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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, March 6, 2011, marks the 175th anniversary of the |
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fall of the Alamo, one of the most famous episodes in Texas history; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, On December 9, 1835, an army of Texas volunteers |
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captured San Antonio de Bexar from a force of Mexican soldiers under |
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the command of General Martin Perfecto de Cos; Lieutenant Colonel |
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James Clinton Neill was then placed in command of the Alamo, which |
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enjoyed a strategic position because of its location on one of the |
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two main roads stretching from Mexico into Texas; and |
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WHEREAS, Notwithstanding the small number of men in his |
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command and a lack of provisions, Colonel Neill was determined to |
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hold the Alamo; his troops were augmented slightly over the |
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following weeks: Colonel James Bowie arrived with a detachment of |
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30 men on January 19, 1836; Lieutenant Colonel William Barret |
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Travis rode in at the head of 30 cavalrymen on February 3, and David |
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Crockett and 12 other volunteers entered the fort on about February |
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8; and |
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WHEREAS, Colonel Neill left the Alamo in mid-February to help |
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his family, which had been struck by illness, and command of the |
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regular soldiers fell to Colonel Travis, while Colonel Bowie |
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assumed command of the volunteers; and |
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WHEREAS, On February 23, a Mexican army of about 6,000 men |
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under the command of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna reached San |
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Antonio; after a demand for the fort's surrender was rejected with a |
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cannon shot, the Mexican artillery began an assault on the Alamo's |
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perimeter walls; and |
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WHEREAS, The following day, February 24, Colonel Bowie fell |
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seriously ill and command of the volunteers passed to Colonel |
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Travis; facing terrible odds but committed to the mission before |
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him, Travis penned a desperate plea for reinforcements; his letter, |
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addressed "To the People of Texas and all Americans in the world," |
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pledged that he would "never surrender or retreat" and concluded |
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with the defiant words "Victory or Death"; and |
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WHEREAS, On March 1, while the siege continued, Lieutenant |
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George Kimbell and a company of 32 soldiers slipped through the |
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Mexican lines and joined the Alamo garrison; the large number of men |
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that Travis hoped for, however, never arrived; finally, about 5 |
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a.m. on March 6, General Santa Anna sent some 1,800 assault troops |
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surging toward the fort; within 90 minutes the battle was over, and |
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the few surviving defenders were quickly executed; while the |
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official list of Alamo soldiers who died numbers 189, the actual |
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number may be as high as 257; the number of Mexican troops wounded |
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or killed is estimated to have been about 600; and |
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WHEREAS, The 13 days that General Santa Anna devoted to |
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capturing the fort cost Mexico dearly; while he delayed his |
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advance, the convention of Texas delegates meeting in |
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Washington-on-the-Brazos had time to adopt a declaration of |
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independence, draft a constitution, and form an interim government; |
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moreover, news of the garrison's destruction fired the Texas army |
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with a fierce resolve, and on April 21, 1836, the battlefield at San |
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Jacinto echoed with cries of "Remember the Alamo"; and |
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WHEREAS, Since those fateful days in 1836, the story of the |
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Alamo has reached audiences around the world; the Alamo remains one |
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of the state's most important historical landmarks, and the Alamo |
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defenders who gave their lives within its walls will forever be |
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honored for their gallantry and courageous sacrifice in the cause |
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of freedom; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the fallen heroes of the Battle of |
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the Alamo, whose immeasurable selflessness and bravery helped give |
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rise to an independent Texas. |