Welcome to Finding Medina.

Episode 6, The Battle of Rosillo.

I'm Brandon Seal.

Throughout September and October of 1812, Texas Governor Manuel Salcedo anxiously followed

the advance of Bernardo Gutierrez de Lara's Republican Army of the North across his

province.

After the Republicans had taken Nacadoches, Governor Salcedo had assumed that they would march

on San Antonio, the capital of Texas, and the gateway to the rest of Mexico.

Salcedo had marched out himself with maybe 1,000 or so Spanish regulars, presidials, and militia, intent on ambushing the Republicans just as they crossed the Guadalupe River.

The Republicans, however, captured one of his spies, quote,

on the top of a tree, looking out, but not vigilant enough to save himself, end quote,

one Republican recalled mockingly.

From the spy, and perhaps also from some of their Tonkawa allies scouting ahead, the Republicans learned of the governor's trap on the Guadalupe.

In a brilliant move, Gutierrez de Lara swung the Republican army clear around Governor Salcedo's force

and set a course toward Goliad, then known as La Bahia.

Governor Salcedo learned of their detour and raced south to catch up to them,

but not before the Republicans captured the town on November 7, 1812. The second and third largest

communities in Texas had now fallen to Gutierrez de Lara, barely three months after he had crossed the Sabine.

And in some ways, taking Goliad placed the Republicans in a stronger position than they would have

been in had they captured San Antonio first. From Goliad, they controlled Salcedo's access to the sea,

and threatened to cut off his supply lines down to the interior,

all the while poised to march on his provincial capital if Salcedo left it undefended.

...