Texas Is Revolutionary! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Stephen F. Austin

Austin had a contract to settle Texas - this document establishing him as an "empresario" was first issued to his father, Moses Austin, but transferred to the son when Moses died. Austin solicited families (the "Old Three Hundred") to settle the area. The colonization was successful, leading to his nickname as the "father of Anglo Texas." His contract was jeopardized by the secession of Mexico from Spain.

Despite the political turmoil, Austin tried to maintain good relations with the Mexican government and even suppressed an early bid for independence, the Fredonian rebellion. His actions were still seen as threatening insurrection, so he was arrested in January, 1834 and finally returned to Texas in 1835. This episode led him to be less conciliatory and more inclined to push for independence.

Answer: Customs duties

An earlier disturbance in Anahuac in 1832 was also inflamed by taxation. In 1835 anti-taxation protests were met with the arrest of some of the agitators, and the shooting of one settler. As a result of this skirmish, William Travis arrived on the scene with a militia and routed the Mexican troops from the area. Because Stephen F. Austin was still being held in a Mexico City jail at that time, Travis apologized for the action but clearly did not change his sentiments for independence.

Immigration was another important issue helping to foment revolution - when Mexico first became independent from Spain, immigration of Anglos into Texas was encouraged to help keep the indigenous tribes at bay, but later mushrooming of the Anglo population led to restrictions on immigration. Slavery was forbidden in independent Mexico, but the Texans asked to be able to keep any enslaved peoples they brought with them into Texas. Poaching undoubtedly occurred but was not a factor in revolution.

Answer: Antonio Lopéz de Santa Anna

Born in Veracruz in 1800, Cos was a career soldier who is believed to have been Santa Anna's brother in law. General Cos responded to the disturbances at Anahuac in 1835 by landing 300 men at Matagorda Bay, south of Anahuac, and setting up headquarters in San Antonio de Béxar.

He announced his intention to put down the resistance by the Anglo settlers. However, the scrappy Texians raised a volunteer army that soon challenged the General in the first battle of the Texas Revolution, in Gonzales.

Answer: Cannon

The small cannon had been given earlier to the settlers in the town of Gonzales as protection against raiding parties of Comanche. With the ongoing unrest, the Mexican government felt it was unwise to leave the cannon with the Texians, so an order to seize it was issued. Francisco de Castañeda commanded 100 Mexican soldiers who approached the city, only to find that the ferry to cross the Guadalupe River had been removed. Requests for the cannon were rebuffed, and eventually the Texians crossed the river toward the Mexican troops. Castañeda withdrew quickly, having been instructed to avoid war.

Casualties were few - two Mexican soldiers were killed, and one Texian suffered a bloody nose. The exultant Texians made a homemade banner of white cloth with a black cannon and the words "Come and Take It." The battle was dubbed the "Lexington of Texas," comparing it to the beginning of the American Revolution. Of note, the eventual fate of the cannon is unclear.

Answer: San Antonio

Emboldened by the events at Gonzales (and Goliad shortly thereafter), the Texians elected Stephen F. Austin their commander, despite his lack of military experience. He had penned a letter to the San Felipe Committee of Public Safety that announced that "War is declared" and that the next step was to rout the Mexican military from Texas. The band of about 300 men marched toward San Antonio de Béxar, where the last large garrison of Mexican soldiers was stationed under the command of

General Martin Perfect de Cos. Cos refused to meet with Austin, declaring the militia an illegal force. The garrison held 751 soldiers and several cannon. The Texians were joined by reinforcements including James Bowie and Juan Seguin (a government official in San Antonio) with a band of 37 Tejanos, which helped quell thoughts that this was solely an ethnic struggle rather than resistance to Santa Anna's centralization of power and rejection of the Mexican Constitution of 1824.

Answer: Siege

The siege began in late October while Austin waited for reinforcements. Similarly, General Cos received reinforcements for the Mexican army. Both sides suffered from fatigue, lowered morale and lack of resources. Stephen F. Austin left to join a provisional government which was deciding whether to uphold the Federal Constitution of the United Mexican States of 1824 or fight for independence.

He was replaced as commander in chief by Edward Burleson. The siege finally ended in December following the surrender of the Mexican forces.

The siege of Béxar was the longest campaign of the Texas Revolution.

Answer: Grass

The Texians presumed the mule train was bringing gold and silver bullion to pay the Mexican troops in the besieged city of San Antonio de Béxar. As they were also working without pay, it was decided to confront the soldiers guarding the mule train to capture the resources.

Much to their surprise, the saddlebags instead were full of fresh grass to feed the horses trapped behind the siege lines. The confrontation occurred about one mile from Béxar and resulted in several Mexican casualties. The "Grass Fight" led the Texians to realize that General Cos was getting desperate inside the garrison, and that their chances of success in a battle were higher than they had believed.

Answer: Consultation

The Consultation was scheduled to meet in October, 1835 but several delegates were engaged in the Battle of Gonzales, so it was postponed until November. Ninety-eight delegates had been elected to the Consultation, but only 58 attended, with none from the areas with active fighting. They were equally divided between those who supported the 1824 Constitution (the Peace Party), those who wished for independence (the War Party), and those who were unaligned.

The major goal of this Consultation was to decide the motivation for the war; the final resolution stated: "The people of Texas, availing themselves of their natural rights, solemnly declare that they have taken up arms in defense of their rights and liberties which were threatened by the encroachments of military despots and in defense of the Republican principles of the federal constitution of Mexico of 1824." A caveat was added that stated that the Texans could form an independent government if Mexico was not being governed by their 1824 Constitution.

Answer: Sam Houston

Sam Houston was selected to lead the Provisional Army during the 1835 Consultation meeting of the provisional government. The city of Houston was later named for him to honor his role as President of the Republic of Texas and leadership at the victorious General at the Battle of San Jacinto.

The other answers also leant their names to major Texas cities - Forth Worth is named for Major General Worth, who commanded the Department of Texas for the US Army and fought in the Mexican American War. John Dallas was an early settler. Stephen F. Austin had many roles in the Texas Revolution, but he was not placed in charge of the Provisional Army.

The state capitol is named for him.

Answer: The Alamo

All of these buildings were important in the siege and subsequent battle, but it was the Alamo that General Martin Perfecto de Cos fortified with several cannon and many soldiers. This is the same Alamo, formerly the San Antonio de Valera Mission, that is immortalized in the "Remember the Alamo" rallying cry - following the 1835 siege, General Cos surrendered the fort to Texan forces, but the tables were turned in February, 1836 when General Santa Anna besieged the Alamo, resulting in great losses for the Texans.