Thursday, March 02, 2006

Texas' Day Of Independence

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March 2nd, 2006

in 1836, Generalissimo Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna overcomes the treachery of the rebel Texicans and finally crushes Sam Houston and his army in their little encampment they called Washington-On-The-Brazos. The rebels had attempted to lull Santa Anna away with the charms of a lovely young woman, but the Generalissimo was too clever for them.

in 1836, Texas, long a center for those unwilling to live under the rules of the North American Confederation, signs the San Jacinto Treaty, granting it independence. Over the next century, it remains an island of rugged individualism in the sea of Mlosh-led conformity.

in 12-11-0-11-3, the Caddo, Apache and Tejas, banded together a mere two years before, achieve the impossible, and free themselves from the rule of the Oueztecan Empire. For the next 9 years, their tiny nation holds off the mightiest country in the world, but the economic boycott Ouezteca enforces against finally leads them to rejoin the empire in 12-11-10-3-15.

in 1836, the Texican People’s Republic, under the leadership of Thomas Skidmore, declares its independence from imperialist Mexico in a ceremony at Washington-On-The-Brazos. Skidmore, a labor organizer back in the United States, turns the new nation of Texas into a place where people are proud to work, and know that their labor is the real foundation of wealth.

in 1836, Santa Anna’s forces, reeling from their defeat at the Alamo, are crushed by the combined forces of Houston, Travis and Fannin at San Antonio. Colonel William Travis, the hero of the Alamo, accepts the surrender of the Mexican leader, and promises him that Texas and Mexico will “live side-by-side in peace as long as you respect the sanctity of our borders.” Travis became the first president of the Republic of Texas in elections held that year.

in 1836, at a ceremony in Washington, Texas, Conspirators of the Speaker’s Line break the rebel nation away from Mexican rule. They plan to use the vast western lands of Texas to base their own people and experiments. General Santa Anna, a Conqueror of the Speaker’s Line, almost manages to recapture them, but fails in two different wars against them.

in 1836, Texan rebels at Washington-On-The-Brazos receive word that U.S. troops are on their way; President Andrew Jackson has agreed to annex them into the United States, and declare war on Mexico. Sam Houston, leader of the rebels, halts work on the independence proclamation and instead produces the treaty that will join the Texas Territory to the United States.

in 1836, Sam Houston and the other founding fathers of Texas sign their Declaration of Independence, a document drafted by a newcomer to their ranks at Washington-On-The-Brazos, a man by the name of Richard Tolman. He had forcefully persuaded all of them to agree to abolish slavery from the fledgling nation, a small miracle in light of the fact that most of the founders were slave-holders, but according to Houston’s diary entry from that day, Tolman was “the most persuasive man I ever met – it was like he knew what you were thinking before you thought it.”

Timelines in today's post: the Mlosh, the Speaker, the Oueztecan timeline, Communist America and the Tolman timeline.

Today's "Six Degrees of Star Trek" challenge: Connect the 1980 soap opera Texas to Star Trek. Place your answers in the comments and see the Forum for previous results. For more on 6 degrees games, click here.


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