By January 6, 1836, fewer than 100 soldiers remained in the Alamo garrison. Colonel James C. Neill, the acting commander, wrote to the provisional government: 'If there has ever been a dollar here I have no knowledge of it.' The Texian government was in turmoil, with four different men claiming command of the entire army. Sam Houston sent James Bowie to the Alamo with orders to destroy the fortifications and retreat, but Bowie was unable to transport the artillery -- the garrison lacked draft animals. Neill persuaded Bowie that the position held strategic importance. Bowie wrote to Governor Henry Smith: 'The salvation of Texas depends in great measure on keeping Bexar out of the hands of the enemy.' The letter ended with the solemn resolution that he and Neill would 'rather die in these ditches than give it up.' Meanwhile, Santa Anna had gathered 6,019 soldiers at San Luis Potosi and ordered them inland toward Bexar. Many recruits did not know how to aim their muskets.

On February 23, residents began fleeing Bexar. Travis stationed a soldier in the San Fernando church bell tower -- the highest point in town -- to watch for the approaching Mexican Army. By late afternoon, 1,500 Mexican soldiers occupied the city. They raised a blood-red flag signifying no quarter: no prisoners would be taken. Travis responded with a blast from the Alamo's largest cannon. Over the next days, Mexican artillery batteries crept closer to the walls. On February 24, Bowie collapsed from illness, leaving Travis in sole command. A blue norther dropped temperatures to extremes neither army was prepared for. Texians who ventured out to gather firewood were driven back by Mexican troops. By March 1, Mexican casualties stood at nine dead and four wounded. The Texian garrison had lost one man. The 32-man Gonzales Ranging Company arrived as reinforcements, sneaking past Mexican lines in darkness -- and nearly being shot by their own side before English curses convinced the defenders to open the gates.

At 10 p.m. on March 5, the Mexican artillery stopped for the first time in thirteen days. The exhausted Texians fell into their first uninterrupted sleep since the siege began. Santa Anna counted on exactly that. Just after midnight, over 2,000 soldiers assembled in four columns. Veterans lined the outside to control recruits and conscripts in the middle. Five hundred cavalry surrounded the complex to prevent anyone from escaping -- Texian or Mexican. At 5:30 a.m. the columns advanced silently. Three Texian sentinels outside the walls were killed in their sleep. Then shouts of 'Viva Santa Anna!' broke the silence. Untrained recruits fired blindly, killing their own men in front. General Juan Amador was among the first to scale the 12-foot north wall. He opened the postern gate and Mexican soldiers poured in. By 6:30 a.m. it was over. Bowie, too sick to rise, likely died in bed. Robert Evans, the master of ordnance, crawled toward the powder magazine with a lit torch to deny it to the enemy -- he was killed with his torch inches from the powder.

Santa Anna called it 'a small affair.' Another officer replied that 'with another such victory as this, we'll go to the devil.' Historians estimate 400 to 600 Mexican casualties -- roughly one-third of the soldiers involved in the final assault. Santa Anna ordered the Texian bodies stacked and burned. The one exception was Gregorio Esparza, whose brother Francisco, an officer in Santa Anna's army, received permission to give him a proper burial. In February 1837, Juan Seguin returned to fill a coffin inscribed with the names Travis, Crockett, and Bowie with ashes from the funeral pyres. Where exactly he buried it remains unknown. The battle's strategic value was debatable, but its psychological impact was devastating -- to Santa Anna. Men flocked to join Sam Houston's army. On April 21, the Texian army attacked Santa Anna's camp near Lynchburg Ferry. The Battle of San Jacinto was over in 18 minutes. Texian soldiers charged screaming the words that would echo for generations: 'Remember the Alamo!'