A balanced account of the skirmishes along Texas’ borderland during the years between the Battle of San Jacinto and the Mexican seizure of San Antonio. The stage was set for conflict: The First Congress of the Republic of Texas had arbitrarily designated the Rio Grande as the boundary of the new nation. Yet the historic boundaries of Texas, under Spain and Mexico, had never extended beyond the Nueces River. Mexico, unwilling to acknowledge Texas independence, was even more unwilling to allow this further encroachment upon her territory. But neither country was in a strong position to substantiate claims; so the conflict developed as a war of futile threats, border raids, and counterraids. Nevertheless, men died—often heroically—and this is the first full story of their bitter struggle. Based on original sources, it is an unbiased account of Texas-Mexican relations in a crucial period. “Solid regional history.” —The Journal of Southern History

"This dramatic book, taken directly from the notes of Dr. Nicholas Descomps Labadie, army surgeon and dedicated adoptive son of Texas, is a unique first hand account of the Texas Revolution which freed American settlers from Mexican tyranny, a revolution which came to a triumphant climax with the historic Battle of San Jacinto, April 12, 1836."--page 2 of cover.