=nc4mlgcCRa4C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false Read More