Siege of Béxar The Siege of Béxar ( or Bejar ) was an early campaign of the Texas Revolution in which a volunteer Texian army defeated Mexican forces at San Antonio de Béxar ( now San Antonio , Texas , USA ) . Texian s had become disillusioned with the Mexican government as President and General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna ' s tenure became increasingly dictatorial . In early October , Texas settlers gathered in Gonzales to stop Mexican troops from reclaiming a small cannon . The resulting skirmish , known as the Battle of Gonzales , launched the Texas Revolution . Men continued to assemble in Gonzales and soon established the Texian Army . Despite a lack of military training , well - respected local leader General Stephen F . Austin was elected commander . Santa Anna had sent his brother - in - law , General Martin Perfecto de Cos , to Béxar with reinforcements . On October 13 , Austin led his forces towards Béxar to confront the Mexican troops . The Texians initiated a siege of the city . Background . In 1835 , federalists in several interior Mexican states revolted against the increasingly centralist reign of Mexican President Antonio López de Santa Anna . The Texian s staged a minor revolt against customs duties in June , and wary colonists soon began forming militias , ostensibly to protect themselves . As protests spread across Texas , Mexican officials increasingly blamed the settlers from the United States for the discontent . As historian Alwyn Barr noted , many of the new settlers had " lived entirely within growing Anglo colonies . . . and had made few adjustments to the Spanish traditions of Mexico . In September 1835 Colonel Domingo Ugartechea , the military commander at San Antonio de Béxar ( now San Antonio , Texas , USA ) sent a force of 100 soldiers under Francisco de Castañeda to reclaim a small cannon that had been given to the citizens of Gonzales . The request angered the Texian s , who immediately sent couriers to other Anglo communities to ask for assistance . For several days the Texians stalled and reinforcements began to arrive . On October 2 , the Texians attacked the Mexican force ; under orders to avoid bloodshed , Castaneda and his men withdrew . This Battle of Gonzales is considered the official opening of the Texas Revolution . Encouraged , a small group of Texians then went to Goliad , where , at the Battle of Goliad , they succeeded in driving off the small Mexican force garrisoned at Presidio La Bahia . Fearing that strong measures were needed to quell the unrest , Santa Anna ordered General Martín Perfecto de Cos to lead a large force into Texas . When Cos arrived in San Antonio on October 9 there were 647 soldiers ready for duty . When Goliad fell to the Texians , Cos lost his line of communication to the coast . Convinced that the Texians would soon attack San Antonio , he chose to take a defensive position rather than launch an attack against the Texian army . Two days after the Texian victory at Gonzales , respected Texian leader Stephen F . Austin reported to the San Felipe Committee of Public Safety that " War is declared — public opinion has proclaimed it against a Military despotism — The campaign has commenced " . His letter concluded : " One spirit and one purpose animates the people of this party of the country , and that is to take Bexar , and drive the military out of Texas . . . . A combined effort of all Texas would soon free our soil of Military despots . " Colonists continued to assemble in Gonzales , and on October 11 they unanimously elected Austin , the first empresario granted permission to settle Anglos in the state , as their commander - in - chief . Although Austin had no official military training , he was widely respected in Texas for his sound judgement , and he had led several excursions against raiding Indian tribes . Austin ' s first order was that the men should be prepared to march at 9 am the following morning . For the rest of the day , the men practiced firing and retreating in lines . Austin issued a string of orders , including barring men from indiscriminately firing their weapons and instructing them to keep their weapons in good repair at all times . He also felt it necessary to , in his words " remind each citizen soldier that patriotism and firmness will but little avail , without discipline and strict obedience . The first duty of a soldier is obedience . " A later order instructed that " All riotous conduct and noisy clamorous talk is specially prohibited " . Austin also organized elections for regimental officers . John H . Moore , who had led the Texians in the Battle of Gonzales , was elected colonel . Edward Burleson , a former militia officer in Missouri and Tennessee , was named Lieutenant Colonel , and Brazoria merchant Alexander Somervell was elected Major . On October 12 , the Texian army numbered approximately 300 men , drawn primarily from Austin ' s colonies and the DeWitt Colony . About half of the men had entered Texas in the 1820s ; the others were newer arrivals who had lived in the area less than 5 years . Several had official militia experience while they lived in the United States , and others had joined companies within Texas to counter Indian raids . Almost all of the men were proficient with firearms , as hunting was a primary source of food . The men crossed the Guadalupe River that morning and paused to await further reinforcements from Nacogdoches . On October 13 , Austin led the Texian Army toward San Antonio de Bexar , location of the last large garrison of Mexican troops in Texas . Some of the Texians had no weapons ; those that did had little gunpowder or shot . As the army marched , Ben Milam formed a makeshift mounted company to scout ahead . On October 15 one of the scouting parties briefly skirmished with a ten - man Mexican cavalry patrol ; no injuries were reported and the Mexican soldiers soon retreated to Bexar . The Texians arrived at Cibolo Creek , several miles east of Bexar , on October 16 . Austin requested a meeting with Cos , but Cos declined to meet with a man he said was commanding an illegal force . A Texian council of war decided to remain in place and wait for reinforcements . The following day they reversed their decision , and Austin moved his army to Salado Creek , from Bexar . Over the next several days , reinforcements and supplies arrived from various English - speaking colonies . One of the new companies , commanded by James C . Neill , brought 2 new six - pounder cannon with them . The reinforcements brought the Texian official strength to 453 men , although only about 384 of them were available for duty . On October 24 , Austin wrote the Committee of Public Safety in San Felipe that he had " ' commenced the investment of San Antonio " , and that with additional reinforcements he believed the town could be taken in a matter of days . Meanwhile , Cos worked to fortify the town squares in San Antonio and the walls of the Alamo , a mission - turned - fort near the town . By October 26 , Cos ' s men had mounted 11 cannon — 5 in the town squares and 6 on the walls of the Alamo . An eighteen - pounder cannon , with a much longer range than the other Mexican artillery , was positioned inside the Alamo chapel . Additional Mexican soldiers arrived in Bexar , and on October 24 the Mexican garrison stood at its highest number , 751 men . Although the Mexican soldiers attempted to restrict access to and from the city , James Bowie was able to leave his home and join the Texians . Bowie was well known throughout Texas for his fighting prowess ; stories of his exploits in the Sandbar Fight and his search for the lost San Saba mine were widely reported . Juan Seguin , a government official in San Antonio , arrived with 37 Tejanos on the morning of October 22 , and later that day an additional 76 men joined the Texian Army from Victoria , Goliad , and the ranches south of Bexar . According to Barr , the presence of the Tejanos helped to " blur the essence of ethnic conflict " , providing evidence that the Texian response was not simply an overreaction by American immigrants . Siege . Investment . Even with the additional men , Austin realized that his army was not large enough to prevail in a full assault on Bexar . The Texians thus prepared for a siege , looking for a position that was , in the words of historian Stephen L . Hardin , " near Bexar , yet defensible against a sortie ; in a position to block enemy communicationss arriving daily " . On October 22 , Austin named Bowie and Captain James W . Fannin co - commanders of the 1st Battalion and sent them on a reconnaissance mission . By the end of the day the Texians had seized the Espada mission from Mexican pickets . On October 24 , Austin informed the Committee of Public Safety that he had initiated a siege ; in his opinion , the city could be taken in a few days if Texian reinforcements arrived quickly . Austin sent Bowie and Fannin to find another good defensive spot on October 27 . Rather than return immediately to Austin , as their orders specified , Bowie and Fannin instead sent a courier to take Austin directions to their chosen campsite , the former Mission Concepción . The scouting party camped along the San Antonio River near the mission , which was approximately from San Antonio de Bexar and from the Texian camp at Espada . An angry Austin , fearing that his army would be easily defeated now that it was split , issued a statement threatening officers who chose not to follow orders with court - martial . He ordered the army to be prepared to join Bowie and Fannin at first light . Hoping to neutralize the Texian force at Concepción before the remainder of the Texian Army arrived , Cos ordered Colonel Domingo Ugartechea to lead an early - morning assault on the forces at Concepcion on October 28 . The Texians had a good defensive position , surrounded by trees , which left the Mexican cavalry no room to maneuver . The Mexican infantry soon found themselves outgunned , as their Brown Bess musket s had a maximum range of only , compared to the effective range of the Texian long rifles . The Texians were short of ammunition , however , and although Mexican ammunition was plentiful it was poor quality . In several cases , Mexican musket balls bounced off Texian soldiers , causing little damage other than a bruise . The Battle of Concepción lasted only 30 minutes ; at that point the Mexican soldiers retreated towards Bexar . Less than 30 minutes after the battle ended , the rest of the Texian Army arrived . Austin felt that the Mexican morale must be low after their defeat and wanted to proceed immediately to Bexar . Bowie and other officers refused , as they believed Bexar was too heavily fortified . The Texians searched the area for any Mexican equipment which had been abandoned during the retreat . They found several boxes of cartridges . Complaining that the Mexican powder was " little better than pounded charcoal " , the Texians emptied the cartridges but kept the bullets . One Texian , Richard Andrews , died and one was wounded , while estimates of the Mexican dead range from 14 to 76 . On November 1 , Austin sent a note to Cos , suggesting that the Mexican army surrender . Cos returned the note unopened , with a message that he refused to correspond with rebels . Austin sent men to reconnoiter the town ' s perimeter and discovered that the fortifications within the city were stronger than the Texians had believed . On November 2 , Austin called a council of war , which voted to continue the siege and wait for reinforcements and more artillery before attacking . Members of the Texian army were impatient to begin the fighting however . Austin complained to the provisional government on November 4 that " This force , it is known to all , is but undisciplined militia and in some respects of very discordant materials . " He followed this note with a strong plea that " In the name of Almighty God , send no more ardent spirits to this camp ! " Consultation . The siege continued , and soon additional reinforcements arrived under Thomas J . Rusk , bringing the Texian army to 600 . Cos also gathered reinforcements , bringing the Mexican army to 1 , 200 and discouraging the Texians even further from making any direct assaults on the city . Sam Houston arrived in San Felipe expecting to gather for a meeting of the Consultation government , but since many of the members were fighting in the siege of Bexar , Houston instead went to the Texian army outside San Antonio . When Houston arrived in the camp , Austin offered him command of the army , but Houston declined and went ahead gathering the members of the Consultation . The members were released from the army for the meeting ( except for Austin and William B . Travis ) and returned to San Felipe . There the delegates agreed to fight to uphold the Constitution of 1824 rather than Texas ' independence . Houston was named general - in - chief of all Texas forces , except those fighting around San Antonio , and Stephen Austin was authorized to travel to the U . S . to gain support for their cause . Edward Burleson , who had been serving as Austin ' s second - in - command , was elected Major General and Commander - in - Chief of the Volunteer Army to replace Austin . Grass Fight . The Texian people had little or no experience as professional soldiers , and by early November many had begun to miss their homes . As the weather turned colder and rations grew smaller , many soldiers became sick , and groups of men began to leave , most without permission . On November 18 , however , a group of volunteers from the United States , known as the New Orleans Greys , joined the Texian Army . Unlike the majority of the Texian volunteers , the Greys looked like soldiers , with uniforms , well - maintained rifles , adequate ammunition , and some semblance of discipline . The Greys , as well as several companies of Texians who had arrived recently , were eager to face the Mexican Army directly . Encouraged by their enthusiasm , on November 21 , Austin ordered an assault on Bexar the following morning . Several of his officers polled the soldiers that evening and discovered that fewer than 100 men were willing to launch an attack on Bexar ; Austin then cancelled his orders . Within days Austin resigned his command to become a commissioner to the United States ; Texians elected Edward Burleson as their new commander . On the morning of November 26 , Texian scout Erastus " Deaf " Smith rode into camp to report that a pack train of mules and horses , accompanied by 50 – 100 Mexican soldiers , was within of Bexar . For several days , the Texians had heard rumors that the Mexican Army was expecting a shipment of silver and gold to pay the troops and purchase additional supplies . The Texians had been fighting without pay , and most wanted to charge from camp and loot the expected riches . Burleson ordered Bowie to investigate , but warned him not to attack unless necessary . After Bowie recruited the army ' s 12 best marksmen for the expedition , there was little doubt that he intended to find a reason to attack . Burleson managed to stop the entire army from following by sending Colonel William Jack with 100 infantry to support Bowie ' s men . About from Bexar , Bowie and his men spotted the Mexican soldiers crossing a dry ravine . This was likely near the confluence of the Alazán , Apache , and San Pedro Creeks . After a short battle , the Mexican soldiers withdrew towards Bexar , leaving their pack animals behind . To the surprise of the Texians , the saddlebags contained not bullion , but freshly cut grass to feed the Mexican horses trapped in Bexar . Four Texians were wounded in the fighting , and one soldier deserted during the battle . Estimates of the number of Mexican casualties ranged from 3 – 60 killed and 7 – 14 wounded . Their victory allowed the Texians to believe that , although outnumbered , they could prevail over the Mexican garrison . The Texians believed that Cos must have been desperate to send troops outside of the safety of Bexar . Battle . Texian morale began to drop severely , and with winter approaching and supplies running low , Burleson considered withdrawing into winter quarters . In a council of war , Burleson ' s officers overruled his decision to withdraw , and the army stayed . One of the officers who adamantly opposed the withdrawal was Colonel Ben Milam . Undaunted , Milam stalked into the Texian camp and called out " Who will go with old Ben Milam into San Antonio ? " 300 soldiers cheered their support for Milam . Reports from a captured Mexican soldier and escaped Texian prisoners alerted Burleson that Mexican morale was just as low . Burleson ordered a two - column attack . One attack was to be carried out by Milam ' s troops , and the other was to be carried out by those of Colonel Francis W . Johnson . On December 5 , Milam and Johnson launched a surprise attack and seized two houses in the Military Plaza ( one of the houses seized belonged to the in - laws of Jim Bowie ) . The Texians were unable to advance any further that day , but they fortified the houses and remained there during the night , digging trenches and destroying nearby buildings . On December 7 , the attack continued , and Milam ' s force captured another foothold in the city . Included in the attacking forces was George W . Glasscock who had fought with Abraham Lincoln in two Illinois Militia units during the Black hawk War in 1832 ( the city of Georgetown and Glasscock county would later be named for him ) . However , Milam was killed while leading the attack . Colonel Johnson subsequently took command of both his and Milam ' s men and continued the street fighting , gradually driving the Mexicans back into the city . Cos withdrew into the Alamo , where he was joined by Colonel Ugartechea and 600 reinforcements , but it was too late . Cos entrenched his position , and Texian artillery pounded the fortified mission . Surrender . As the Texians advanced closer to the plazas , Cos realized that his best defensive position would be within the Alamo Mission just outside Bexar . In his official report to Santa Anna , Cos wrote that " " In such critical circumstances there was no other measure than to advance and occupy the Alamo which , due to its small size and military position , was easier to hold . In doing so , I took with me the artillery , packs and the rest of the utensils I was able to transport . ” At 1 a . m . on December 9 , the cavalry began to pull back towards the Alamo . Colonel Nicolas Condell , his small force of 50 men from the Morelos and Tamaulipas units , and two cannon remained as the rear guard at the plaza . Years later , however , Sanchez Navarro maintained that Cos was not planning to abandon the town but wished to move the wounded to the relative safety of the Alamo . Inside the Alamo , Cos presented a plan for a counterattack ; cavalry officers believed that they would be surrounded by Texians and refused their orders . Possibly 175 – soldiers from four of the cavalry companies left the mission and rode south . According to Barr , Cos ran after the horseman to tell them to stop and was almost run down . For a brief period , those in the mission believed that Cos might have been killed . Sanchez Navarro said the troops were not deserting but misunderstood their orders and were withdrawing all the way to the Rio Grande . By daylight , only 120 experienced infantry remained in the Mexican garrison . Cos called Sanchez Navarro to the Alamo and gave him orders to " go save those brave men . . . . Approach the enemy and obtain the best terms possible " . Sanchez Navarro first returned to his post at the plaza to inform the soldiers of the imminent surrender . Several officers argued with him , explaining that " the Morelos Battalion has never surrendered " , but Sanchez Navarro held firm to his orders . Bugle calls for a parley received no response from the Texians , and at 7 am Sanchez Navarro raised a flag of truce . Father de la Garza and William Cooke came forward to escort Sanchez Navarro and two other officers to Johnson , who summoned Burleson . When Burleson arrived two hours later , he found that the Mexican soldiers did not have written authorization from Cos . One of the Mexican officers was sent to bring back formal permission for the surrender . Burleson agreed to an immediate cease - fire , and negotiations began . Johnson , Morris , and James Swisher represented the Texians , while Miguel Arciniega and John Cameron interpreted . The men haggled for much of the day before reaching terms at 2 a . m . on December 10 . According to the terms of the agreement , Mexican troops could remain in the Alamo for six days to prepare for the trip to the Mexican interior . During that time frame , Mexican and Texian troops were not to carry arms if they interacted . Regular soldiers who had established ties to the area could remain in Bexar ; all recently arrived troops were expected to return to Mexico . Each Mexican soldier would receive a musket and ten rounds of ammunition , and the Texians would allow one four - pound cannon and ten rounds of powder and shot to accompany the troops . All other weapons and all supplies would remain with the Texians , who agreed to sell some of the provisions to the Mexicans for their journey . As the final term of their parole , all of Cos ' s men were required to pledge that they would not fight against the Constitution of 1824 . At 10 a . m . on December 11 , the Texian army paraded . Johnson presented the terms of surrender and asked for the army ' s approval , stressing that the Texians had little ammunition left to continue the fight . Most of the Texians voted in favor of the surrender , although some termed it a " child ' s bargain " , too weak to be useful . Aftermath . The Siege of Bexar was the longest Texian campaign of the Texas Revolution , and according to Barr , it was " the only major Texian success other than San Jacinto " . According to Barr , of the 780 Texians who had participated in some way in the battle , between 30 and 35 were wounded , with 5 or 6 killed . Historian Stephen Hardin places the Texian casualties slightly lower , with 4 killed and 14 wounded . The losses were spread evenly amongst Texas residents and newcomers from the United States . Although some Texians estimated that as many as 300 Mexican soldiers were killed , historians agree that it likely that a total of 150 Mexican soldiers were killed or wounded during the five - day battle . About two - thirds of the Mexican casualties came from the infantry units defending the plazas . To celebrate their victory , Texian troops threw a fandango on the evening of December 10 . Governor Henry Smith and the governing council sent a letter to the army , calling the soldiers " invincible " and " the brave sons of Washington and freedom " . After the war , those who could prove they had participated in this campaign were granted of land . Eventually , 504 claims were certified . At least 79 of the Texians who participated later died at the Battle of the Alamo or the Goliad Massacre , and 90 participated in the final battle of the Texas Revolution , at San Jacinto . The Texians confiscated 400 small arms , 20 cannon , and supplies , uniforms , and equipment . During the siege , Cos ' s men had strengthened the Alamo mission , and the Texians chose to concentrate their forces within the Alamo rather than continue to fortify the plazas . Cos left Bexar on December 14 with 800 men . The soldiers who were too weak to travel were left in the care of the Texian doctors . With his departure , there was no longer an organized garrison of Mexican troops in Texas , and many of the Texians believed that the war was over . Johnson described the battle as " the period put to our present war " . Burleson resigned his leadership of the army on December 15 and returned to his home . Many of the men did likewise , and Johnson assumed command of the soldiers who remained . Soon after , a new contingent of Texians and volunteers from the United States arrived with more heavy artillery . According to Barr , the large number of American volunteers " contributed to the Mexican view that Texian opposition stemmed from outside influences . That belief may have contributed in turn to Santa Anna ' s order of ' no quarter ' in his 1836 campaign . " Santa Anna was outraged that Cos had surrendered . Already in preparations to move a larger army to Texas , Santa Anna moved quickly on hearing of his brother - in - law ' s defeat , and by late December 1835 had begun to move his Army of Operations northward . Although many of his officers disagreed with the decision to march towards the Texian interior rather than take a coastal approach , Santa Anna was determined to first take Bexar and avenge his family ' s honor .