The Republic of the Rio Grande - Texans in Mexico, 1839-40. With biographical sketches of the leaders, Antonio Canales, Reuben Ross, Antonio Zapata, Wm. S. Fisher, Rafael Vasquez, Sam W. Jordan, and Juan N. Sequin.
by Lindheim, Milton
pub by - Milton Lindheim, Laredo, TX, 1964 (W.M. Morrison - bookseller Box 3277, Waco, Texas) - isbn (none) - - LCCN = 65-00092564 - - Biographical sketches p. 10-16 - - Bibliography p.17 - - total book length 17 p.

This book (pamphlet) is a short history of the very short lived revolution of the Federalists, of 3 northern states of Mexico against the Centralists who were the government out of Mexico City headed by Santa Anna. The Texas Revolution had just taken place and the Repubic of Texas had been established in 1836. In fact Texas was into its second president (M. Lamar) after Sam Houston had served his first session holding the office of president of the Republic of Texas. (Houston was later elected the third president of Texas.)

Antonio Canales of Camargo issued a manifesto on November 3, 1838 claiming Santa Anna had been illegally confiscated his land holdings. Thus began the revolution which attempted to create the Republic of the Rio Grande. Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, and Coahuila were the three States of Mexico which were involved in this revolution.
Canales recruited soldiers in San Antonio, Texas, and set up an organziational depot at Lipantitlan on the Nueces river which is a few miles west of Corpus Christi, Texas. That location was far enough inside Texas to be safe from the Federalist Mexican Army under Santa Anna.
Texan recruits included troops under Samuel W. Jordan, Reuben Ross, Juan N. Seguin and Major Joseph Dolan.

On January 18, 1840 the Republic of the Rio Grande was proclaimed in Laredo, at a meeting of delegates who opposed the Federalist system of government and proclaimed a new nation. Joseph Cardinas was named President.
The Centralists (who prefered living under the Mexican Constitution of 1824 which Santa Anna had replaced with a Federalist system, a government closely controlled from the capital in Mexico City) fought several battles in northern Mexico, taking a few towns but not taking Monterrey which was defenced by General Arista of the Federalists. After winning a few battles the Centralists eventually lost, many of them changed sides. As a result of some side changing a trap was set to elimiate the Texan contingent under Jordan near Saltillo. The Texans managed to escape and made it back to Texas in December 1840. By this time the dream of the establishment of the Republic of the Rio Grande was over.

This pamphlet is a bare bones descritpion of the events. It would be greatly improved by including a map and a timeline.
The biographical sketches are quite good and add much to understanding the events in context.
- Only 500 copies of this were made by the publisher.

~ 2018-10-16 ~

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