Revolution and Republic

1. Revolution and Republic Unit 6, Section 3.1 Notes – The Republic of Texas

3. After San Jacinto The Texans celebrated their win over Santa Anna’s army at San Jacinto, but not for long. Mexican leaders refused to acknowledge that the war was over, and they kept 2000 troops in Texas for some time. Finally, in exchange for his life, Santa Anna agreed to order all Mexican troops out of Texas. He was then taken to Velasco.

4. The Treaties of Velasco On May 14, 1836, almost three weeks after the Battle of San Jacinto, Santa Anna and the Texas ad interim president, David G. Burnet, signed the TWO Treaties of Velasco. David G. Burnet Santa Anna

5. The First Treaty of Velasco The first treaty was made public and it included the following terms: • The war was officially ended and Texas was declared independent. • Santa Anna would not take up arms against Texas again. • All Mexican forces would withdraw beyond the Rio Grande. • Prisoners would be exchanged. • The Mexicans would return all captured property. • Texas leaders would promptly return Santa Anna to Mexico.

7. The Second (Secret) Treaty of Velasco The second treaty was kept secret. It stated that Santa Anna would be released immediately, but in exchange, he would have to persuade Mexican leaders to recognize Texas independence. He also agreed to push for Mexico to recognize the Rio Grande as the Texas and Mexican border.

9. Violation of the Treaty Many Texans wanted Santa Anna to be executed or imprisoned, but in June of 1836, Santa Anna was put on board the ship Invincible to sail to Mexico. Before the ship could leave, it was blocked by a force led by Thomas J. Green. This group of men was made up of volunteers who had just reached Texas and wanted the war to continue. Because of their actions, Burnet decided to keep Santa Anna imprisoned instead of releasing him.

10. Texas’ Independence Unrecognized Though Santa Anna was later released, Texas had violated the terms of the treaty by keeping Santa Anna captive. Mexico then refused to recognize the first public treaty because Santa Anna had signed it as a prisoner. They did not recognize Texas independence and considered it to still be a region of Mexico that was in rebellion. They would continue to fight about this issue for some time.

11. The Election of 1836 After winning the Battle of San Jacinto, Texans were faced with the task of actually creating their new government. The Constitution of 1836 required that elections be held to select new leaders. They also had to decide if they would approve the Constitution of 1836 and pursue the annexation of Texas to the United States. They decided to hold elections, and three well-known Texans ran for president – Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston, and Henry Smith.

12. Three Presidential Canidates Stephen F. Austin Sam Houston Henry Smith

13. “Old Sam Jacinto” Houston won the presidency by a large majority. For vice president, voters elected a man names Mirabeau Lamar, another hero of San Jacinto. Texans also elected 30 representatives and 14 senators to the Republic’s new Congress. The voters approved the Constitution of 1836, and also expressed a desire to pursue U.S. annexation.

14. Houston’s Administration Houston was sworn into office on October 11, 1836. After taking the oath, the stated his goals for Texas, which included having peaceful relations with Native Americans, guarding against future Mexican attacks, and having Texas eventually annexed as part of the United States. He then decided on the members of his cabinet. Stephen F. Austin was his secretary of state and Henry Smith was his secretary of treasury.

15. Death of Stephen F. Austin Austin was only able to serve the new republic for a few months. Due to exhaustion and a cold, Austin developed pneumonia. On December 27, 1836, Stephen F. Austin died at the age of 43. President Houston made a statement: “The father of Texas is no more. The first pioneer of the wilderness has departed.” There was a 30 day period of mourning ordered by Houston for the dead Father of Texas.

16. He is now buried at Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Texas. His last words were "The independence of Texas is recognized! Don't you see it in the papers?..."

17. Creating a Court System The second major task facing the Republic was the formation of a court system, which was required by the Constitution. They set up a supreme court, four district courts, and 23 county courts. James Collinsworth was appointed by the Texas Congress as the Republic’s first chief justice.

18. Boundaries of the Republic They also needed to define the boundaries of Texas. Congress claimed that the Rio Grande was Texas’ border to the south and west, but the Mexican government did not recognize this border, and many people who lived to the south and west of the Nueces River considered themselves Mexicans.

20. Selecting the Capital of Texas During the war, the town of Columbia had been chosen as the capital of the ad interim government. But many people complained that the town was too small, so they began looking for a new site for the capital. Two brothers, John and Augustus Allen, had founded a town near Harrisburg on Buffalo Bayou and named it in honor of Texas’ president. In late 1836,Congress named Houston as the new capital of Texas. In January of 1837, only 12 people lived there, and four months later, Houston had over 1500 residents.

21. Army Unrest Many people arrived late to Texas from the United States, still hoping for a war. Felix Huston, the new commander of the Texas army, wanted to invade Mexico, but Sam Houston didn’t think that this was worth the risk. He then replaced Huston with a man named Albert Sidney Johnston. This angered Huston, who challenged Johnston to a duel! Johnston was severely injured and was unable to do his job. President Houston decided to get rid of all but 600 soldiers. The rest were put on leave and never asked back to fight.

22. The Texas Rangers For defense and frontier protection, Houston relied on a group called the Texas Rangers. Formed in November of 1835, the Texas Rangers tried to keep peace along the frontier and protect settlers. In later years, the Rangers would become law officers. They are still around today as a special police force. Women have also been allowed to be Texas Rangers since 1993.

24. Jack Coffee Hays Jack Coffee Hays was one of the most well known and respected Texas Rangers. He was a surveyor of the Republic of Texas and a captain of a Texas Ranger company. He gave help to Samuel Colt, who with his input, created the Walker Colt Revolver in 1847. He was known for large campaigns against the Comanche Indians.

26. Economic Policies The new nation had a lot of money problems. Texas’ expenditures, or spending, far exceeded its revenue, or income. The national debt when Houston took office was $1.25 million. This would be close to $20 million today. To make money, the government collected taxes and placed taxes on goods. They also tried to sell public land. To make things worse, the United States experienced a financial crisis in 1837. This panic led to a depression that effected Texas, since most of their good came from the United States. Texas tried printing paper money, but they did not have gold or silver to back it up.

27. Land Policy Under Houston Although Texas was in debt, they still had a lot of land; over 200 million acres of public land. Veterans of the revolution received land for their service! To encourage immigration, the Republic established a colonization policy a lot like the former Spanish empressario system. They hoped that immigration would help the economy.

28. Houston’s American Indian Policy As Texans began settling on American Indian land, many conflicts began. Of course, the Indians wanted to keep their land, but Texans wanted it, too, and decided that they would take it by force, if necessary. President Houston opposed a war with the Indians, believing that it would cost Texas money that they did not have. He instead pushed for a peaceful solution.

29. Houston and the Cherokee Houston sympathized with the Indians and understood why they wanted to stay on their land. During the Revolution, he had actually negotiated a treaty with the Cherokee that guaranteed them title and control of their land, by the Texas Congress refused to ratify it. This made the Cherokee angry, but Houston begged them to be patient. He worked with a Cherokee leader and friend, Chief Bowles. He set aside land for the Cherokee, but this angered Texans who had wanted to settle there. He couldn’t please everyone!

30. Sam Houston and Cherokee leader Chief Bowles

31. Houston’s Indian Plan Houston and Congress decided on a plan to promote peace and reduce conflict. They established a line of forts along the frontier that would encourage trade with the Indians. While establishing these posts, Houston tried to sign more treaties with Indian groups, since he believed that Indians and settlers could live together in peace. Others in Texas disagreed with Houston and believed that the Indians should just be removed by force, since they were blocking westward development onto the frontier.