Moses Rose

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For the San Diego, California pioneer, see Louis Rose.

Louis "Moses" Rose (May 11, 1785 – ???, 1851, also seen as Lewis Rose) was, according to Texas legend, the only man not to cross over the alleged "line in the sand" drawn by the commander of the Alamo and escape the compound before it fell to the Mexican Army in March 1836.

According to the most commonly told story, Rose was a veteran French lieutenant who served in Napoleon Bonaparte's Grande Armee during France's invasion of Russia. He migrated to Nacogdoches, Texas, after the Armee's defeat and Napoleon's fall, and resided in the then-Mexican territory until the age of 51, when the Texas Revolution erupted in 1835.

A sympathizer with the "Texian" cause despite his old age (hence his nickname, "Moses"), Rose fought alongside Texas forces, and eventually joined a company under the command of Col. James Bowie. He arrived with Bowie's forces at San Antonio in February 1836, to hold a makeshift mission-turned-garrison which would soon become the site of the Battle of the Alamo.

According to legend, two days before the Alamo's fall (and the slaughter of all Alamo fighters) Commander William Barret Travis drew a line in the mission floor's sand with his sword, stating that all willing to stay (and presumably die) in the Alamo should cross over it to stand with him. Louis Rose, aged and having already once in his life seen the devastation of futile warfare in practice, was the only defender to not cross Travis' line and remain in the mission.

He fled the Alamo the night of March 5, evading Mexican forces resting for the next morning's assault. Rose made his way to Grimes County, Texas, where he was granted rest and shelter at the family homestead of one William P. Zuber. Rose made no attempt at hiding the true story of his journey, attributing his decision to a love for his family (including his children) and desire to fight another day rather than face a slaughter like he had seen in previous failed battles.

Louis Rose is often portrayed as a coward, despite his rationale and previous service in wars on two continents. This is largely due to the pride Texans take from the Battle of the Alamo, and a backlash against him when compared to the defenders who chose to stay and die. This attitude toward Rose also overlooks other Alamo survivors, including Juan Seguin (who had left to seek reinforcements but is still considered an Alamo hero) and several others who left during a brief armistice granted by General Antonio López de Santa Anna.

In recent times, during the leadup to the United States' invasion of Iraq in 2003, his legend gained new popularity with the swell of anti-French sentiment in the United States. When France opposed the invasion of Iraq, Rose's legend was often invoked as a historical (despite the unverified status of Rose's legend) example of "French cowardice" in the face of war.