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00:30It is a brief and bloody battle fought on a remote frontier.
00:36For 13 days, the doomed garrison has stood its ground,
00:41watching the enemy force massing around it.
00:47Now, alone, they face the inevitable hour
00:52and rush headlong into the crucible of history.
01:00Refusing to surrender or retreat,
01:16they die in a battle lasting less than a single hour.
01:20Yet their story lives on.
01:28It is the story of a place called the Alamo.
01:31In 1836, Texas was still a territory of Mexico,
01:54but the revolution had begun.
01:56Here in this century-old mission on the banks of the San Antonio River,
02:01the Texians, as the settlers called themselves,
02:04made their stand for independence.
02:08Among them were some legendary names in American history.
02:13Jim Bowie,
02:13William Travis
02:15and Davy Crockett.
02:22The President of Mexico, General Santa Ana,
02:25retaliated swiftly,
02:28crossing the desert with a force of more than 3,000
02:31to crush the rebels and reclaim Texas.
02:34Despite reports that Santa Ana was on his way,
02:41the Alamo defenders were in no hurry.
02:44After all, no one believed Santa Ana would attack in the winter.
02:48Noon, the San Antonio River Valley of South Texas.
03:03The small town of Beja,
03:05less than half a mile from the Alamo,
03:08lies peaceful.
03:09Suddenly, a sentry startles.
03:22He's seen something.
03:24A flash of color, a gleam of metal.
03:30No.
03:31Santa Ana couldn't have rallied his troops so soon.
03:34But this is no false alarm.
03:39The enemy is indeed at the gates.
03:49Captain Dickinson galloped up to our dwelling
03:51and hurriedly exclaimed,
03:53The Mexicans are upon us.
03:54Give me the babe and jump up behind me.
03:59Bejar is thrown into chaos.
04:04Texas Army volunteers grab whatever provisions they can
04:12and rush to the Alamo.
04:22As the Mexicans already occupied Carmel Street,
04:25we galloped across the river at the ford south of it
04:27and entered the fort at the southern gate.
04:2922-year-old Susanna Dickinson and her husband Almiron
04:35join the men of the Alamo garrison
04:37behind the sturdy walls of the fort.
04:42The 13-day siege of the Alamo has begun.
04:50Santa Ana enters Bejar
04:52with a cavalry unit of over 350 men.
04:55He later reports that he captured the town
04:58without firing a shot.
05:03In 1836, Texas is a state of Mexico,
05:07not the United States.
05:09Its citizens have risen in armed rebellion
05:11against the central government in Mexico City.
05:15Santa Ana has led his army across the Rio Grande
05:17to enforce Mexican law and put down the revolt.
05:21The taking of Bejar is just the start
05:25of his Texas campaign.
05:27He waits now for the rest of the companies
05:29and his artillery to arrive.
05:32His target lies across the river,
05:35just 800 yards away.
05:37The Alamo.
05:41Comrades in arms,
05:42our most sacred duties have brought us
05:44to these uninhabited lands
05:46and demand are engaging in combat
05:48against the rubble of adventurers.
05:51Wretches.
05:53Soon will they become aware of their folly.
06:01Santa Ana will make an example
06:03of this band of ragtag insurgents.
06:06The Mexicans hoist the red flag
06:15of no quarter
06:16from the Church of San Fernando.
06:19Its meaning is clear.
06:21There will be no mercy,
06:22no prisoners.
06:24This will be a battle to the death.
06:27I am.
06:33Inside the Alamo,
06:35the Texians prepare to fight.
06:38Sharing command of the garrison
06:39are two strong-willed men,
06:43William Travis and Jim Bowie.
06:49A blood-red banner waves
06:51from the Church of Bejar
06:52in token that the war
06:53is one of vengeance against rebels.
06:56Their threats have no influence
06:58on me or my men.
07:02William Travis is an idealist,
07:04wholly committed to the cause
07:06of Texas independence.
07:08His firing of the cannon
07:09is just the sort of act of bravado
07:11that causes friction
07:12between him and the Alamo's
07:14other commander, Jim Bowie.
07:17Bowie is a realist.
07:19He too believes in the cause of liberty.
07:22But he knows these 150 volunteers
07:24don't stand a chance
07:26against hundreds,
07:27maybe thousands,
07:28thousands of Mexican soldados.
07:31He quickly scrawls a note
07:33in Spanish to Santa Ana.
07:36The cannon was fired in haste.
07:38Do the Mexicans wish to negotiate?
07:45Santa Ana's reply is succinct.
07:49Surrender or die.
07:53Bowie is not surprised.
07:55He's a veteran of another battle
07:57that wrenched the Alamo
07:58from Mexican hands
07:59just three months ago.
08:02He believes the fort
08:03is a keystone
08:04in the defense
08:05of the Texas frontier.
08:08The salvation of Texas
08:09depends in great measure
08:11in keeping Bejar
08:11out of the hands of the enemy.
08:14It serves as the frontier picket guard,
08:16and if it were in the possession
08:17of Santa Ana,
08:18there is no stronghold
08:19from which to repel him.
08:20Trusting that reinforcements
08:25will come to their aid,
08:27Travis and Bowie unite.
08:29They will not abandon the Alamo.
08:34How can they know
08:35they have committed themselves
08:37to a course and a fate
08:39from which there will be no return?
08:41The stage is set.
08:49Travis sends out a plea
08:50for reinforcements.
08:53We have removed all our men
08:55into the Alamo,
08:56where we will make such resistance
08:58as is due to our honor
08:59and that of the country,
09:02until we can get assistance
09:03from you,
09:04which we expect you
09:05to forward immediately.
09:07We have 146 men
09:09who are determined
09:10never to retreat.
09:14Ninety-five miles southeast
09:15of the Alamo
09:16lies Goliad,
09:18the main Texian stronghold.
09:20It is a hard day's ride
09:22across open prairie,
09:23heavily patrolled
09:24by Mexican sentries.
09:30But this message
09:31must get through.
09:34A young courier
09:35rides out
09:36into the hostile night,
09:37carrying Travis's appeal.
09:48The men of the Alamo
09:49hunker down
09:50behind their fortified walls
09:52to wait,
09:57to watch,
09:58to do battle
10:06with the specter
10:07of the fate
10:08that awaits them.
10:21The second day
10:23of the siege
10:23of the Alamo
10:24dawns warm
10:25and cloudy.
10:26Mexican soldiers
10:31continue to stream
10:32into Bejar
10:33just across the river.
10:35There are now
10:35over 1,500 of them,
10:37a spectacle designed
10:38to inspire fear
10:40in any enemy.
10:44There are the
10:44Casadores,
10:46the Zapadores,
10:47and the Dragoons.
10:49But most of
10:50General Santa Ana's men
10:51are soldados,
10:52their white fatigued
10:53uniforms now
10:54a grimy tan.
10:57They have endured
10:57a forced march
10:58of more than
10:59350 miles
11:01through the desert
11:02in temperatures
11:02plummeting well
11:03below freezing.
11:07At 9 o'clock,
11:09His Excellency
11:09appeared and ordered
11:10that shoes
11:11be distributed
11:12in his presence
11:13among the preferred
11:14companies.
11:16One of the Zapadores,
11:18Jose Enrique de la Peña,
11:19keeps meticulous notes
11:21of his service
11:22with Santa Ana.
11:27His Excellency
11:29appeared and ordered
11:29that the frontal advance
11:31proceed immediately
11:32toward the Alamo
11:33and commence the firing.
11:35A battery
11:35of two eight-pounders
11:36and a howitzer
11:37was properly placed
11:38and began to bombard
11:40the enemy's fortifications.
11:41Most of the defenders
11:59inside the Alamo walls
12:01are typical Texas settlers,
12:03Panglows from east
12:04of the Mississippi
12:05who packed up
12:06their belongings
12:06and sometimes their families
12:08and moved to Texas.
12:09others have arrived
12:12only in the last few weeks,
12:13drawn by the thrill
12:14of battle
12:15and the promise
12:16of free land.
12:18At least two
12:19of the defenders
12:20are black.
12:21One is a free man.
12:23The other is the slave
12:24of Colonel William Travis.
12:27With Susanna Dickinson
12:28and her daughter Angelina,
12:30there are 14 women
12:31and children
12:32sheltered
12:33in the Alamo church.
12:36A number of the defenders
12:38are Tejanos,
12:39Mexican residents
12:40of Texas.
12:42Their leader
12:43is Captain Juan Seguin.
12:45Just 29,
12:46Captain Seguin
12:47is a local rancher
12:48and outspoken opponent
12:50of Santa Ana.
12:54Gregorio Esparza
12:55has also joined
12:56the fight
12:56for the Alamo.
12:58His brother,
12:59Francisco,
12:59remains in Bejar
13:00with Santa Ana's army.
13:03Like many Tejanos,
13:04the Esparzas
13:05are deeply torn
13:06between their Mexican heritage
13:08and their commitment
13:09to Texas independence.
13:14But for most
13:15of the defenders,
13:16Texas is a long way
13:18from their homelands.
13:20John Goodrich
13:21has come from Virginia.
13:22I have left my own dear
13:26native land,
13:27my relations
13:28and friends,
13:29the companions
13:30of my early years,
13:32and everything
13:32that I held dear
13:33and valuable,
13:34with a view
13:35to come to Texas
13:36to seek
13:37and establish
13:38a home
13:38for myself.
13:42Now he stands
13:43in the Alamo,
13:44holding a musket,
13:46not a plow.
13:47He is not alone.
13:48In the 1820s,
13:56thousands of settlers
13:57responded
13:58to the Mexican government's
14:00invitation
14:00to settle
14:01the vast,
14:02empty prairies
14:03and valleys
14:03of Texas.
14:06Under the Mexican
14:07Constitution
14:08of 1824,
14:09they received
14:10hundreds of acres
14:11of free land,
14:12were baptized
14:13as Catholics,
14:14and became
14:15citizens of Mexico.
14:16within just a few years,
14:19three out of four
14:20residents of Texas
14:21were of Anglo,
14:22not Mexican,
14:23heritage.
14:27With over 1,500
14:28rugged miles
14:29between the settlers
14:30and the Mexican capital,
14:33Texians grew accustomed
14:34to living
14:34by their own rules,
14:36with little regard
14:37for Mexican law.
14:39By 1834,
14:41Mexico realized
14:42it had created
14:43a monster.
14:46Santa Ana,
14:49the newly elected
14:49Presidente,
14:51abolished the Constitution
14:52and declared himself
14:53dictator of all Mexico.
14:56He closed ports,
14:57levied tariffs,
14:58and vowed to bring
14:59Texas under tight control.
15:02The Texians
15:03rebelled.
15:04The first shots
15:10of the revolution
15:10were fired
15:11in Gonzales
15:12in 1835
15:13when the Mexicans
15:14demanded
15:15that the town
15:16turn over its cannon.
15:17The reply was,
15:19come and take it.
15:22Mexicans backed down
15:23and the Texians
15:25marched on
15:25to take the Alamo,
15:27ousting the forces
15:28led by Santa Ana's
15:29own brother-in-law.
15:30Defiantly,
15:38they raised
15:38a new version
15:39of the Mexican
15:40tricolor
15:41over the Alamo,
15:42commemorating
15:43the Constitution
15:44that brought them
15:45to Texas
15:46and gave them
15:47so much freedom.
15:49Under it,
15:50they will fight
15:51for Texas independence.
15:53The Alamo itself
16:03is not a fortress
16:04at all,
16:05but a sprawling
16:06100-year-old
16:07Spanish mission.
16:09The Mexicans
16:10used it
16:10as a troop garrison
16:12and began
16:12the job
16:13of fortification.
16:17The Texians
16:18take on the job
16:19of shoring up
16:20its defenses.
16:21Queen Jameson
16:22a Kentucky lawyer
16:23with a talent
16:24for engineering
16:25is in charge.
16:27The adobe
16:28of the north wall
16:29is crumbling.
16:30Lacking proper materials
16:32to repair it,
16:33he shields it
16:34with a rough
16:34wooden palisade
16:36filled with earth.
16:42The old mission church
16:44is a lasting symbol
16:46of this fort.
16:52Its walls
16:53are four feet thick,
16:55but it is
16:55a caved-in ruin.
16:58A ramp of earth
16:58in the nave
16:59provides access
17:00to a platform
17:01for cannon batteries.
17:03Several rooms
17:04off to each side
17:05are still roofed over
17:06and protected.
17:08Here,
17:08the defenders
17:09store several hundred pounds
17:11of precious gunpowder.
17:14The other rooms
17:15house the 14 women
17:16and children.
17:17nearly half a mile
17:21of adobe wall
17:22surrounds the Alamo.
17:23In some places
17:24it is as low
17:25as six feet,
17:26in others
17:27as high as 12.
17:28But in the southeast
17:30corner,
17:30it stops.
17:33A palisade
17:34of sharpened stakes
17:36plugs the gap,
17:37but it is still
17:38the weakest point
17:39in the fort.
17:41Travis assigns
17:42the best marksman,
17:44the Tennessee volunteers,
17:45to defend this position.
17:52Among them
17:53is a genuine
17:54folk hero
17:55with a sense of humor
17:56and a reputation
17:57for action.
17:59His name is
17:59Davy Crockett.
18:02Crockett is a legend
18:03straight out
18:04of the penny press.
18:11He's a veteran
18:12of Andrew Jackson's
18:13campaign
18:13in the Creek Indian War.
18:15Known for his tall tales
18:17of frontier life.
18:19A cross between
18:19Pecos Bill
18:20and Paul Bunyan,
18:21he claimed to have
18:22shot 47 bears
18:24in one month
18:24and ridden alligators
18:26for exercise.
18:27But after losing
18:29his seat in Congress
18:30in a bitter election
18:31battle,
18:32he told the voters
18:32they could all go to hell.
18:34He was going to Texas.
18:35I have taken the oath
18:39of the government
18:40and have enrolled
18:41my name
18:41as a volunteer
18:42for six months.
18:44I am rejoiced
18:45at my fate.
18:47I had rather be
18:48in my present situation
18:50than to be elected
18:51to a seat in Congress
18:52for life.
18:53Do not be uneasy
18:54about me.
18:55I am with my friends.
18:57Crockett is not
19:09the only famous character
19:11among the Alamo
19:12defenders.
19:13Jim Bowie
19:14is already a legend
19:15in the American West.
19:17He's known
19:18for his brawling,
19:19freewheeling style
19:20and the formidable knife
19:22which bears his name.
19:27The Bowie knife
19:28is 10 inches
19:29of razor-sharp
19:30tempered steel.
19:32Wide as a butcher's blade,
19:34it's handy
19:34for skinning a deer
19:35or carving up an enemy.
19:39Bowie uses it for both.
19:44He was born
19:45in the bayous
19:46of Louisiana
19:46where he made
19:47his fortune
19:48partnering
19:48in the slave trade
19:49with the pirate
19:50Jean Lafitte.
19:53By 1828,
19:54he'd moved on
19:55to Bejar
19:56where he married
19:56the daughter
19:57of the Mexican
19:58vice-governor of Texas
19:59and began investing
20:01in tales
20:01of lost silver mines.
20:04But his wife died
20:06and his fortune soured.
20:08He became known
20:09as a drinker.
20:10Now he frequently
20:11clashes with Travis.
20:18Bowie has been
20:19roaring drunk
20:20all the time
20:21and is proceeding
20:22in a most disorderly
20:23and irregular manner
20:24and turning
20:25everything topsy-turvy.
20:31Bowie's antics
20:33mask a more
20:34serious problem.
20:36Wracked by cough
20:37and fever,
20:37the 40-year-old Bowie
20:39is dying.
20:42He will be bedridden
20:44for the last 11 days
20:45of the siege.
20:53Full command
20:54of the embattled garrison
20:56now passes
20:57to William Travis.
20:59It is a role
21:00he has prepared
21:01for his entire life.
21:02Born in South Carolina,
21:06he migrated
21:07to Alabama
21:08where he practiced law,
21:10taught school
21:11and published
21:11a newspaper.
21:13In 1831,
21:14he abruptly
21:15packed up
21:16and left his wife
21:17and young son.
21:19Starting over,
21:20he hung out
21:20his legal shingle
21:21in Texas
21:22and organized
21:23a local militia
21:24for which he served
21:25as captain.
21:27In January 1836,
21:29he and his men
21:29arrived to reinforce
21:31the Alamo.
21:32As a man,
21:35Travis is ambitious
21:37and self-centered,
21:38but he is a leader
21:39of great ability
21:40with a deep sense
21:42of mission.
21:46He finds inspiration
21:48in the great novels
21:49of the day
21:50by writers
21:50such as
21:51Sir Walter Scott.
21:56One hour of life
21:58crowded to the full
21:59with glorious action
22:00and filled
22:01with noble risks.
22:02is worth whole years
22:04of those mean
22:05observances
22:05of paltry decorum.
22:10Soon enough,
22:11he will have
22:12his one hour
22:12of glorious action.
22:14As night falls,
22:23he sends a courier
22:24to the town
22:25of Gonzales,
22:2670 miles away,
22:28with a message
22:28to the people
22:29of Texas
22:30and all Americans
22:31in the world.
22:34I am besieged
22:36by a thousand
22:36or more
22:37of the Mexicans
22:38under Santa Ana.
22:39I have sustained
22:41a continual bombardment
22:42and cannonade
22:43for 24 hours
22:44and have not
22:45lost a man.
22:46I shall never
22:47surrender
22:48or retreat.
22:50Then I call
22:51on you
22:52in the name
22:52of liberty,
22:53of patriotism,
22:54and everything
22:55dear to the American
22:56character
22:57to come to our aid
22:58with all dispatch.
23:00If this call
23:02is neglected,
23:03I am determined
23:04to sustain myself
23:05as long as possible
23:06and die like a soldier
23:07who never forgets
23:09what is due
23:09to his own honor
23:10and that
23:11of his country.
23:14Victory
23:15or Death
23:17General Antonio
23:31Lopez de Santa Ana
23:33has arrived
23:34at the Alamo
23:35determined to smash
23:36the Texas Rebellion.
23:39Santa Ana
23:40has risen
23:41through the ranks
23:42of the Mexican army,
23:43switching politics
23:44and loyalties
23:45as ambition
23:46demanded.
23:48He first fought
23:48for the Spanish
23:49against the Mexicans,
23:51then for the Mexicans
23:52against the Spanish.
23:53He swore allegiance
23:54to Mexico's emperor,
23:56then launched
23:57a rebellion.
23:58Now he is Mexico's
24:00El Presidente.
24:02Tall and handsome,
24:04he is also
24:04extremely vain.
24:06His uniform
24:07is so heavily weighted
24:08with silver
24:09that the metal
24:10is later melted down
24:11to make a set
24:11of spoons.
24:16He considers himself
24:20the Napoleon
24:21of the West
24:22and a brilliant
24:23military tactician.
24:25Before assaulting
24:26the main garrison
24:27of 400 Texians
24:29at Goliad,
24:30Santa Ana
24:30marches first
24:31on the closer target,
24:33Bejar.
24:34But he does not
24:35immediately attack
24:36the Alamo
24:37just across the river.
24:39Colonel de la Peña
24:41is critical
24:42of that decision.
24:44The enemy did not
24:45expect our forces
24:46until the middle
24:47of march.
24:48And since our march
24:49had been accelerated
24:50by a month,
24:51the enemy was taken
24:52by surprise.
24:53He expected us
24:54to march on Goliath,
24:55the key position
24:56that would have
24:56opened the door
24:57to the principal
24:58theater of war.
25:12Santa Ana's plan
25:20is to encircle
25:21the Alamo
25:22with a series
25:22of entrenchments.
25:24These will allow
25:25him to move men
25:26and artillery
25:27closer to the Alamo
25:28walls.
25:30Most of the area
25:32around the Alamo
25:32is open prairie,
25:34but a barrio
25:35on the east bank
25:36of the river
25:37offers good protection.
25:39It is called
25:39La Villita.
25:42Under cover
25:46of heavy cannon fire,
25:48Santa Ana
25:49moves his men
25:49into the adobe huts
25:51and wooden shacks
25:52of La Villita.
25:53It will provide
25:55an excellent
25:56assault position.
26:02The Alamo defenders
26:04watch the maneuvers
26:05throughout the day.
26:07By nightfall,
26:08they too have a plan.
26:12torches held high.
26:15Several men
26:16rushed from the fort
26:17and set the village
26:18ablaze.
26:28The Texians
26:29savor their victory,
26:31but Colonel Travis
26:33knows it is
26:34of little consequence.
26:37They are virtually
26:37surrounded by the enemy
26:39and outnumbered
26:40ten to one.
26:41He composes
26:42yet another
26:43impassioned plea
26:44for reinforcements.
26:45hasten on aid
26:49to me
26:50as rapidly
26:50as possible.
26:52As from the
26:53superior number
26:53of the enemy,
26:54it will be impossible
26:55for us to keep them
26:56out much longer.
26:58Give me help,
26:59oh my country.
27:07On this,
27:08the fourth day
27:09of the siege,
27:10help is on the way.
27:11320 men
27:18armed with
27:18four cannon
27:19set out
27:20on the
27:20six-day march
27:21from Goliad
27:22to reinforce
27:23the Alamo.
27:25They are led
27:25by Colonel
27:26James Fannin.
27:28Although Fannin
27:28spent two years
27:29at West Point
27:30and loves the routine
27:31of military life,
27:32he finds it more
27:33difficult to rally
27:34his men for battle.
27:35Come on,
27:36come on.
27:37This is great.
27:39Come on.
27:40Come on.
27:40Come on.
27:40Come on.
27:40Come on.
27:41Come on.
27:42Within minutes
27:43of departing Goliad,
27:45a wagon breaks down.
27:47Minutes later,
27:47two more wagons
27:48come apart.
27:50Fannin orders
27:51the oxen
27:51unyoked
27:52and the company
27:53encamps
27:53for the night.
27:57Day five.
27:58Goliad
27:59is still within sight
28:00and there's
28:01a new problem.
28:05The oxen
28:06have wandered off.
28:08It takes
28:08several hours
28:09to round them up.
28:10the fortifications.
28:11Inasmuch
28:15as a proper supply
28:16of provisions
28:17and means
28:17of transportation
28:18could not be had
28:19and as it was
28:21impossible...
28:21Fannin has abandoned
28:22his mission.
28:24He will shore up
28:25his own position
28:25at Goliad.
28:27The men of the Alamo
28:28must stand alone.
28:30...the hands
28:30of the enemy
28:31and as by report
28:33of our spies
28:33we may expect
28:34an attack
28:35on this place,
28:36it was expedient
28:37to return
28:38to this post
28:38and complete
28:39the fortifications.
28:40...
28:41Inside the Alamo
28:53the tension
28:53of waiting
28:54is becoming
28:55intolerable.
28:56there has been
29:14no word
29:14on the fate
29:15of the couriers
29:16no reinforcements.
29:17surely Fannin
29:24has heard
29:24their pleas.
29:25With Santa Anna's
29:46army pressing
29:47ever closer
29:47the Alamo
29:48defenders
29:49try to make
29:49the most
29:50of their provisions.
29:51thanks to their
29:54last-minute scavenging
29:55food is in good
29:56supply.
29:58Some 30 head
29:59of cattle
29:59and 90 bushels
30:00of corn
30:01can feed this
30:02garrison for weeks.
30:04The cache of
30:04gunpowder
30:05and rifle ammunition
30:06is adequate
30:07but cannonballs
30:09are scarce.
30:11Captain Almiron
30:12Dickinson
30:13has a solution.
30:18Old nails
30:19horseshoes
30:20and rusty
30:21door hinges
30:21will slice
30:22through the enemy.
30:28The Alamo
30:29is strongly fortified
30:31with some
30:3120 cannon
30:32ranging from
30:33a grenade
30:34a stubby
30:35short-range
30:35naval gun
30:36to an 18-pounder
30:38the biggest gun
30:39in Texas.
30:39...
30:39...
30:39...
30:41...
30:43...
30:45...
30:47...
30:48This cast-iron
30:51cannon
30:51delivers a solid
30:52iron ball
30:53that can demolish
30:54buildings
30:55half a mile away
30:56putting Behar
30:57well within range.
31:00In contrast
31:02the Mexicans
31:02are equipped
31:03with only a few
31:04light field cannon
31:05and howitzers.
31:07Both are
31:07short-range guns.
31:13While they can
31:14shell the old
31:14mission relentlessly
31:15they must be closer
31:17to inflict
31:17to inflict
31:17any real damage.
31:22The Texians
31:23are keeping
31:24the Mexican
31:24artillery at bay
31:25with an arsenal
31:26of smaller weapons
31:27everything from
31:28sturdy military muskets
31:30to Kentucky
31:31long rifles.
31:33The long rifle
31:34is dead accurate
31:36at 200 yards.
31:38Sentries keep
31:39four or five weapons
31:40primed and ready.
31:42Already several Mexicans
31:44have paid the price
31:45for coming into
31:45their range.
31:48While the long rifle
31:49is ideal for a siege
31:51it has no bayonet
31:53and is less effective
31:54in hand-to-hand combat.
31:59Most of the Mexicans
32:01are armed with
32:02smoothbore brown
32:03best muskets
32:04called escopetas.
32:07These flintlocks
32:09are accurate
32:09only at close range
32:11and pack a painful recoil.
32:15But the escopeta
32:15is superior
32:16in close combat
32:17where its long
32:18tri-blade bayonet
32:20can be lethal.
32:28One week
32:29seven days of siege
32:32and the Mexicans
32:33are still waiting.
32:37Their emplacements
32:38are ready to launch
32:39an assault.
32:41But the 12-pound cannon
32:42large enough
32:43to bring down
32:44the walls of the Alamo
32:45has still not arrived.
32:51Santa Anna's patience
32:52is wearing thin.
33:01Despite enemy shelling
33:03no defender
33:03has even been wounded.
33:06And life inside the Alamo
33:07has settled
33:08into an uneasy routine.
33:26Time and confinement
33:27weigh heavy.
33:28It is sometime
33:52after midnight.
33:54in the no-man's land
33:58just beyond
33:59the Alamo walls
34:00something is moving.
34:03The trigger finger
34:04of a sentry
34:05tenses.
34:09In the darkness
34:10a man is wounded.
34:12But he is not
34:13a Mexican soldier.
34:16He is one of 32 Texians
34:19from Gonzales
34:20who have slipped
34:20through the Mexican lines.
34:21They are not
34:23the hundreds
34:23the Alamo defenders
34:24expect
34:25but for the first time
34:26in days
34:27the besieged garrison
34:28numbering now
34:30almost 180
34:31dares to hope.
34:39In the morning
34:40Travis celebrates
34:41with two rounds
34:42from the big 18-pounder.
34:43one makes a direct hit
34:54on Santa Ana's headquarters
34:55but the general
34:57is out inspecting
34:58his troops.
35:00The claimants
35:01to the acres
35:02of Texas land
35:03will soon know
35:04to their sorrow
35:05that their reinforcements
35:07are insignificant
35:08and that Mexicans
35:09generous by nature
35:11will not leave
35:12them punish
35:12the France
35:13to their country.
35:20Now
35:21as night falls
35:22on the eighth day
35:23of siege
35:24Santa Ana
35:25steps up
35:26the psychological pressure
35:27filling the air
35:29with the pounding
35:30discord of war.
35:33It is a tactic
35:34designed to wear down
35:36the strongest
35:37of soldiers.
35:39It is working.
35:39even Davy Crockett
35:41grumbles.
35:45I think we had better
35:46march out
35:47and die
35:47in the open air.
35:49I don't like
35:50to be hemmed up.
35:58Day nine.
36:01Some 200 miles
36:02away from the Alamo
36:03in Washington
36:04on the browsers
36:05the Texas revolution
36:07is made official.
36:08The convention
36:09of 59 delegates
36:11gathers to establish
36:13the independent
36:13Republic of Texas.
36:16We therefore
36:18do hereby
36:19resolve and declare
36:20that our political
36:21connection
36:22with the Mexican
36:23nation
36:23has forever ended
36:25and that the people
36:26of Texas
36:27do now constitute
36:28a free
36:29sovereign
36:30and independent
36:31republic.
36:33Sam Houston
36:35is elected
36:35commander-in-chief
36:37of the Texas
36:37army.
36:39The convention
36:39delegates
36:40order him
36:41to ride
36:41with an army
36:42of volunteers
36:43to reinforce
36:44the Alamo
36:44garrison
36:45but he waits
36:47for the declaration
36:48of Texas
36:49independence
36:50and marks
36:51the day of departure
36:52for March 6th
36:54four days
36:55from now.
36:57He cannot know
36:59that his delay
37:00will be a fateful
37:01one for the men
37:02of the Alamo.
37:11The tenth day
37:13of the siege
37:13brings once again
37:15the fleeting hope
37:16that today
37:17Colonel Fannin
37:18and his men
37:18will arrive.
37:21Sentries scan
37:22the horizon
37:23for a telltale
37:24cloud of dust
37:25that would signal
37:26a large troop
37:27movement.
37:30But only one
37:31rider appears
37:32today.
37:34James Bonham
37:36Colonel William
37:36Travis's
37:37trusted lieutenant.
37:39He brings news
37:40of Fannin's
37:41failed expedition.
37:43There will not
37:44be a second
37:45attempt.
37:50The South Texas
37:51prairie
37:52is a vast
37:53lonely place.
37:56In letters
37:56home the men
37:57of the Alamo
37:57ponder the destiny
37:59that lies before
38:00them.
38:02Daniel Cloud
38:03has been in Texas
38:04less than two
38:05months.
38:07If we succeed
38:08the country
38:08is ours.
38:10It is immense
38:10in extent
38:11and fertile
38:12in its soil
38:12and will amply
38:14reward all
38:15our toil.
38:16If we fail
38:17death in the
38:18cause of liberty
38:19and humanity
38:19is not cause
38:20for shuddering.
38:21Our rifles
38:22are by our
38:23side.
38:24We know
38:25what awaits
38:26us and are
38:27prepared to
38:27meet it.
38:31Colonel William
38:32Travis shunned
38:33family responsibilities
38:34to go to Texas.
38:36Yet his thoughts
38:37turn homeward
38:38now.
38:39Take care
38:40of my little
38:41boy.
38:43If the country
38:44should be saved
38:45I may make him
38:45a splendid fortune.
38:47But if I should
38:48perish he will
38:49have nothing but
38:50the proud
38:51recollection
38:51that he is
38:52the son of a
38:52man who died
38:53for his country.
38:57Mackesia Autry
38:58left behind
38:59a wife and
38:59two children
39:00to take up
39:00the cause
39:01of Texas
39:01freedom.
39:04We stand
39:05guard of nights
39:05and night
39:07before last
39:07was mine
39:08to stand
39:08two hours
39:09during which
39:10the moon
39:10rose in all
39:11her mildness
39:12but splendor
39:13and majesty.
39:15With what
39:15pleasure did I
39:16contemplate that
39:17lovely orb
39:17chiefly because
39:19I recollected
39:19how often
39:20you and I
39:20have taken
39:21pleasure
39:21in standing
39:22in the door
39:23and contemplating
39:24her together.
39:26Indeed I
39:27imagine that
39:28you might be
39:28looking at her
39:29at the same
39:29time.
39:32Farewell
39:32dear Martha.
39:41It is a day of
39:43decision in the
39:44Mexican camp.
39:46Three of the
39:48Mexican army's best
39:49battalions have
39:50arrived to reinforce
39:51General Santa Anna's
39:52men.
39:53Now nearly 3,000
39:54strong.
39:55But the large
39:5612 pound cannon
39:58have still not
39:59arrived.
39:59Santa Anna is
40:02tired of waiting.
40:03He will initiate
40:04an assault.
40:05Colonel de la
40:06Peña bitterly
40:07denounces this
40:08plan.
40:11Victory over a
40:12handful of men
40:12concentrated in
40:14the Alamo did
40:14not call for a
40:15great sacrifice.
40:17In fact, it was
40:18necessary only to
40:19await the
40:20artillery's arrival
40:20at Bihar for
40:21these to surrender.
40:26The artillery is
40:27not Santa Anna's
40:28only concern.
40:30Each day brings the
40:31threat that more
40:32Texian reinforcements
40:33will arrive.
40:36And an even more
40:37alarming possibility
40:39has occurred to the
40:40General.
40:40If the Alamo's
40:42position becomes
40:43hopeless, Kravis
40:44might surrender and
40:46rob him of his great
40:47victory in battle.
40:49An attack will be
40:51made on March 6th,
40:53with or without the
40:54cannon.
40:55on the 12th day,
41:02Santa Anna completes
41:03his plan for the
41:04assault and orders an
41:06end to the ongoing
41:07bombardment.
41:11A deafening silence
41:13ensues.
41:13Throughout the siege,
41:28couriers have come and
41:29gone.
41:31Reinforcements have
41:31arrived.
41:33And all have eluded
41:34Santa Anna's encircling
41:36forces.
41:37The option of escape
41:39must have entered the
41:41minds of the men
41:41inside the Alamo.
41:44Gathering them
41:45together in the main
41:46plaza, Colonel Travis
41:48now offers them that
41:50choice.
41:52My brave companions,
41:54our fate is sealed.
41:58Within a very few days,
42:00perhaps a very few hours,
42:02we must all be in
42:03eternity.
42:05Let us band together
42:06as brothers and vow to
42:08die together.
42:08But I leave every man
42:11to his own choice.
42:14My own choice is to
42:15stay in this fort and
42:17die for my country.
42:19I now want every man
42:20who is determined to
42:21stay here and die with
42:23me to come across
42:24this line.
42:33This tale is one of
42:34the most enduring
42:35chapters in the legend
42:37of the Alamo.
42:39We will never know if
42:40Travis ever uttered
42:41those fateful words
42:42or even drew that
42:43famous line.
42:45Yet its essential
42:46truth survives.
42:48Each man made a choice
42:50to stay and die for the
42:52cause in which he
42:53believed.
42:54just one man,
43:02Louis Rose,
43:03declares he just
43:04isn't ready to die
43:05and slips over the
43:06wall.
43:08It is upon his
43:09testimony that
43:10storytellers of future
43:11generations will build
43:13their tales of the
43:14legendary line in the
43:15dust.
43:19This night marks the
43:21end of the twelfth day
43:22of the siege.
43:24Santa Anna's forces
43:25have drawn an ever
43:26tightening noose around
43:27the Alamo.
43:31Six cannon batteries
43:32now completely encircle
43:34the fort and are
43:35pressing closer.
43:37The battery to the
43:38northeast, just 250
43:39yards away.
43:46Travis sends out one
43:47more courier.
43:49Jim Allen, a college
43:50student from Kentucky,
43:52dodges through enemy
43:53lines carrying what is
43:54to be the final call
43:56for help.
44:03Hundreds of enemy
44:04campfires dot the
44:06horizon.
44:06Sensing the time is
44:16short, Travis goes to
44:19the Alamo church in
44:20search of Susanna
44:21Dickinson and her
44:23daughter, Angelina.
44:24His ring is a simple
44:49gift, a talisman, forging a
44:53bond with the future
44:54generation of Texians.
45:10For the first time in days,
45:12the exhausted men rest
45:13without the barrage of
45:15shells and noise.
45:16Wrapping themselves in
45:21blankets, they settle
45:23down on parapets, in
45:25trenches, in the adobe
45:27huts of the plaza, and
45:29sleep deeply.
45:32But the Mexicans are not
45:34sleeping.
45:35Mexican General Santa Ana
45:45has been up all night
45:47pacing the camp, drinking
45:48coffee and going over the
45:50plan of assault on the
45:51Alamo with his personal
45:52staff.
45:54Orders of silence and no
45:56smoking are issued.
45:58At 3 a.m. he joins the
45:59troops as they form their
46:01lines around the Alamo.
46:02By 5 a.m. on the 13th day
46:05of the siege, the Mexicans
46:07are in position.
46:13The moon was up, but the
46:16density of the clouds that
46:17covered it allowed only an
46:19opaque light in our
46:20direction.
46:22This half-light, the
46:24silence we kept, the
46:26coolness of the morning
46:27air, the great quietude that
46:30seemed to prolong the hours
46:31and the dangers we would
46:33soon face.
46:35All of this rendered our
46:36situation grave.
46:39We were still breathing
46:40and able to communicate.
46:42Within a few moments, many
46:45of us would be unable to
46:46answer questions addressed
46:47to us, having already
46:50returned to the nothingness
46:51whence we had come.
46:595.30 a.m.
47:01The tension of waiting is
47:02too much.
47:03A Mexican soldier snaps.
47:08Santa Ana gives the order
47:10to move out.
47:10Carlos Alvarez, the Mexicans
47:24are coming!
47:33Although caught by surprise,
47:35the Alamo defenders repel
47:36two Mexican advances.
47:38In the chaos, the Mexicans
47:52fire blindly into their own
47:54troops, creating a virtual
47:56killing pool at the north
47:58wall.
47:58But on the parapet above,
48:08one of the first Texians
48:09falls.
48:10It is Colonel Travis.
48:18The Mexicans regroup and
48:20push forward again on the
48:21north wall.
48:22This time, they find a weak
48:23point.
48:25They scale Green Jameson's
48:27rough wooden palisade like a
48:28ladder and pour into the
48:30plaza of the Alamo.
48:33Viva Santa Ana!
48:34Viva la República!
48:35Viva Santa Ana!
48:36Viva Santa Ana!
48:37Viva Santa Ana!
48:38Viva Santa Ana!
48:39Viva Santa Ana!
48:40Viva Santa Ana!
48:41Viva Santa Ana!
48:42Viva Santa Ana!
48:43Viva Santa Ana!
48:44Viva Santa Ana!
48:45Viva Santa Ana!
48:46Viva Santa Ana!
48:47Viva Santa Ana!
48:48Viva Santa Ana!
48:49Viva Santa Ana!
48:50Viva Santa Ana!
48:51Viva Santa Ana!
48:52Viva Santa Ana!
48:53Viva Santa Ana!
48:54Viva Santa Ana!
48:55Viva Santa Ana!
48:56Viva Santa Ana!
48:57Viva Santa Ana!
48:58Viva Santa Ana!
48:59Viva Santa Ana!
49:00Viva Santa Ana!
49:01Viva Santa Ana!
49:02Viva Santa Ana!
49:03Now the Mexicans surged through the barracks.
49:21Jim Bowie, already near death, is killed in his bed.
49:24The Alamo's cache of gunpowder lies unprotected in the church.
49:34It must not fall into enemy hands.
49:40Robert Evans is cut down as he races to blow it up.
49:45Even this last act of desperation fails.
49:47By 6.30 a.m., it is all over.
50:02The 13-day siege has climaxed in a battle lasting but a single hour.
50:10Seven men, perhaps including Davy Crockett, are taken captive.
50:16Santa Ana orders them killed.
50:23Of the Mexican force of nearly 2,000, some 600 have been killed or wounded.
50:30Many more will die in the days to come for lack of medical care.
50:35189 Texians in Tejanos, the entire Alamo force, has perished.
50:43Santa Ana releases the women and children and allows Francisco Esparza to give his brother Gregorio a Christian burial.
50:52The rest of the Alamo defenders are thrown onto the funeral pyres.
50:58Surveying the scene of his victory, Santa Ana dismisses the casualties.
51:13These are but chickens.
51:15Much blood has been shed, but the battle is over.
51:19It was but a small affair.
51:22In a sense, Santa Ana was right.
51:28Many more Texian lives were lost two weeks later at Goliath, where Mexican troops slaughtered Colonel Fannin and his garrison of more than 400.
51:37And the great Texian victory of the revolution came another four weeks later at San Jacinto.
51:44Where Sam Houston crushed the Mexican army, captured Santa Ana and freed Texas from Mexico.
51:50But even then, the battle cry on the lips of Houston's army was remember the Alamo.
51:57In a nation hungry for heroes, the blood sacrifice of the Alamo defenders elevated a minor military encounter to a frontier epic.
52:14Over the years, the battles of Goliath and San Jacinto became footnotes in the history books.
52:22But the storytellers and artists reshaped the great legend of the Alamo.
52:33The facts can be disputed and the interpretations debated.
52:38But all that is incidental to the essential truth of the legend.
52:45The Alamo is the creation myth of Texas.
52:49A defining moment in the expansion of the western frontier and a long-standing symbol of American freedom.
53:00The funeral pyre burned late into the night of March 6, 1836.
53:06The defenders of the Alamo themselves ignited that mythic fire of self-sacrifice.
53:15Even today, we might still feel the heat of that flame.
53:21The Daven and the Suns and the Lord lost the flame.
53:32The water is the sun in the north of August 7, 1736.
53:36The Son of the Moon is a Russian miljard that doesn't fall from the Zion of the sun.
53:40The birds of the sun were from the Italian and a long-standing symbol of the human being.
54:14Write to P.O. Box 2599, San Antonio, Texas 78299.
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