Battle of the Alamo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Battle of the Alamo
Part of the Texas Revolution
The Alamo, as drawn in 1854
Date February 23 – March 6, 1836 Location Alamo Mission, San Antonio, Mexican Texas 29°25′32″N 98°29′10″W / 29.42556°N 98.48611°W / 29.42556; -98.48611 Result Mexican victory
Belligerents
Mexican Republic	Republic of Texas
Commanders and leaders
Antonio López de Santa Anna Manuel Fernandez Castrillon Martin Perfecto de Cos	William Travis  † James Bowie  † Davy Crockett  †
Strength
1,800	185–260
Casualties and losses
400–600 killed and wounded	182–257

The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Béxar (modern-day San Antonio, Texas, United States), killing the Texian and immigrant occupiers.

Santa Anna's cruelty during the battle inspired many Texians, both legal Texas settlers and illegal immigrants from the United States, to join the Texian Army.

Buoyed by a desire for revenge, the Texians defeated the Mexican Army at the Battle of San Jacinto, on April 21, 1836, ending the rebellion.

Before the Battle

Several months previously, Texians had driven all Mexican troops out of Mexican Texas. About 100 Texians were then garrisoned at the Alamo. The Texian force grew slightly with the arrival of reinforcements led by eventual Alamo co-commanders James Bowie and William B. Travis.

The battle

The Fall of the Alamo (1903) by Robert Jenkins Onderdonk, depicts Davy Crockett wielding his rifle as a club against Mexican troops who have breached the walls of the mission.

On February 23, approximately 1,500 Mexicans marched into San Antonio de Béxar as the first step in a campaign to retake Texas. For the next 10 days, the two armies engaged in several skirmishes with minimal casualties. Aware that his garrison could not withstand an attack by such a large force, Travis wrote multiple letters pleading for more men and supplies from Texas and from the United States, but the Texians were reinforced by fewer than 100 men because the United States had a treaty with Mexico, and supplying men and weapons would have been an overt act of war.

In the early morning hours of March 6, the Mexican Army advanced on the Alamo. After repelling two attacks, the Texians were unable to fend off a third attack. As Mexican soldiers scaled the walls, most of the Texian fighters withdrew into interior buildings. Occupiers unable to reach these points were slain by the Mexican cavalry as they attempted to escape.

Aftermath

Susanna Dickinson survived the Battle of the Alamo. Santa Anna sent her to spread word of the Texian defeat to the Texas colonists.

Several noncombatants, including Susanna Dickinson, were sent to Gonzales to spread word of the Texian defeat. The news sparked both a strong rush to join the Texian army and a panic, known as "The Runaway Scrape", in which the Texian army, most settlers, and the new, self-proclaimed but officially unrecognized, Republic of Texas government fled eastward toward the United States ahead of the advancing Mexican Army.

Within Mexico, the battle has often been overshadowed by events from the Mexican–American War of 1846–48.

In 19th-century Texas, the Alamo complex gradually became known as a battle site rather than a former mission. The Texas Legislature purchased the land and buildings in the early part of the 20th century and designated the Alamo chapel as an official Texas State Shrine.

The Alamo has been the subject of numerous non-fiction works beginning in 1843.

Interesting facts about the Battle of the Alamo

Davy Crockett died at the Battle of the Alamo

• Most Americans are familiar with the myths and legends of the battle from movie and television adaptations, including the 1950s Disney mini-series Davy Crockett and John Wayne's 1960 film The Alamo.
• The American folk hero Davy Crockett died at the Alamo on the morning of March 6, 1836 at age 49
• During the early fighting in the battle, many of the Texan soldiers repeatedly cried "Remember the Alamo!" as they killed the fleeing Mexican troops. This phrase has become famous.
• 200 Texans were eventually killed in the battle.
• Both sides included Mexican citizens.

Other pages

• Adina De Zavala
• Carlos Espalier
• Davy Crockett

Images for kids

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  The Fall of the Alamo, painted by Theodore Gentilz in 1844, depicts the Alamo complex from the south. The Low Barracks, the chapel, and the wooden palisade connecting them are in the foreground.

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  James Bowie arrived at the Alamo Mission on January 19 with orders to destroy the complex. He instead became the garrison's co-commander.

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  General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna led Mexican troops into Texas in 1836.

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  William B. Travis became sole Texian commander at the Alamo on February 24.

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  This plan of the Alamo was created by José Juan Sánchez Navarro in 1836. Places marked R and V denote Mexican cannon; position S indicates Cos's forces.

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  A knife purportedly used by Davy Crockett during the Battle of the Alamo

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  Detailed news of the battle sometimes took weeks to reach publication in the East, such as these April 9 columns in a Georgia newspaper.

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  A sarcophagus in the San Fernando Cathedral that is purported to hold the ashes of the Alamo occupiers. Historians believe it is more likely that the ashes were buried near the Alamo.

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  Cenotaph memorial of the Alamo defenders

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  Closeup of the Alamo defenders

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  Closeup of the Alamo defenders

See also

In Spanish: Batalla de El Álamo para niños