13 Days at the Alamo

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

In the mid-1830s, Texans began their fight to become independent from Mexico.

Santa Anna, Mexico’s president at that time, enforced laws that not everyone agreed with. As a result, the people living in Texas wanted to become autonomous from Mexico. This began a long battle between the two.

In 1836, Santa Anna organized an attack on a fort in Texas called the Alamo, where a small group of volunteer soldiers was stationed. The Mexican army brought thousands of soldiers to attack. The Texans were greatly outnumbered with an estimated 200 soldiers. The most astonishing part of the battle was that despite having only 200 people, the Texans were able to hold out for 13 days. Ultimately, they lost the battle, but their resistance represented Texas’ desire to become independent.

After the battle of the Alamo, Texans declared their independence and formed the Republic of Texas. Texan soldiers then staged a surprise attack on Santa Anna, where they successfully held him captive until he finally gave Texas their independence.

Below is a picture of the Alamo:

A Map of Texas during The Battle of the Alamo in 1836:

_{Image by Ch1902, via Wikimedia Commons, is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.}

Imagine the struggle — yet determination — those Texas soldiers must have felt while trying to defend the Alamo.

• What situation have you experienced that made you feel passionate and determined to succeed?

Move on to the Got It? section, where you read a passage about the war with Mexico and answer a few questions.