PREFACE
The completion of this volume was unavoidably delayed by World War II. Hardly had work been begun when the author was called to one of the many agencies set up by the Federal Government for the fuller utilization of all human and material resources required by modern warfare. Not until the spring of 1946 could the work be resumed. Since that time every effort has been made to complete the volume in the shortest possible time without sacrificing sound research to expediency. The period covered is that of the revolt of the Spanish colonies, the Anglo-American colonization of Texas, the development of friction be- tween the government of Mexico and the new settlers, and the outbreak and progress of tl}e Texas Revolution that resulted in the establishment of an independent republic. Much work has been done by many able and critical historians on the various topics herein presented. Never- theless, a reexamination of the sources and a study of the various accounts available have enabled us to present the connected narrative of this stormy period in a new perspective. Purposely we have characterized the period as that of Tlie Figlit for Freed<nn, for beneath it all runs the constant struggle for liberty and individual freedom. It is a fight first against Spain and then against Mexico, not because either the Spanish or the Mexican people were tyrannical, but because their respective governments had fallen into the hands of tyrants. Mexicans and Texans fought side by side against Spain to set up a more liberal and democratic government under which they might enjoy greater liberty. A few years later Mexican and Anglo-American Texans once more fought side by side against the despotism of Santa Anna, who had deprived the nation of its hard-earned freedom. Few Texan or Mexican historians have realized that the 1811 rev- olution of Casas in San Antonio proved a powerful incentive to the leaders of the movement for independence in Mexico and induced Hidalgo and his companions to wend their way to the north, and that the counterrevolution of Zambrano not only ended the first Texan revolt but also led to the ultimate capture of the leaders of Mexican inde- pendence, an incident which changed the whole course of e~ents and delayed the consummation of independence for a decade. Likewise, it has never before been brought out that the declaration of independence
Powered by FlippingBook