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The Filibusters. ?. Early Anglo Settlement in Texas. SPAIN’S OWNERSHIP OF TEXAS. By 1800, Spain owned most of the American Southwest including Texas. People seeking adventure began coming to Spanish Texas.
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The Filibusters ? Early Anglo Settlement in Texas
SPAIN’S OWNERSHIP OF TEXAS By 1800, Spain owned most of the American Southwest including Texas.
People seeking adventure began coming to Spanish Texas. Some of these adventurers came for profit, others came to establish independent states. These adventure-seekers were called filibusters.
In 1800, Philip Nolan, perhaps the most famous filibuster, came to Texas to catch and sell wild mustangs. Many others followed suit. The Spanish were suspicious of many people, and they thought that all filibusters were trying to make Texas part of the U.S.
Spain was suspicious of some people such as James Long. Long came to Texas, captured Nacogdoches, and claimed Texas as a free and independent state. Eventually, the term filibuster became synonymous with a trouble maker who wanted to start rebellion.
Both Philip Nolan and James Long were executed by the Spanish government because of the fear that the filibusters wanted to take Texas away from Spain.
Jane Long, James’s wife, learned of his death while living on Point Bolivar near Galveston. She was left alone with a young daughter and servant. Mrs. Long endured severe weather, scarce food, and the threat of attack from Native Americans and Spanish soldiers. At one point she used a small cannon to frighten away some Karankawa Indians.
Later, Jane traveled to Mexico to investigate her husband’s death. She eventually returned to Texas where she bought land and became a successful business woman. Jane Long’s bravery and independent spirit has earned her the nickname “Mother of Texas”.
Mexicans living in New Spain had been pushing for independence. Father Miguel Hidalgo called for Mexico’s independence from Spain.
Father Hidalgo was executed by the Spanish government, and Spain exercised tighter control of its land. But, people began to see the cracks in Spanish control.
One of Hidalgo’s supporters, Bernardo Gutierrez de Lara, and a former U.S. soldier, Augustus Magee, decided to invade Texas and free it from Spanish rule. Their effort became known as the Gutierrez-Magee Expedition. They raised an army of 800 and successfully defeated the Spanish over a period of a few months.
The expedition members established an independent state, but could not agree on how to run the government. Eventually the larger Spanish army defeated the Republican army and restored control over Texas.
There were other means of owning a piece of Spanish Texas besides rebellion. In 1820 Moses Austin met with Governor Martinez of Spain to request permission to establish a colony in Texas. Land Grant Moses was given permission to settle three hundred families in Texas.
The new land grant was the fertile farmland between the Colorado and Brazos Rivers.
Moses Austin paved the way for Anglo American colonization of Texas. However, he died in 1821, before his dream to colonize Texas was realized. His dying wish was that his son, Stephen, fulfill his vision to colonize Texas.
Stephen F. Austin was given permission to colonize, and thus the first Anglo Americans came to Texas. They felt like part of Texas belonged to them since they had permission to settle and had purchased land.
Just as Austin was making headway in establishing his colony, he learned that Mexico had finally won independence from Spain. His land grant was no longer valid in the new government, so he traveled to Mexico City and asked the new government of Mexico for permission to colonize.
It took a year, but eventually Austin was given the title of empresario. Empresario Stephen F. Austin An empresariowas someone who arranged business deals including the buying and selling of land.
Austin’s colony began to flourish. By 1830, over 200 people lived in the capital of the colony, San Felipe de Austin. The original three hundred families to settle in Austin's colony became known as the Old Three Hundred.
Austin’s colony was very successful. Other businessmen became empresarios and settled more families on their own land grants around Austin’s colony.
Let’s review the progression of the Texas ownership. We have now seen three flags fly over Texas, and various individuals make claims to the land.
First, both Spain and France had claims to Texas during the years of exploration from the late 1500’s through the late 1600’s. Spain had claims to the American Southwest, which included most of Texas. France had claims in East Texas.
France no longer had claims on America with the sale of the Louisiana Purchase (1803) to the US. Eventually, Spain claimed most of the Americas including all of Texas.
Meanwhile, adventurous individuals called filibusters tried to take parts of Texas and create independent states. Philip Nolan James Long Guiterrez-Magee Expedition
Empresarios such as Stephen F. Austin were given land grants to settle Texas. Land Grant
Eventually, Mexico won independence from Spain. France Spain Mexico So by 1821, three flags had flown over Texas- just three more to go!
The Anglo American colonization of Texas was well under way. However, with colonization came conflict between the Mexican government and the colonists.
What do you think will be sources of conflict between these two groups?
