Forget the Alamo: Remember the Battle of Medina

This weekend marks the anniversary of the deadliest battle in Texas history. On one side of this battle stood a rag-tag army of revolutionaries who were fighting for Texas independence. A numerically superior army led by a cruel, megalomaniacal general opposed them. Fought on the outskirts of San Antonio, the outcome of the battle would determine the fate of Texas for years to come.

I 'm not talking about the Alamo. Instead, this Sunday is the 200^th anniversary of the Battle of Medina, which was deadlier and more historically significant than its famous counterpart. In the Battle of Medina, American expansionists and Mexican revolutionaries fought side-by-side against an overwhelming army of Spanish royalists. The revolutionaries wanted Mexico 's independence from Spain. The Spanish army would do whatever it took to stop them. The resulting battle was epic, and it forever changed the course of Texas history. Forget the Alamo. Remember the Battle of Medina.

The Battle of Medina was part of Mexico 's War for Independence from Spain. In 1810, Mexican priest Miguel Hidalgo called for the overthrow of Spanish rule of Mexico. Like the founding fathers of the United States, Hidalgo wanted citizenship rights, property rights, freedom of the press, and republican government. Because Spain was unwilling to concede to these demands, Hidalgo called on the parishioners of his small church in the Mexican countryside to take up arms against the mother country.

Throughout 1810, Hidalgo traipsed across Mexico, amassing an army of over 100,000 people dissatisfied with Spanish rule. The revolutionaries defeated all royalist forces sent against them and by the end of 1810, Hidalgo stood at the gates of Mexico City, Spain 's seat of government in Mexico.

Before the rebels could take the capital, however, the Spanish military rallied and scattered the rebel army in a series of lopsided battles. This sent Hidalgo fleeing northward, where he hoped to enlist United States help for his revolution. Before Hidalgo could reach the border, however, Spanish forces captured and executed him. Although revolutionaries would remain in the Mexican countryside engaging the Spanish army in guerrilla warfare, for the most part, Hidalgo’s death put a halt to the war against Spain.

It would not be long before a man named Jos Bernardo Guti rrez de Lara decided to take up Hidalgo 's mantel. Guti rrez de Lara believed that a remote frontier province named Texas would be the key to Mexico 's independence.

At the time, Texas was a backwater. Filled with hostile Indians and containing no gold, Spain had largely ignored Texas for 300 years. The only Spaniards being brave enough to settle in the province were a handful of missionaries and ranchers. By 1800, only 4,000 Spanish citizens called Texas home. These unfortunate individuals sweltered in searing heat and abject poverty of four scattered villages. Spain sent just enough soldiers to the frontier to prevent Indians from wiping Texas off the map.

Although poor and dangerous, Texas had something that made it valuable to Guti rrez de Lara: it was next to the United States. Having achieved its independence from Britain just thirty years before, Guti rrez de Lara believed the United States would be willing to help Mexico overthrow its own oppressive mother country. By taking Texas, America could provide Mexico 's revolutionaries with much needed guns and volunteers.

So in 1812, Guti rrez de Lara traveled to the United States, where he met President James Madison. Madison was sympathetic to Mexico 's struggle for independence, but because the United States was in the midst of its own war 'the War of 1812 'he could not risk upsetting Spain by directly aiding Guti rrez de Lara. Madison did, however, provide Guti rrez de Lara with an introductory letter to the governor of Louisiana.

This seemingly poor consolation prize allowed Guti rrez de Lara to build an army. Once in Louisiana, the governor introduced the would-be revolutionary to former U.S. army officers Augustus Magee and Henry Perry. The two men joined Guti rrez de Lara 's fight against Spain and helped him recruit American volunteers in New Orleans.

As it turned out, Louisiana was full of Americans wanting to invade Texas. In 1812, the United States was in the midst of an economic boon owing to increased worldwide demand for cotton. Just about everyone in the United States who had land capable of growing cotton, grew cotton. Those who didn 't have land that could grow cotton, wanted land that could grow cotton. Because Texas had a lot of uncultivated cotton-growing land, Guti rrez de Lara offered land grants to any volunteers who would join his fight against Spain.

Hundreds of Americans accepted the offer and in August 1812, Guti rrez de Lara and his new army crossed the Louisiana border into Texas. Calling themselves, 'The Republican Army of the North, ' Guti rrez de Lara and his American volunteers made quick work of the meager Spanish forces guarding the Texas border at Nacogdoches.

News of the invasion reached other areas of Texas and Mexico. Soon Mexicans hoping to revitalize Hidalgo 's revolution began filing into Guti rrez de Lara 's camp to join the Republican Army of the North. Although these new recruits spoke a different language, practiced a different religion, and possessed a darker skin color than the American volunteers, a shared desire to see Texas free of Spain held the two groups together.

The ethnically mixed army pushed further into Texas in 1812. With recruits continuing to flood in, in March 1813, Guti rrez de Lara and his army defeated 1,500 Spanish soldiers at the Battle of Rosillo, and on April 1, 1813, the Republican Army of the North marched into San Antonio, the capital of Texas. The citizens of the dusty frontier town greeted the revolutionaries with cheers of joy and helped them lower the Spanish flag. Texas was independent of Spain.

Spanish officials in distant Mexico City cringed when they read of Guti rrez de Lara 's victory. They knew that a rebel-controlled Texas meant that volunteers and weapons would continue to pour in from the United States. Unless the royalist government retook Texas soon, Guti rrez de Lara could have enough men to take Mexico City.

Unfortunately for the royalist government of Mexico, reinforcements were not forthcoming, as Spain was in the midst of fighting a war in Europe and revolts in other colonies. There were not enough soldiers to go around. Officials in Mexico City would have to deal with Guti rrez de Lara without the mother country 's help.

With little choice, the government in Mexico City called in an insubordinate, cruel officer nicknamed 'The Butcher. ' Joaqu n de Arredondo had earned this nickname by brutally suppressing the remnants of the Hidalgo revolt in eastern Mexico. As the head of an artillery battalion, Arredondo had killed rebel sympathizers without trial and hung their bodies from trees as warning to anyone who refused to submit to Spanish authority. He looked the other way while his men raped and tortured. He rarely showed mercy to enemies.

Although cruel, officials in Mexico City knew that Arredondo was efficient. In 1811, he and just 200 men made a seaborne landing in rebel-controlled Nuevo Santander and returned the province to Spanish control within a few months. Arredondo did this by demonstrating an advanced understanding of insurgent warfare and demanding the most of his men. He also evoked fear by promising to cover towns that helped rebels in 'blood and fire. ' This wasn 't braggadocio. After defeating one band of insurgents, Arredondo executed and imprisoned anyone in a nearby town who hadn 't taken up arms in service of the Spanish Crown. Praying that these strong-arm tactics would work against Guti rrez de Lara, officials in Mexico City promoted Arredondo to general and dispatched 1,000 soldiers to aid him in retaking Texas.

The reinforcements joined Arredondo and his personal guard in Laredo in June 1813. Ignacio Elizondo and 700 hundred royalist militiamen joined them, putting the Spanish army at some 1,800 men. Although this was more than Guti rrez de Lara 's Republican Army of the North, Arredondo was not content with a numerical advantage. He made his men exercise hours on end, schooled them in battlefield tactics, and trained them to use modern weapons. By the time that the 1,800-man Spanish army marched into Texas in August 1813, Arredondo claimed that they had 'made themselves feared. '

While Arredondo was turning his army into a weapon of war, the revolutionary Republican Army of the North bickered in San Antonio. The main disagreement focused on the fate of Texas should Mexican independence be achieved. The Americans believed that Texas should either be an independent nation or join the United States. Guti rrez de Lara and the Mexican members of the army argued that Texas was to be a part of independent Mexico. Because the two sides refused to reconcile over the issue, the racial, religious, and language differences that had been put aside while fighting Spain surfaced. Mexicans began to distrust their American allies. Americans segregated themselves from Mexicans. The alliance was falling apart.

The situation grew worse when Guti rrez de Lara ordered the execution of unarmed Spanish political prisoners. Disgusted by what they perceived to be a violation of the rules of war, many Americans packed their bags and returned to the United States. Those who remained called for Cuban Jos lvarez Toledo y Dubois to replace Guti rrez de Lara as commander of the Republican Army of the North. Toledo, a skilled politician and soldier, had come to Texas after a failed attempt to make Cuba independent of Spain. His experience, charisma, and political wherewithal so won over the Americans that they demanded that a vote be taken to decide whether Toledo should replace Guti rrez de Lara as head of the Republican Army of the North. Toledo won. Dejected, Guti rrez de Lara left San Antonio for Louisiana on August 1, 1813.

A few days after Guti rrez de Lara 's departure, spies informed the newly installed Toledo that Arredondo 's 1,800-man Spanish army was on its way to San Antonio. Deeming open field battle preferable to house-to-house fighting, Toledo ordered the Republican Army of the North southward. With a recent influx of volunteers from Mexico and the United States, the revolutionary army now numbered some 1,400 men. Unfortunately, Guti rrez de Lara 's exit had not eased racial tensions, and the Mexican and American volunteers refused to march with one another. Toledo would have to command a segregated army.

On the morning of August 18, 1813, Toledo and his men arrived on a plain a few miles south of San Antonio and heard the sound of approaching horses. Believing this to be the oncoming Spanish army, Toledo ordered his army to hide in the thick grass surrounding the plain. He was setting an ambush.

When 200 Spanish cavalrymen fell into the trap, the Republican Army of the North encircled them and opened fire. Although the royalist cavalry escaped the ambush and fled, Toledo and his men were elated. It seemed as if the spies had exaggerated the size of the Spanish army. Instead of 1,800 men, the Spanish army was a tenth that number. Wiping sweat from their brows, Toledo and his militiamen gathered their cannons and set off in pursuit.

After traveling four miles over the desolate, chaparral-covered landscape south of San Antonio, the Republican Army of the North had yet to overtake the fleeing Spaniards. With their water running low and their legs exhausted from the march, some in the American portion of the army called on Toledo to abandon the pursuit and return to San Antonio. A Mexican commander disagreed and convinced Toledo that it would be best to annihilate the cavalrymen while they had the chance. The men pushed forward.

Unfortunately for the revolutionaries, the 200 cavalrymen were just scouts. On the morning of August 18, Arredondo had sent the 200 cavalry to seek out, but not engage the revolutionaries. If the somehow the rebels discovered the scouts, the cavalrymen were to fire their guns into the air as a warning and retreat back to the Spanish camp.

The scouts had done as Arredondo asked, and the warning shots gave the Spanish general enough time to set up a trap for the approaching rebels. He stationed his remaining 1,600 soldiers in a 'V ' formation in an oak forest near the Medina River, where thick vegetation would provide camouflage. Arredondo told his troops to hold their fire until the approaching army came within forty yards. They obeyed their orders dutifully.

As Toledo 's exhausted and dehydrated men crested a ridge, they unknowingly walked into the open end of the Spanish army’s 'V ' formation. Arredondo 's soldiers fired.

A rain of bullets, shrapnel, and cannonballs tore through the ranks of the Republican Army of the North, causing 'utter astonishment. ' Bodies fell. Devestation was everywhere. Having believed that the scouting party made up the entirety of the Spanish army and because smoke and vegetation obscured the Spanish soldiers ' positions, the revolutionaries couldn 't comprehend what was happening. Confused and afraid, many turned and fled. Others dropped to the ground or scrambled for cover. The Battle of Medina had begun.

Toledo had been at the rear of his army when the fighting began, so he escaped the initial barrage. Well aware that defeat meant losing Texas and, perhaps, Mexico 's bid for independence from Spain, Toledo called on the Mexican and American factions of his army to work together. He wanted to lead a flanking charge on one of the Spanish army 's wings and he would need cooperation for the maneuver to be successful.

Unfortunately for Toledo, many of his men ignored the orders. Some of the Americans on horseback turned their horses and fled the battlefield. Frightened Mexican peasants ducked under cover and refused to advance. One of the few Mexican officers who still had control of his men, Colonel Miguel Menchaca, heard Toledo 's orders, but ignored them. Instead of flanking, Menchaca believed the Spanish army was weak at its center, so he led a contingent of rebels in a direct assault of the Spanish line. The fallacy of this plan became apparent when a slug of grapeshot shredded Menchaca 's neck and ended his life.

A group of Americans stood by Toledo and supported his flanking plan. They pushed through the Spanish gunfire, 'with the fury of Mad-men, ' and limited the effectiveness of the Spanish artillery by picking off soldiers operating cannons. The Americans even captured two pieces of artillery. The flanking maneuver appeared to be working, with one account claiming that a sniper got close enough to the Spanish rear command to train his sights on Arredondo. Apparently, an assistant warned the general of the threat before the sniper could get off a shot.

Realizing that the revolutionaries had put all of their reserves into their flanking maneuver, Arredondo ordered one of his cavalry units to leave their area of the battlefield undefended. They were to meet the flanking rebels head on. The tactic worked. The cavalry swung around, charged the rebel flank, and forced Toledo and the Americans to scatter and fall back.

The Battle of Medina continued for four hours. Although the men of the Republican Army of the North fought with valor, they were never able to recover from the initial assault. It certainly didn 't help that the Mexican and American members of the army refused to work with one another. When it became clear that the Spanish army had won the day, Toledo ordered a retreat, turned his horse, and fled towards the safety of the United States. Realizing that his soldiers were 'masters of the enemy 's ground, ' Arredondo ordered his drummer to play a victory tune.

The Spanish had won the Battle of the Medina and recaptured Texas. Of the 1,400-man Republican Army of the North, only 100 (including Toledo) were able to make it to the safety of the United States. The rest died on the battlefield or were cut down while attempting to flee.

Arredondo 's 1,800-strong Spanish army had lost only fifty-five men.

The Battle of Medina returned Texas firmly into Spain 's grasp. And without access to the United States, rebels in Mexico didn 't have the guns and ammunition to continue their bid for independence. For the time being, Spain had won. Mexico would not be independent.

One contemporary newspaper described the Battle of Medina as being, 'a conflict as bloody as any recorded in history. ' Although this is superlative, the Battle of Medina is, by far, the bloodiest battle in Texas history, with fatalities outnumbering those at the Alamo and San Jacinto battles combined.

Unfortunately for the people of Texas, the battle was only the beginning of their troubles.

 

Click here for part 2: The Aftermath of the Battle of Medina

 

Brad Folsom