Soldiers of Misfortune

by Sam W. Haynes

• ISBN13: 9780292751187
• ISBN10: 0292751184
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2010-07-22
• Publisher: Independent Publishers Group (Chicago Review Press)

Summary

The Somervell and Mier Expeditions of 1842, culminating in the famous "black bean episode" in which Texas prisoners drew white or black beans to determine who would be executed by their Mexican captors, still capture the public imagination in Texas. But were the Texans really martyrs in a glorious cause, or undisciplined soldiers defying their own government? How did the Mier Expedition affect the border disputes between the Texas Republic and Mexico? What role did Texas President Sam Houston play? These are the questions that Sam Haynes addresses in this very readable book, which includes many dramatic excerpts from the diaries and letters of expedition participants.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
``Carthage Must Be Destroyed''	1	(9)
The Vasquez and Woll Incursions	10	(14)
The Southwestern Army of Operations	24	(24)
The March to Laredo	48	(18)
The Battle of Mier	66	(14)
``Our National Calamity''	80	(24)
The Black Bean Episode	104	(24)
``There Is No Hope of Release''	128	(21)
``A Mysterious Silence''	149	(17)
``A Fragile Peace''	166	(17)
The Annexation Crisis	183	(21)
Epilogue	204	(9)
Notes	213	(32)
Bibliography	245	(14)
Index	259