Tejano History

Casas Revolt

Casas Revolt

Tejanos |

CASAS REVOLT. The Casas Revolt of 1811 was one of the many challenges to imperial authority that convulsed New Spain after Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla's initial action to achieve Mexican independence from Spain in September 1810. The royalist governor of Texas, Manuel María de Salcedo, found that Mexican revolutionaries seeking to overthrow Spanish rule hoped to get aid from the United States via Texas. In late 1810 Salcedo discovered two revolutionary agents from Nuevo Santander, militia lieutenants Francisco Ignacio Escamilla and Antonio Saenz, working among his troops. After ordering their imprisonment in San Antonio de Valero Mission, Salcedo decided to take preemptive action. Aware that the viceregal authorities could not spare forces to protect Texas, he tried in January to muster his men to crush the rebellion on the Rio Grande. Members of the garrison were unhappy at the prospect of leaving their families unprotected against Indians and other dangers. Equally disconcerted were the alcaldes (see ALCALDE), led by Francisco Travieso, who would be faced with mounting a citizen guard during the militia's absence. Along with a militia representative, Travieso called upon Capt. Juan Bautista de las Casas to assume command of the San Antonio troops. Casas, a native of San Fernando, Nuevo Santander, and a retired captain of the Villa de Croix frontier defenses in his home province, was living in San Antonio de Béxar at the time. The next morning, January 22, 1811, Casas, leading the rebellious militia, arrested Governor Salcedo and the garrison commandant and ordered the release of Saenz and Escamilla.

 

Full article on the Texas State Historical Association's Handbook of Texas Online

   Courtesy of the Texas State Historical Association.