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Early Republic

Vicinity of the Storming of Bexar

San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas

Marker Inscription

(December 5-9, 1835) First of four major engagements of the War for Texas Independence, this sanguinary battle ended a siege of six weeks. The assault began at dawn, Dec. 5. 300 volunteers (Texans, Mexicans,and Americans) under Cols. Frank W. Johnson and Benjamin R. Milam attacked 1,200 Mexican troops commanded by Gen. Martin P. de Cos defending San Antonio, then known as Bexar. Two columns advanced into the strongly fortified town along Acequia (now Main) and Soledad streets guided by townsmen John W. Smith (first mayor of San Antonio), Hendrick Arnold (famous scout and free Negro), "Deaf" Smith (who helped destroy Vince's Bridge at Battle of San Jacinto), and Samuel A. Maverick (a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence). The Texans gained the "priest's house" Dec. 8 after bitter house-to-house fighting. This Mexican strong point dominated Main Plaza. Covered by a fusillade of musketry, the Mexicans retired to the Alamo and sent a white flag to the Plaza the following day. An honorable truce with a brave enemy was signed on Dec. 10 in the "Cos House" in historic La Villita. Later engagements--fall of the Alamo and massacre at Goliad--were followed by final victory and Texas Independence at San Jacinto, April 21, 1836. (1971)

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

From December 5–9, 1835, roughly 300 Texan, Tejano, and American volunteers under Cols. Frank W. Johnson and Benjamin R. Milam stormed San Antonio de Béxar, held by some 1,200 Mexican troops under Gen. Martín Perfecto de Cos. Guided through the streets by townsmen including first mayor John W. Smith and scout Hendrick Arnold, the attackers fought house to house until the Mexicans withdrew to the Alamo and surrendered under an honorable truce on December 10. It was the first of the four major engagements of the Texas War for Independence.

Why it matters

The capture of Béxar was the opening victory of the Texas Revolution, setting the stage for the Alamo, Goliad, and the decisive triumph at San Jacinto.

The story behind this marker

AI context

The era

In the fall of 1835, tension between Mexico's central government and the settlers of Texas broke into open war. Texans, including many Tejanos, objected to the centralist government's growing power and the loss of the federalist Constitution of 1824. After the first shots at Gonzales in October, a volunteer army marched on San Antonio de Béxar, the most important town in Mexican Texas.

Béxar was a Spanish colonial town with stone and adobe houses, plazas, irrigation ditches called acequias, and old missions nearby, including the Alamo. It was held by Mexican troops under Gen. Martín Perfecto de Cos, a brother-in-law of President Antonio López de Santa Anna, who had come to Texas to reassert central authority.

For weeks the volunteers besieged the town without assaulting it. The weather turned cold, supplies ran short, and many men drifted home. By early December the army faced a choice: attack or break up. What followed was the first major battle of the Texas Revolution.

People & events

Tradition credits Benjamin R. Milam with rallying the wavering volunteers by calling for men to follow him into San Antonio. At dawn on December 5, about 300 volunteers, Texans, Mexicans, and Americans, attacked under Milam and Col. Frank W. Johnson. They advanced in two columns along Acequia Street, now Main, and Soledad Street, against about 1,200 defenders.

Local townsmen guided the attackers through the streets they knew. They included John W. Smith, who later became San Antonio's first mayor; Hendrick Arnold, a celebrated scout and free Black man; Erastus "Deaf" Smith, later remembered for destroying Vince's Bridge during the San Jacinto campaign; and Samuel A. Maverick, a future signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Milam himself did not live to see the victory. He was killed during the fighting, and he is remembered as one of the Revolution's heroes.

The battle was fought house to house, room by room, often by men breaking through walls. On December 8 the Texans took the "priest's house," a strongpoint overlooking Main Plaza. Under heavy musket fire, the Mexican forces fell back to the Alamo, and the next day they sent a white flag. On December 10, Cos agreed to an honorable truce, signed in the "Cos House" in La Villita, and his troops left Texas.

Its place in the American story

The Storming of Béxar was the first of the four major engagements of the Texas Revolution. It drove the Mexican army out of Texas for a time and gave the rebellion confidence and momentum. It also left the Alamo in Texan hands, which set the stage for the siege that followed a few months later.

The victory proved short-lived. Santa Anna marched north in early 1836, and the fall of the Alamo and the killings at Goliad followed. Then came the decisive Texan victory at San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, which won independence. Texas's path from republic to U.S. statehood, and the U.S.-Mexican War that followed, grew out of this campaign.

The battle also shows how diverse the fight for Texas was. Anglo-American settlers fought alongside Tejanos and at least one free Black scout, and local knowledge from longtime residents was essential to the outcome. The Revolution is often told as a simple story, but Béxar reminds us that many kinds of people shaped it.

If you visit

Downtown San Antonio still follows parts of the old street plan, so you can trace the battle on foot. Walk Main Street and Soledad, think of the attacking columns pushing block by block, and stand near Main Plaza, the heart of the fighting. The historic San Fernando Cathedral still faces the plaza.

From there it is a short walk to the Alamo, where Cos's troops made their last stand before the truce, and to La Villita, the old neighborhood where the surrender was signed. Seeing all three in one walk puts the whole battle in perspective.

This stop fits easily into a day of exploring San Antonio's colonial and revolutionary history, including the Spanish missions along the river. Take your time on these streets. Every block you walk was once contested ground.

Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.

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Related people

  • · Benjamin R. Milam
  • · Frank W. Johnson
  • · Martín Perfecto de Cos
  • · John W. Smith
  • · Hendrick Arnold

Related events

  • · Storming of Bexar
  • · Texas Revolution
  • · Battle of San Jacinto

Themes & tags

Military & WartimeFrontier HistoryBattlefield

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