Victor South - Remember the Alamo: Americans Fight for Texas (1820-1845)

The landing of Cabeza de Vaca.

who lived there. Then the Europeans arrived.

Native refers to the people who lived in the North and South America before the white people came.

Tribes are groups of families who live together in a community.

The Spanish were the first white people to come. In 1519, a group of Spanish explorers came to make a map the Texas coastline. Nine years later, a man named lvar Nez Cabeza de Vaca arrived with a group of explorers. Cabeza de Vaca and his men left Florida and sailed across the Gulf of Mexico. On the way, they ate all their food and drank all their water. Finally, they got to the Texas coast. They were so hungry and thirsty, they were almost dead. They pulled themselves onto shore, though. Then they started looking around.

For four years, Cabeza de Vaca and his men lived in Texas. They stayed with different groups of Natives. Some Natives treated them well. They were friendly to the Spaniards. Others were cruel to them. Sometimes, they made them into slaves. As time went by, many of the Spanish died. Some died because they got sick. Some died because they didnt have enough food. Natives killed others. Eight men had arrived in Texas, but most of them had died. Finally, only Cabeza de Vaca and three other men were left. The survivors just wanted to go home. They wanted to go back to Spain.

Cabaza de Vaca and the coast of Texas where he landed.

Cabeza de Vaca knew they might find a Spanish ship if they went south to Mexico. Then they could go home. So, in 1532, the four men headed for Mexico. The trip took another four years. Finally, though, they got to the west coast of Mexico. There, they did find a Spanish ship. That made them happy. They left and went home to Spain.

Back in Spain, Cabeza de Vaca wrote a book about Texas. He said Texas was a worthless land best left alone. But he also wrote about treasures of gold, lead, iron, and copper. Another group, led by Francisco Vsquez de Coronado, went looking for the treasure. They never found it.

The Spanish said Texas belonged to Spain. But they didnt pay much attention to it for a long time. They paid more attention to Mexico and to Florida. They werent very interested in Texas.

Then, in 1682, the French claimed the land around the Mississippi River. The French named the area Louisiana, after their king, Louis. They started building forts there. They planned to attack the Spanish in Texas and Mexico.

When the Spanish heard about Louisiana, they got nervous. They quickly sent soldiers to eastern Texas. They built a line of missions running north from the Rio Grande River. Each mission was a village. The villages each had a wall around a plaza or courtyard in the middle. Spanish priests lived at the missions. They taught the Natives about Christianity. They also taught them about how Europeans lived. The missions showed France that Spain cared about Texas. Spanish soldiers could stay at the missions when they were needed. The Spanish wanted the French to know they shouldnt attack Texas.

Map of Spanish explorers routes.

In the early 1820s, American settlers started moving into Texas. The Spanish were not happy. They didnt want the Americans moving into their land. The Americans seemed to be everywhere. They worried they might try to take Texas, too.

Moses Austin was an American businessman. He thought he could make a lot of money selling land in Texas to settlers. He asked the Spanish if he could build a settlement in Texas. The Spanish governor of Texas, Antonio Mara Martnez, told Austin no. He also told him to leave Texas right away.

Moses Austin

Before Austin left, he visited his friend, the Baron de Bastrop. He told Bastrop about his plan to sell land in Texas. Bastrop thought it sounded like a good idea. Together, Austin and Bastrop went back to see Governor Martnez. They argued that Austin would be able to help the Spanish government control the American settlers in Texas. Martnez agreed that this would be good. Also, he thought bringing in American settlers might help control the Natives.

Mission Concepcion

Governor Martnez finally said Austin could bring 300 American settlers to Texas. The settlers needed to be Roman Catholics, though. If any werent, they had to convert to Roman Catholicism. The settlers needed to become citizens of Texas, too. They had to promise theyd be loyal to Spain.