THE ANGEL OF GOLIAD

The heroes of the Alamo and Goliad are recalled in the famous battle cries, “Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!,” but does anyone remember the Angel of Goliad?  She was known, by the Texans, as a "high bred beauty," and the "Angel of Goliad."  She was a tenderhearted Mexican lady who will forever be remembered for her many acts of kindness during those dismal days of the Texas Revolution.

Although there is some doubt as to her real name, she is commonly identified as Francita Alavez and history records that she was a compassionate and very beautiful woman.  She acquired the name, Angel of Goliad, because of her efforts to help Texas soldiers who had been captured at the Battle of Coleto.  She saved the lives of 20 Texans destined to die on March 27, 1836, when Colonel James W. Fannin and 341 of his men were put to death on orders of General Santa Anna.  

This hideous day of infamy was the result of incredible indecision on the part of Fannin, a West Point dropout.  Fannin's reason for being at Goliad was his "conviction of its importance as being advantageously located for a depot of reinforcements and military stores. . ."  Fannin was correct in that the Texas occupation of Goliad had contributed more to Cos's defeat in 1835 than the actual siege of San Antonio, for Goliad effectively cut off all supplies from the port of Copano.  But, that was 1835, and now Travis was bottled up in the Alamo.  

On February 19 Bonham arrived to confer with Fannin.  Representing Travis, Bonham presented the idea of moving Fannin's headquarters to San Antonio, but Fannin continued at Goliad keeping his men busy re-building the old fort---"Fort Defiance," as Fannin now called it.  More than half of his 400 men were recent volunteers from the United States.  On February 25, Travis' impassioned plea for help arrived, but Fannin refused to go, giving no reason.  Finally, on February 28, the reluctant colonel made ready to take his men to San Antonio and actually left.  However, he turned around and came back, giving that reason that he did not have enough supplies and his method of transport had broken down. 

On March 11, Houston reached Gonzales and learned the Alamo had fallen on March 6.  The general sent Fannin orders to fall back to Victoria.  Burying his guns, Fannin began to retreat, but then he came back and dug them up.  He made another fatal mistake by dividing his men into scouting parties which were captured by the Mexican troops with few managing to escape.  On March 18 the enemy cavalry appeared at Fort Defiance, and Fannin planned to retreat that night, but the movement was postponed until the next day.  Disregarding Houston's injunction to sink the surplus artillery in the river, Fannin insisted on bringing the nine brass cannons and 500 spare muskets with him.  But, he brought no rations for his men.  On a broad unprotected prairie, the colonel halted his men.  Had he moved on just a little farther, they would have had water and the protection of trees. 

The Mexican General Urrea overtook the little band and quickly surrounded the inexperienced 300 with his 1000 seasoned veterans.  It was a long and bloody afternoon, and when darkness fell, nine Texans were dead and fifty-one wounded.  Even though many of the men could have escaped, they refused to leave their wounded comrades to the mercy of the Mexicans. The next morning Urrea brought up a twelve-pound cannon, and Fannin and his men huddled in shallow improvised trenches, helpless against its fire. There was no other recourse except surrender.

It is true that Urrea agreed to spare the lives of the men and offered honorable treatment of the prisoners, but the general had also been present when the murderous decree of December 30, 1835, had been issued by Santa Anna that no prisoners would be taken.  Urrea maintained that he felt Santa Anna would honor his agreement with Fannin, as the dictator might hesitate before ordering the death of American citizens.  Santa Anna's chief concern during the entire Revolution was that Texas would receive aid from the United States. When General Jose Antonio Mexia had attacked Tampico in 1835 with three companies of men from New Orleans, one company had broken ranks and was captured by the Mexican forces. 

Santa Anna waited four weeks, declared the Americans pirates and shot them. New Orleans' reaction was that Mexico was acting within its rights.  How badly Santa Anna underestimated U.S. sentiment to his same treatment of the Texans at the Alamo and Goliad.  Urrea wrote to his general the terms of honorable surrender he had offered Fannin.  He well knew if his terms had been unconditional, the Texas forces would have fought to the death. In answer to Urrea's letter, Santa Anna ordered immediate death to the "perfidious foreigners." Urrea was not blood-thirsty and had even spared some of Johnson's men at San Patricio and King's men at Refugio. He sent an order to Colonel Jose Nicolas de la Portilla to treat his captives with consideration, but, Portilla received a special order from Santa Anna to "execute the prisoners in his hands at dawn." 

Portilla may have had moments of reluctance, but there is no doubt as to whose order would be obeyed.  On the day of execution, a Senora Francisca Alvarez, wife of one of the officers under Urrea, arrived.  It may be that the lady was actually only one of the camp followers and not actually Alvarez's wife, but regardless of her background, she was smitten with compassion for the doomed men.  She found Major William P. Miller left tied for several hours without food and water. She ordered Miller's bonds and those of his men cut and that they be given refreshment. Francisca pleaded so effectively with Lieutenant Colonel Garay that he heeded her pleas and spared twenty of the doctors, interpreters, nurses, and mechanics.  Also among those not destined for the field of slaughter was Benjamin Franklin Hughes, the little drummer boy, thanks to the entreaties of this brave woman.  Hughes would live to become a prominent Dallas citizen, and he spoke often of the "Angel of Goliad." 

She concealed several more prisoners upon the parapet of the fort until after the brutal massacre.  The wounded Fannin and forty of his men were murdered in the fort.  The rest were taken outside and shot at close range, so most of the soldiers died from the first volley.  The rest were run down and bayoneted or lanced as they fled.  Still, twenty-eight men somehow managed to reach cover of the wood and escape.  As for the daring Francisca, even on her return to Matamoros, she showed great kindness to the imprisoned Texans there. 

Capt. Alvarez moved on to Mexico City and there he abandoned Francita and left her penniless. This seemed to be a habit of Alavez - he also abandoned another woman, considered his legal wife, before he came to Texas with Francita. According to The New Handbook of Texas, later research indicates that Francita was probably his mistress.

Several years after the Texas Revolution, two doctors who were prisoners at Goliad and spared by the Mexicans, told of the humanitarian acts of Francita Alavez on behalf of the Texans. These eyewitness accounts, by Dr. Joseph Barnard and Dr. John Shackelford, caused the deeds of this compassionate woman to become widely known.

So what finally became of the "Angel of Goliad?" Her final fate is unknown.  Today, Goliad and Fannin's men have their massive memorials to the tragic events that were so fateful in creating the destiny of Texas.  But, the "Angel of Goliad" who risked so much for the lives of her enemy has only the briefest of  references in Texas history to her heroism.

Information obtained from "Unsung Heroes of Texas" by Ann Ruff and also from Lone Star Diary by Murray Montgomery.