The Army of the People
The Battle of the Goliad took place one week after Gonzales at the Presidio La Bahia. After the first
30 minutes, Mexican troops at the garrison at Goliad surrendered to Texan troops. This victory was crucial
for strategic and morale reasons. Two back to back wins gave the Texans confidence in their venture and it
continued bringing undecideds to the side of those fighting for independence. Strategically, capturing the
Goliad garrison gave the Texans control of a large cache of weapons and supplies. After this
battle, the only Mexican troops left in a great enough number to fight the Texans were at San
Antonio de Bexar. Led by Stephen Austin, 300 Texans gathered at Gonzales to fight, rallied
under the cry, “on to San Antonio.” Austin’s troops were joined by another 100 men as they
marched to San Antonio. This army became known as the Army of the People, and although
Austin didn’t have military experience the soldiers trusted in his ability to lead, his character,
and his judgement in trying situations. When they reached San Antonio, Austin knew a
traditional battle would not be the way they won, especially as they did not have cannons with
them, so he determined siege tactics would be the way to go. Austin’s forces blockaded San Antonio with the hope that de
Cos would run out of supplies and be forced into a surrender. The siege began. !
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Texas Consults…War or Peace…Votes are Cast
The Consultation that had been planned earlier in 1835 for Texans to formally declare themselves in favor of war
or peace had been delayed due to these early battles. By November it finally took place. Those who attended first had to
decide which course of action to take: allying with the true Federalists in Mexico (not Santa Anna and his people),
fighting to get back the rights they had in the Mexican Constitution of 1824, or fighting for complete independence.
Those who favored complete independence considered themselves the War Party and they were led by William Wharton
and Henry Smith. The Peace Party did not want complete independence, but did want to fight against Santa Anna and his
dictatorship tendencies.
When the delegates first voted, 14 voted in favor of complete independence,
33 voted to fight to restore Texas to how it was in 1824, including having its own
laws and not having...
