The Texas Gulf Historical and Biographical Record, Volume 21, Number 1, November 1985 Page: 32
106 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
32 THE TEXAS GULF HISTORICAL & BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
quently he signed the Declaration and thereafter Zavala participated actively
in the deliberations and activities of this Convention, sharing living quarters
in Washington with Gray, Ruiz, Navarro, and Badgett.22
Santa Anna's forces were already attacking the Alamo defenders, but
the Texas Declaration of Independence gave some justification for the Mex-
ican conduct, as Pena wrote:
This declaration [of independence] was also useful to the Mex-
icans, for once they saw these incidents in proper perspective, they
knew exactly where they stood. The cry of independence darkened
the magic of liberty that had misled some of the less careful thinkers,
and the few who had cast their lot with the colonists, believing them
to be acting in good faith, disassociated themselves immediately,
there remaining with the colonists only Don Lorenzo de Zavala and
the Bejar natives, Don Antonio Navarro and Don Juan N. Seguin,
the only intelligent men who incurred the name of traitor, a label
both ugly and deserved. At least they are the only ones that we know
about.23
As one of the more experienced delegates, Zavala was appointed to the
committee to draft a constitution, of which the provisions for the executive
department probably resulted from his prior experiences and reflect his op-
position to the possibility of a dictatorship. The president, required to be
a resident of Texas for at least three years, was to be elected for a three-
year term and could not succeed himself. Although his powers were com-
parable to those of the president of the United States, he could not lead
the army without the approval of Congress - shades of Santa Anna.
Clergymen were not eligible for the presidency or congress. Slavery was re-
tained, but with the consent of congress, free negroes might continue to
reside in Texas.
Zavala was chairman of the flag committee. Confusion had reigned as
to the appropriate Texas flag - for each event seemingly a different ban-
ner was employed. Possibly the best known was the Mexican flag of three
vertical stripes: green for independence, white for purity of religion, and
22William Fairfax Gray was an observer at the Washington Convention; Jose Antonio Navarro
and Jose Francisco Ruiz were natives of San Antonio; Jesse Badgett was the elected delegate of
the Alamo defenders to the Washington Convention.
23Joseph Enrique de la Pena, With Santa Anna in Texas (College Station, 1975), p. 4.[Vol. XXI, No. 1
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
Texas Gulf Historical Society. The Texas Gulf Historical and Biographical Record, Volume 21, Number 1, November 1985, periodical, November 1985; Beaumont, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1433656/m1/34/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Gulf Historical Society.