Happy San Jacinto Day!

For those of you who don't know, my dad instilled in me and my sister a passion for Texas History! My dad was a history major in college and taught history in a high school before becoming an administrator. Our family loves Texas through and through and we appreciate its history and were we came from. So today is San Jacinto Day! Below is written by my father about today! Enjoy!!

The famous Texas Capitol painting depicting Santa Anna's surrender at San Jacinto.

"175 years ago today, a small army of 800 men led by General Sam Houston cornered Santa Anna’s army of 1200 men along the San Jacinto River and the Buffalo Bayou.  A month and half earlier, Texians declared Texas an independent republic, and statesman Lorenzo de Zavala wrote a constitution for the new country.  Texas had had enough of the despotic and dictatorial leadership under El Presidente and Generalissimo Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.  Santa Anna and his army swept through Texas, killing all defenders of the Alamo (including William Travis, David Crockett, and Jim Bowie) and massacred all the Texians who surrendered at Goliad under Col. James Fannin.  Santa Anna had done the same thing in other Mexican states which rebelled to his undemocratic government, such as Yucatan.

At 3:30 in the afternoon, Houston’s army (which included a cavalryman named Mirabeau Lamar) quietly walked across through the tall grass toward Santa Anna’s encampment in a grove of live oak trees.  They were not seen by the Mexican army until they were upon them, with Santa Anna indisposed with the “Yellow Rose of Texas” – or so legend has it.  The battle was over in 18 minutes, with only 9 Texians killed compared to 630 of the Mexian army killed and 730 captured.  The Texians shouted during the battle, “Remember the Alamo, Remember Goliad.”

The declaration of independence made on March 2nd was now official, and Texas was an independent country for almost 10 years before joining the Union.  Considered by historians as one of the most decisive battles in the history of the world, this event directly  led to the United States expansion from coast to coast – Manifest Destiny.  The Texian’s flag at San Jacinto now hangs behind the Speaker of the House’s podium in the Texas Capitol Building, as does the painting below which hangs in the Senate Chamber.

Freedom has a price, as we certainly know today, and as we should remember from our forefathers who fought and died for the liberties we now enjoy."

~ Dr. Neil Dugger