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New opportunities available in the unsettled territory of Tejas, Moses Austin hoped to bring 300 families to the Mexican- Owned Area in 1820. Austin received permission from the Spanish governor to bring settlers to Tejas. Moses Austin died in 1821,so his son followed suit. Stephen F. Austin, inherited the land for 300 families. Austin settled the land near the Brazos and Colorado in 1824.
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Mexico established rules for settling colonies in 1824. During this time, they also joined Coahuila and Texas, forming a unified Mexican state "Coahuila y Tejas." Mexico encouraged foreign settlers to buy land in the territory with a $30 down payment, without the requirement of paying taxes for ten years after that.
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Mexico banned any more immigration from the United States on April 6, 1830. They encouraged immigration from Mexico and European countries, placed more restrictions on slavery, and increased military presence in the region. This initiative angered Texans, who pushed for statehood and self-government.
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General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna led a successful battle against President Bustamante. Texans were initially okay with this development because of Santa Anna's support for the Constitution of 1824, which was very similar to the U.S. Constitution. However, Santa Anna canceled out the 1824 Constitution in favor of a more centralized government and was no longer supportive of Texas self-rule.
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At the Convention of 1833, 56 Texas delegates came up with a resolution requesting that Mexico take back many of the changes that took place in 1830. Texans wanted Mexico to allow immigration from the U.S., provide more protection from native peoples, exempt Texans from anti-slavery laws, improve the mail service, and separate Texas from Coahuila. Eventually, the Mexican government repealed the Law of 1830, but would not grant statehood to Texas.
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Tension grew between Texas and Mexico. Texans, with a growing number of American settlers, who wanted separate statehood, resulting in many minor battles with Mexico. The first notable battle of the Texas Revolution occurred when Texans at Gonzales refused to return a small cannon lent to them by Mexican authorities. On October 2, Texans rolled out the cannon under a flag that read, “Come and Take It.” The short fight that resulted started the beginning of the Revolution. -
In September of 1836, the citizens of the new Republic of Texas quickly elected Sam Houston as their first president, and Mirabeau B. Lamar as vice president. Houston appointed Stephen F. Austin to be Secretary of State. -
On March 1, 59 delegates held the Convention of 1836 at Washington-on-the-Brazos. They drafted the Texas Declaration of Independence and adopted it on March 2. During the Convention, delegates also drafted the Texas Constitution, stating their plan for the new Republic. This took place only a month after Santa Anna entered Texas with his army of 6,000 men. Mexico’s army actually outnumbered the Texas rebels. And Beat them.
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On March 6, 1836, after 13 days of fighting, the Battle of the Alamo comes to an end, a crucial moment in the Texas Revolution. Mexican forces were successful in recapturing the fort, and nearly all of the roughly 200 Texan defender including frontiersman Davy Crocket died.
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The Battle of San Jacinto, fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day La Porte and Pasadena, Texas, was the final and decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Samuel Houston, the Texan Army engaged and defeated General Antonio López de Santa Anna's Mexican army in a fight that lasted just 18 minutes.
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Almost ten years after winning independence from Mexico, and after a long and controversial diplomatic struggle, Texas was annexed to the United States under the administration of President James Polk.
