Mejia Social Studies The Texas Revolution

Added: 2026-05-28

[00:00:00]everybody it's mrs. Mejia again with a lesson today about the Texas Revolution last time we talked about manifest destiny the idea that Americans were destined to move west and acquire all of the land all the way to the Pacific Ocean we talked about the Oregon Territory last time how thousands of Americans traveled along the Oregon Trail thousands of miles to settle here in the Oregon country and to start a new life and we also said last time look at the size of Mexico this was this is a map showing the border between US and Mexico in the early 1830s and today we'll talk about the first Americans who start moving into Mexican land oh right about here which today you would call the state of Texas so here's what the state of Texas looks like today they're famous for cowboys and saying y'all and Texas barbecue and big portions and the motto don't mess with Texas and they're called the Lone Star State Texas has a long proud history and a lot of that probably has to do with the fact that they fought for their independence so that's what we're gonna look at today probably the most famous part of this fight was the Battle of the Alamo which goes down in history probably because all of the people inside this church and the Battle of the Alamo died so let's watch a little brain pop about the Texas Revolution oh man I feel fatter than a boardinghouse cat it's an old Texas saying my friend anyway what's the next stop on our Lone Star barbecue tour that's a letter I guess everything really is bigger in Texas dear Tim and Moby why is Texas nicknamed the Lone Star State from Elena hi Elena you may have noticed the text this flag has a single or Lone Star it symbolizes the state's fierce sense of Independence that big ol star signals that Texas proudly those things its own way many Texans think of their state almost like a separate nation and with their history who can blame them for a while it actually was a separate nation Texas started out as a territory of Mexico it was a thinly populated area and Mexico wanted to attract settlers so in the 1820s they leased huge tracts of land to private citizens these impresarios would bring in families and run things on behalf of the Mexican government one of the most successful was an American businessman named Stephen Austin he helped bring in lots of Texians as the early settlers were called they were mostly Americans seeking a fresh start some were running from trouble debts failed marriages or even the law others were just attracted by the cheap land in exchange for property Texians agreed to become Mexican citizens but as their numbers swelled the Mexican government got kind of nervous the US had already taken over native land across the South and Midwest fearing an impending dispute over Texas Mexico made the first move they passed the law of April 6 1830 banning American immigration it also taxed American goods and banned the import of new slaves that was a big problem for Texians running cotton plantations when Antonio Lopez de Santa Ana was elected president in 1833 things were even tenser he nullified the Constitution and declared himself president for life Texians could see that a fight was brewing but they couldn't agree on how to handle the situation one group was determined to join the United States others wanted to fight and become an independent nation some just hopes to protect their land and livelihoods Texians weren't the only ones alarmed by Santa Anas power grab some native people and Tejanos Mexican born Texans weren't too happy about it either but these groups hadn't been treated very well by the Texians so they weren't too eager to join the Americans cause hoping to sort things out with Santa Hannah Austin went to Mexico City but Santa Ana wasn't really interested he tossed Austin in jail and led an army into Texas he was going to force his rowdy subjects to obey the law yep now it was an open conflict Sam Houston took command of the Texian resistance he was a veteran from the war of 1812 and a friend of President Jackson but his troops were just volunteers with little training or supplies his orders weren't taken seriously and were often even ignored there were a stark contrast to Santa Anna's army his forces were unified disciplined experienced Houston knew it'd be suicide to engage in direct battle he did time to train and equip his army first well Santa Ana was already on the warpath in late February of 1836 his troops surrounded the Alamo a Texian military fort Houston wasn't around the fort was under the command of William Travis Santa Anna's troops outnumbered them 25 to 1 Clara Texan would be left alive over two long weeks Travis's men fended off attacks Santa Anna was true to his word he killed every Texian soldier the Battle of Alamo was a disastrous defeat for the rebels and it marked a crucial turning point about 150 miles to the east Texian leaders were meeting at the convention of 1836 as news of the Alamo trickled in they declared their independence the Republic of Texas was born Texian rebels now Texans had a newfound sense of unity but Santa Ana still had a better army and he used it ruthlessly just a few weeks later he executed 400 prisoners of war their bodies were piled up burned and left to the vultures some settlers fled back to the United States after the Goliad Massacre but those who remained were galvanized by the generals cruelty the rebels now had a powerful weapon hunger for revenge Texans began to rally behind Houston and turn the tide of the war it all came to a head at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21st the two factions were camped less than half a mile apart Santa Anna's troops were sleeping after a long march jolted awake by gunfire and shouts of remember the Alamo remember Goliad Santa Anna was literally caught with his pants down the battle was over in minutes and he was captured the next day embarrassed by the loss Mexico ordered the rest of their army home the defeated general was left to bargain for his own life after weeks of negotiations he signed the treaties of Velasco prisoners on both sides were freed including Santa Anna but only on the condition he'd convinced Mexico to recognize the Republic of Texas nope officials in Mexico refused to accept treaties made by a prisoner Mexican generals assumed they would try to recapture Texas Texas started to look and feel more like the United States thousands more Americans arrived and enlisted in its army while hundreds of Tejano families moved to Mexico some were forced out as American settlers took over their land at the border with Mexico there were constant clashes the Republic elected Sam Houston as its first president in 1836 less than a decade later Texas joined the u.s. as the 28th state and that touched off the Mexican American War I told you there's more to the Lone Star State than brisket and ribs then again this is the best barbecue in the world anyone who says different it's crazier than a junebug in a henhouse what I'm saying is if I hadn't dip snuff look under the wing of it it can one more quick video on the Battle of the Alamo and I'll mention while I'm putting that on that success is almost also famous for tex-mex like Mexican food with its own unique Texan twist it's delicious Battle of the Alamo [Music] the reason the Alamo arrests our attention and has attracted the attention of generations of Americans ever since it happened is at its core very simple it's a battle in which everybody dies well the Alamo was an interesting saga in American frontier development American independence war with our neighboring nation Mexico Texas is a province of Mexico and a rebellious province of Mexico even before the Americans had arrived and the Mexican Army is coming back to reclaim its territory considers that the Americans are there are either invaders if they came to aid the rebellion or traitors if they were settlers there who had pledged their allegiance to Mexico and they're in this the Old Mission the Americans hold up about a hundred of them they get some reinforcements the famous people in American history that we know about that's so associated with the Alamo Davy Crockett and Colonel Travis and Jim Bowie at the Alamo you have one of these American citizen army volunteer Army's only 186 some odd guys defending this outpost against an army of thousands hoping for aid hoping for rescue and ultimately recognizing it was going to be disappointed in their hope of rescue [Music] [Applause] this is the imagery that most Americans have that they were overrun by these brutal Mexican forces and kill great tragic losses are always more compelling more dramatic than great victories in part because they bring us face to face with something it's gonna happen to all of us we're gonna die the Alamo in its day gave them a moral cause and so they raced into subsequent battle saying remember the Alamo and of course Texans have been remembering the Alamo ever since the Alamo is part of American culture the most widely visited historical site in the state of Texas and in a sense kind of an icon in American history of the mid 19th century [Music] [Music]