Posted on 05/29/2002 3:11:32 PM PDT by JuanAntonio
Edited on 04/22/2004 12:33:39 AM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
Thereby taking the word of one Mexican soldier who may not even have been there, against the word of the dozen or so women, children, and blacks who experienced and survived the Alamo... sounds about right.
>>>Remember Goliad!
>>>Remember San Jacinto!
>>>We're not giving back Texas without a fight! Keep your powder dry, boys!
And they'd better GOSH DARN REMEMBER THAT!
How can you expect THEM to remember that when our own politicians have forgotten that?
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REPORT BY GEN. PEDRO DE AMPUDIA CONCERNING THE BATTLE OF MIER TO THE SECRETARY OF WAR AND NAVY, DECEMBER 29, 1842.
Army of the North Corps. First Division. Most Excel. Sir: I shall draw up for Y.E. [Your Excellency] an exact description of what had taken place in the battle I gave to the Texans in this town, that commenced on the 25th inst., and concluded at 12 o'clock of the next day, and you may permit me to relate minutely the circumstances in which I had found myself in the fortified city of Matamoros before the battle started, because only by following the order of events from there on, could all the obstacles be surveyed, that I had to overcome in order to defeat the Texan invaders, as well as the merits of the authorities and the citizens who aided me in this enterprise, as fruitful in favorable results, as it was honorable to the National Arms.
Even since the 14th of last month, when H.E. the Commander in Chief obtained news of the reunion in Bexar of 3000 adventurers with artillery, to harass this frontier, he warned me to take indicated measures toward holding this fortified point and its environments, assigning me a radius up to Colorado Creek, a scarce 14 leagues -56 miles -, while on his part, he caused the Second Division to advance from San Fernando to Rio Grande, to block the expected hostilities. At the same time, he ordered me that 300 infantrymen from the Division under my command move to Laredo, to escort 20,000 pesos set aside for me to cover my estimated expenditures for one month, after the four months during which my Staff and Company Officers, and the troops, had subsisted on their rations only. Due to the shortages that weighed me down, I could not move this force in its entirety and could only detach 100 picked Sappers, but I sent ahead my Adjutant, Battalion Commandant Miguel Aznar, to hurry on by stage to Laredo, to take charge of this greatly desired remittance, cutting out in Guerrero 50 well mounted troopers from the Auxiliary Regiment of the Northern Towns, for the purpose of receiving these funds and bringing them to the said town of Guerrero, where the Infantry would take then, over and convoy them to Matamoros.
From Laredo, my above mentioned Adjutant wrote me that the money had not yet arrived at the outpost, and that according to news received from General Headquarters, the latter was moving against the Nueces, since the Texans had already crossed the Rio Frio. Just then, Colonel Canales advised me in rapid messages dated the 7th and 8th inst., that the town of Laredo had been captured by the adventurers; that he himself stood in Guerrero without sufficient ammunition or forces to contain their advance, also that up to that day, he had received neither supplies nor any communication whatever from Y. E. the Commanding General. Although these coincidences appeared impossible at first sight, since over there, to the left, existed respectable forces, among them 500 Cavalry, who could have thrown themselves rapidly against the invaders, I nevertheless assumed that possibly a part of the enemy was accosting the Commander in Chief, while the others were devastating and leveling the settlements in the center of our frontier. Considering that taking advantage of time and defending these was of the greatest advantage, I ordered that 400 Infantry and two 4-pounder pieces under command of the gallant Colonel Romulo Diaz de la Vega, should advance by forced marches to join Col. Canales, while the latter stayed in observation of the enemy. All this was actually carried out, in spite of a strong incessant downpour, and an absolute lack of resources that were due to me. But in extraordinary cases, it is unavoidable to undertake extraordinary measures; I pledged 1500 pesos against the income from the federal tobacco administration, while it would be collected, to be able to show something to the troops, and without paying attention to the rain and the muck that had inundated even the streets of the town, I strained to get moving, and did it on the 16th. This same day, Mr. Canales sent word to me, that the Texans had advanced to within sight of the town of Guerrero, and that, in his opinion, they would occupy it on the next day. This news confirmed my foresight, and without regard to my broken health, also without losing a minute, I arranged the defense of Matamoros, leaving the diligent and expert Colonel Parrodi in command there, and doubling march schedules, I went ahead to direct compaign operations.
In Reynosa, I met Prefect Jesus Cardenas, who was awaiting my arrival in order to mobilize all the inhabitants and Auxiliaries who did not stand in the field already under Mr. Canales. Without a moment's loss, I organized the citizens of Reynosa and Camargo into Companies, entrusting to the above leader that he join me when ready, with the precaution of leaving small squads to observe the invaders at close range. Not taking heed that my Infantry was worn out to exhaustion, as soon as they had choked down their ration, I undertook the crossing of San Juan River, a maneuver that started at 4 o'clock in the afternoon and ended at 2 in the morning, since I had no other means of transportation than a small raft and two canoes. There, my Adjutant Aznar reported to me, after having come through the enemy lines, bringing instructions from H.E. from General Headquarters, that the previously mentioned 20,000 pesos be delivered in Monterrey instead. In spite of the impression that such an announcement caused in my subordinates, and of their real weariness, I started my movement toward that town, and Mr. Canales fell in with me at 4 leagues - 16 miles - toward the Southeast of it, leading the 100 Sappers and 137 horses.
As the enemy had occupied Mier that day, my troops were barely left time to eat some roasted meat in the ranks before we marched off again, sending out small parties in all directions to spy out the enemy, so as to calculate whether I ought to establish myself here for the night, or not. My spies returned assuring me that the town had already been evacuated by the enemy who had moved back to his camp at Chapeho on the left bank of the Bravo, 4 leagues - 16 miles - to the Northeast, taking along with him Mayor Francisco P6rez as hostage until he would receive the ransom demanded. On the strength of these news, I decided to enter the town, which I did at 8 o'clock that night, warning my column not to sound any drum or trumpet, to keep our entry secret, and surrounding myself with small cavalry advance posts, I sent the rest of the arm to turn their mounts out to pasture, half a league - 2 miles - to the East, behind a hill.
On the 24th, irked that the enemy did not undertake a new incursion into this town, I resolved to go and look for him in his encampment located on both banks of the Rio Bravo, with five large rafts and four canoes as communication, which craft he had brought with him down river all the way from Guerrero; but notified on the march that the enemy was moving with the flow of the river, I too, changed direction by my right flank, to await him at the confluence of the river and the Alamo that waters this vicinity, choosing that point as being militarily more advantageous, because of its dominant situation. There, I remained in ambush nearly an hour, and since the day was drawing to a close, and at the same time word reached me that the Texans had already come to a halt at Casas Blancas, I countermarched to Mier to let my men and their animals get some food, just in case the enemy had planned to occupy the place tonight. Our scouts captured two Texan spies who, questioned when caught, admitted that their comrades were determined to wreak depredations on the other three towns, before reaching the outskirts of Matamoros.
On the morning of the 25th, I set out again toward the confluence of the rivers; but before reaching it, another two prisoners declared that they were just concluding the crossing of the Bravo, to occupy the town; again I turned about and countermarched, and achieved the objectives of my desires, namely to make the enemy attack me in the base of operations where I had planned it from the beginning. I ordered Mr. Luciano Garcia in command of the scouts, to start firing on the enemies alternately, drawing them closer to my line, and by 7 o'clock at night, the flashes of firing revealed to me the direction of the enemy's advance. Intentionally, I left unoccupied and at his disposal a few of the houses close to the lower part of the said Alamo River, while I emplaced my Infantry on the higher elevations, setting up my two cannon at the entrances to the town square, toward the side where the affray began.
In a sudden and headlong rush, they tried to penetrate to the center, but the havoc that greeted them from the rooftops, and the running rain of projectiles threw them back on the spot. They crenelated various houses and a deadly exchange of fire commenced, sustained so steadfastly by both armed sides that, were it not for the solidity and consistency of the buildings due to the thickness of their walls and the materials of which they were constructed, this action would have unquestionably concluded very quickly, and would have cost less victims than the ones sacrificed on the altars of the Fatherland. During this interval, I disposed that the Cavalry move up to the rear of the Texans, to prevent them from retreating to the gullies and brambles whence they had started, taking advantage of the darkness of night and the incessant rain. I also constantly maintained within the square, a column of 100 Infantry with bayonets fixed, to lend a hand wherever it might have been necessary. A rainy dawn broke; and the firing increased progressively on both sides; noticing that the enemy fire was causing me many losses among my brave men posted on the rooftops, and that the gunners of one of the pieces were nearly all down, I ordered the other cannon to be rolled around to my right and the enemy's left, supported by 70 infantrymen, to molest them more actively by crowding them together, while at the same time, 100 of the Defenders were to tether their horses and, taking advantage of the stonewall fences, attack him from the rear. This measure rendered the results I expected, and the frontal fire instantly started to grow weaker.
The other cannon, serviced by Sappers, and I myself taking care of aiming it through a large aperture I had caused to perforate in the Town Hall wall, likewise contributed to the enemy's loss of the strong corrals where he had entrenched himself. Unable to reach them with the piece I had thrown against their left flank, I had it transferred to the hills where the cavalry was stationed, to strike them from the rear. Pressed from all sides and realizing that they would be put to the knife at the first signal, for the sake of humanity and as proof of magnanimity of the Mexican heart, I offered them a chance to surrender within 5 minutes; they asked that I go over to talk to them, but the Field and Company Officers who were at my side prevented me from doing this; in my stead, Colonel Vega did it and at the end of a short conference, he conceded them, in my name, an hour during which to decide to lay down their arms at the feet of our intrepid soldiers. At the end of the hour, they acceded, and with part of our Infantry in battle formation, without the rest of them leaving their positions, the haughty conquerors started to march past in platoons, depositing their rifles, pistols and daggers on the ground, in front of the unconquered and faithful defenders of the integrity of the great Nation to which we by good fortune belong.
Fearing that I may tire the attention of H. Excel. the President, and of Y.E., I enclose instead, in a separate folder, the detailed listing of resplendent merits and important services contributed and rendered during this notable action I describe, by the gentlemen Field and Company Officers, and Soldiers of the Army, Auxiliaries, authorities and civilians of the frontier, requesting that they be remunerated according to justice. I likewise enclose for Y.E. the nominal lists of prisoners, a statement of arms they had surrendered, of the dead and wounded we had, of the ammunition consumed, a description of the material encountered in their camp, and the original letter that the chief of the Texans, William Fisher, passed on to me soon after the surrender.
I congratulate the Supreme Government again on this signal victory, remitting through the bearers, Brevet Colonel, Battalion Commandant Jose Ma. Carrasco and Ensign Cayetano Ocampo, the only flag found among their humble equipment that was returned to them, since the garments they wore during this combat were tattered to little pieces, as I had already notified Y.E. in my previous note. May Y.E. kindly accept the considerations of my constant appreciation and profound respect.
God and Liberty. Mier, 29 December 1842. Pedro de Ampudia (Signature). To the Most Excel. Secretary of War and Navy, Sir Jose Ma. Tornel.
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