Battle of Coleto

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Battle of Coleto

Date	March 19 – March 20, 1836
Location	Coleto Creek, Goliad County, Texas
Result	Texian defeat and unconditional surrender

Combatants

Mexico

Republic of Texas

Commanders

General José Urrea

Colonel James Fannin

Strength

80 dragoons and 260 infantrymen; over 500 men coming as reinforcements

about 300 infantrymen and nine cannon

Casualties

212

nine dead, sixty wounded

Texas Revolution
Gonzales – Concepción – Grass Fight – Bexar – San Patricio – Agua Dulce – The Alamo – Refugio – Coleto – San Jacinto

The Battle of Coleto, also known as The Battle of Coleto Creek, was a 19th century battle of the Goliad Campaign of the Texas Revolution fought between rebelling Texian colonists and Mexico on March 19–March 20, 1836. The Texians, commanded by Colonel James Fannin, were defeated by federal troops under General José Urrea.

[edit] Background

The Texans left the protection of Presidio La Bahía after receiving orders from General Sam Houston to fall back to Victoria. Against strong opposition from his officers, and one mile short of Coleto Creek, Fannin ordered a halt of his forces. The Texians formed their forces into a hollow square in the open prairie and instantly were surrounded by Urrea's troops. On the second day of the battle, in consideration of the wounded and because of a shortage of water, Fannin surrendered. The Texians had suffered nine killed and fifty-one wounded, including Fannin who had been shot in the thigh. The Texians' surrender set up events for the Goliad Massacre.

== Massacre ==

The TexanBold texts were marched back to Goliad and held as prisoners. On March 26, 1836, at 7 p.m., Portilla received orders from Santa Anna in triplicate to execute the prisoners. At around 8 a.m. on Palm Sunday, March 27, 1836, Colonel Jose Nicolas de la Portilla, commander at Goliad, had the 342 Texians marched out of Fort Defiance into three columns on the Bexar Road, San Patricio Road and the Victoria Road. Urrea wrote: "...wished to elude these orders as far as possible without compromising my personal responsibility".

Once the columns reached their selected location, the Mexican soldados formed into two ranks on one side of the captives. The defenseless and unarmed Texians were then fired upon point-blank a few hundred yards from the fort. The wounded and dying were then clubbed and stabbed. Those who survived the initial volley were run down by the Mexican cavalry. Fannin's men wounded in the Battle of Coleto were shot or bayoneted where they lay. Colonel Fannin was the last to be executed, after seeing his men butchered. Their bodies were stacked into piles and burned. There were twenty-eight Texians who did manage to escape by feigning death and other means. Three known survivors escaped to Houston's army and participated in the Battle of San Jacinto.

In some accounts of the Goliad Massacre, a Mexican lady named Francita Alavez is mentioned, although she is sometimes referred to with other names. She rescued a few Texian soldiers and is known as "The Angel of Goliad".