Everything that is HIGHLIGHTED is an area of
interest (meaning that it is discussed on the sheet).
Anything that is UNDERLINED is an exact answer to
a part of the sheet.
Fredonian Rebellion
Haden Edwards won a contract in 1825 to bring about 800
families to the area near Nacogdoches. Mexican leaders
told him that people already lived in the area (there was a
mission and a presidio). Edwards did not pay attention to
the warning, and he forced them to pay for the land they
already owned. Mexican leaders believed that Haden
Edwards did not respect their authority and that he took
too much power for himself. The Texans believed that
Edwards was greedy and a bad leader. Mexico cancelled
his contract, which angered some Texans. Edwards
declared Texas an independent nation called the Republic
of Fredonia. Mexican soldiers and Stephen F. Austin’s
militia quickly ended the revolt.
Mier y Teran Report (1827)
Leaders in Mexico worried about the interest the U. S. had
in Texas. Some felt that the Fredonian Rebellion was part
of a plot to take over Texas, and many reports in the U. S.
favored the Texas rebels. Mexico decided to send Mier y
Teran to explore the area and write a report. They found
that Texas became less and less Mexican the farther
north they traveled. Mier y Teran recommended that
Mexico send more Mexican troops, send more Mexican and
European settlers, and increase Mexican trade with Texas.
The findings alarmed Mexico and the government
immediately took action.
Decree (Law) of April 6, 1830
Mexico outlawed slavery in all of Mexico, including Texas.
Settlers took this as a warning. The threats meant that
fewer settlers from the U. S. would move to Texas. As
settlers continued to arrive in Texas, Mexico tried to end
immigration altogether. The Mexican Congress canceled
nearly all empresario contracts. Stephen F. Austin and
Green De Witt managed to keep their contracts. The goal
was to make Texas more “Mexican.”
Trouble at Anuhuac (1831-1832)
Before the 1830’s the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas was
issuing land grants to people from the U. S. Part of this
territory was land in East Texas. Settlers started a new
settlement named Liberty. The Mexican national government
put General Mier y Teran in charge, and he declared the
settlement illegal. Captain Juan Davis Bradburn forced settlers
to give him supplies for his fort without paying for them. He
also took slaves from settlers. William Travis and Patrick Jack
were two settlers from the U. S. They were lawyers who
represented a Louisiana slaveholder. The slave was free and
working as a servant for Bradburn. The lawyers tried to trick
Braduburn into thinking there was going to be an uprising in the
area. Bradburn threw the lawyers into jail, and refused to hand
them over to the civil authorities.
Trouble at Anahuac (continued)
Settlers felt that Bradburn abused his power. Under
Mexican law his actions were legal. Under U. S. the actions
were illegal. A rebellion was sparked. Colonel Piedras
traveled to Anahuac to look into the conflict. He found
the settlers preparing for battle and the situation spinning
out of control. He listened to the settlers and replaced
Bradburn as commander to appease the settlers.
Turtle Bayou Resolution 1832
During the Anahuac conflict, settlers wrote the Turtle
Bayou Resolution to explain their actions. It stated the
causes of the revolt. The rebels said that Bradburn had
ignored the Mexican Constitution of 1824. They pledges
their loyalty to the Mexican Constitution of 1824. The
rebels also pledged their support for General Antonio
Lopez de Santa Anna. They stated that he was the kind of
leader they wanted. The Turtle Bayou Resolution was the
first organized protest against Mexico, but it would not be
the last.
Convention of 1832
The Texas settlers followed the Mexican news of civil war
closely. Santa Anna tried to overthrow the Centralist
government, and the Mexican soldiers in Texas left for
Mexico to support him. On October 1, 1832 the settlers
held a convention to discuss their problems. The delegates
met at San Felipe de Austin, and they elected Stephen F.
Austin as their leader. The delegates demanded that
immigration from the U. S. resume and for Texas to
become a separate Mexican state. However, under
Mexican law the Convention of 1832 was not considered a
legal meeting causing the requests to not be sent to the
Mexican government. Thus, the convention failed.
Battle of Velasco 1832
While Piedras calmed the situation at Turtle Bayou, John
Austin’s party continued to rebel. The settlers had
located canons for their attack on Anahuac. However, on
the way to Bradburn’s presidio another presidio stood on
the banks of the Brazos River at Velasco. Texans on their
way to attack Anahuac were ordered by Ugartechea
soldiers to stop. They refused and fired on the fort. The
Mexican fort led by Colonel Ugartechea ran out of ammo
and surrendered.
Convention of 1833
Soon after the first convention, Santa Anna won the civil
war in Mexico. He became president of the country.
Another convention began on April 1, 1833. The delegates
asked for better mail service, improved defense against
Native American raids, reform of the courts, and the right
to use English in business and law. The delegates chose
William H. Wharton as their leader. Again the delegates
demanded an end to the ban against U. S. immigration.
They also asked for more money for schools and to become
a separate Mexican state. The last piece of work for the
Convention was to draft a state constitution to Texas.
Austin’s trip to Mexico (1833-1836)
After the convention of 1833, Austin traveled to Mexico
City. His task was to present the work of the convention
to the New Mexican government. He wanted to meet them
and convince the government to make Texas a separate
Mexican state. The Mexican government was temporarily in
chaos due to Santa Anna’s poor health. After weeks of
waiting, Austin threatened the vice president that inaction
would lead Texas to action. Austin then sent a letter to
the ayuntamiento (local government) at San Antonio
suggesting that they begin work setting up a state
government for Texas. Austin ended up in prison in Saltillo
and sent back to Mexico City.
Battle of Gonzales 1835
Another uprising at Anahuac in June of 1835 made
Ugartechea nervous in San Antonio. After Anahuac,
Ugartechea wanted to take back the cannon that had been
given four years earlier to settlers in Gonzales to fight off
the Comanches. In Gonzales, the local Mexican mayor
stalled for time. He told Ugartechea’s soldiers that he
would not give up the cannon without written orders.
Ponton quickly buried the cannon to hide it.
Battle of Gonazales (continued)
A group of 18 armed Texas known as the “Old Eighteen”
removed the boats on the Guadalupe and waited on the
other side. Both sides gathered soldiers. The Texans dug
up the cannon and painted a battle flag with a cannon and
saying “Come and Take It!” The Battle of Gonzales was the
start of the Texas Revolution. For this reason the
nickname of the battle is the “Lexington,” which is the
first battle site of the American Revolution. The Texans
fired the first shot, and they won the battle.
Distrust between Mexico and the U. S.
U. S. as a power – was growing quickly in power and on the
rise in population. More and more people were moving to
the West for more land. Filibusters had already caused
problems in Texas.
Mexico’s fears/worries – the Mexican government was
insulted that Americans felt they could succeed in settling
Texas where Mexico had failed. The Mexican government
felt that the U. S. planned to force Mexico to give up
Texas
U. S. offer to Mexico – After the Adams-Onis Treaty the
U. S. offered Mexico $1 million for Texas
American Views
Government Rule: Civilians, not the military or church,
should rule the country
Church: separation of church and state; freedom of
religion
State government: U. S. valued self-government. People
should take an active role in making laws and decisions.
The government should allow them to speak their minds.
Slavery: Settlers wanted slavery in Texas
Mexican Views
Government Rule: Military or a strong ruler should control
the country and make all the decisions.
Church: The Catholic Church was the official church and
played an important role in government and society.
Slavery: Illegal, but was allowed for settlers anyway to
appease them. The government tried to ban it later.
Settlers practice independence
Religious practices: Most did not practice Catholicism.
Thousands of settlers promised to do so, but did nothing
more.
Identity Crisis: Settlers did not think of themselves as
loyal Mexican citizens. Many brought their American
culture and practices with them. They spoke English, setup their own schools, and traded with the U. S.
Trade: U. S.
Relationship with Mexican Government:
Settlers had very little contact with the Mexican leaders,
and the leaders did very little for the settlers.
American Revolution
 Lasted 6 years
 Fought many battles before they won and defeated the
British
 Both sides had the same basic culture
 Patriots rebelled because they wanted the same
liberties that the British citizens enjoyed
Both American Revolution and Texas Revolution
 Both leaders left colonist and settlers alone at first
 Settlers developed on their own
 Both leaders feared losing control of the colonies and
tried to crack down
 Both leaders began enforcing old laws and passing new
ones
 Colonist/settlers resented the changes
 Goals of the colonist/settlers changed over time
 Bothe colonist/settlers fought against unjust rulers
 Both leaders denied rights of the settlers/colonist
Texas Revolution
 Lasted 7 months
 Fewer battles took place
 Culture of the two opposing sides differed greatly
 Anglos refused to follow Mexican Rule because Mexico
did not guarantee the same liberties as America