Posted on 03/07/2005 9:37:54 AM PST by SwinneySwitch
Their umbrellas knitting a colorful nylon canopy — if obstructing the view — hundreds of the faithful dripped before the Shrine of Texas Liberty before most others were awake Sunday morning, solemnly honoring the 169th anniversary of its fall. Among them was Fred Wachter, who made the trip from St. Louis especially for the day, though he didn't know he'd encounter "Dawn at the Alamo," the annual event hosted by the San Antonio Living History Association.
Wachter, a hospital maintenance worker, planned to stroll through the grounds between 5 and 7 a.m., the same time as the battle, and was pleasantly surprised to stumble across the ceremony.
"I study a lot about the Alamo and about other big battles. I wanted to see the Alamo on the actual day it fell," he said. "It feels good to be here at this time to think about the brave men who died here in a valiant fight."
Sunday's drizzly weather kept the crowd smaller than usual, with several hundred lining Alamo Plaza. Last year brought out about 1,000 for the 30-minute event.
Those brave enough to fight the elements took cover under umbrellas, rain bonnets and, this being Texas, cowboy hats.
The morning is not a re-enactment of the legendary battle, but rather an opportunity to remember the men who died that morning. The battle March 6, 1836, capped the end of a 13-day siege by Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna's troops. By 7 a.m., 189 Texas defenders and an estimated 600 to 1,600 Mexican soldiers lay dead.
Santa Anna left the Alamo victorious but was defeated April 21 at the Battle of San Jacinto, which led to his capture and secured Texas' independence. The republic lasted nine years, until it joined the United States.
In an afternoon ceremony, the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, who run the Alamo, held their annual ceremony, reading the names of the dead from the battle.
At the Dawn of the Alamo event, men dress in period costumes — Mexican soldiers in crisp, coordinated uniforms and Texians in a hodgepodge of clothes.
Historic reconciliation between the two again was urged, and the Peace Prayer of St. Francis was read in Spanish and English. Thirteen candles were lighted and extinguished, marking the days of the siege, and flower wreaths were placed outside the Shrine.
Both armies offered symbolic rifle volleys, which, as usual, set off car alarms. A bagpiper wailed "Amazing Grace" before the crowd dispersed.
Robin Worley came for the day from Austin, where she's in sales for a wholesale liquor distributor, so she could mark both the fall of the Alamo and the 100th birthday of legendary western swing artist Bob Wills, whose hits include "San Antonio Rose."
"I'd never been to it before, and it felt like the right thing to do," she said. "It's Texas."
Raymond and Linda Oden have been meaning to make the trip from their home in Abilene since Raymond figured out a few years ago he's a direct descendent of Davy Crockett.
"I've got goose bumps just thinking about it," Raymond Oden said. "We wouldn't be here today if it weren't for what the defenders had done."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- adorsett@express-news.net
Did they have a man dressed in woman's clothes to represent Santa Ana?
Naw, that would be at San Jacinto...
Superficial dimwits. Don't they know that the proper memorial piece for such occasions is Flowers of the Forest?
And, of course, the Deguello would have been appropriate. I don't believe I've ever heard it on the pipes.
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