The Goliad Campaign was a series of battles that took place in Texas in 1836, which ultimately led to the Goliad massacre.

Background

In 1835, American colonists living in Texas broke away from the Mexican government and seized a number of towns and forts, including the Alamo in San Antonio and the town of Goliad. In early 1836, the president of Mexico, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, led a force of several thousand Mexican soldiers into Texas to put down the uprising. While Santa Anna led the main column of troops to retake San Antonio and the Alamo, his subordinate, General Jose de Urrea led his right wing towards Goliad.

In Goliad, the Texan forces were commanded by Colonel James Fannin, and numbered close to 500 troops. Some were trained soldiers, while others were militia. General Urrea's objective was to control the Gulf of Mexico, which would ensure that Santa Anna's supply lines were protected. As Urrea drew nearer, it became clear that he would have to capture Goliad in order to achieve his objective. He moved quickly, and within a short time was closing in on the town.

Colonel Fannin had chosen to keep his troops at Goliad mainly because it had a fort from which he believed it would be easier to fight than out in the open. Fannin also believed that, by occupying Goliad, he could ensure that Santa Anna could not draw supplies from the Gulf of Mexico. However, he had several other options, including withdrawing to the north or reinforcing the garrison at the Alamo. He attempted to march to San Antonio, but turned back at the San Antonio River . Meanwhile, the Mexicans defeated two Texan raiding parties at San Patricio and Agra Dulce Creek .

The Battle of Refugio

Fannin sent Amos King on a scouting mission to Refugio on March 11th, straight into the path of Urrea's army. On the 13th, King sent out a plea for help to Fannin, who sent William Ward to reinforce him. They linked up and fortified a mission. Urrea, meanwhile, heard of their presence and marched a flying column of 300 Mexican troops to Refugio, hoping to overtake the Texans. On March 14th, the two sides clashed and fought until dark. The Texans attempted to escape back to Goliad, but were overtaken by the Mexican army and captured by Urrea, who continued on to Goliad with about 900 troops.

Fannin's Retreat and the Battle of Coleto

Fannin was ordered to abandon Goliad and retreat. However, he had sent most of his carts and horses with Ward to Refugio and had no cavalry. He sent couriers to Ward, but all of them were intercepted by Urrea's cavalry. Fannin hoped to retreat to Victoria, but hesitated for several days. Urrea, meanwhile, sent cavalry to surround and isolate Goliad. He linked up with several more units of Mexican infantry, bringing the total number of Mexican troops in the area to 1,500. Not until the morning of March 19th did Fannin finally begin his retreat from Goliad. Weighted down with cannons and 500 extra guns, Fannin burned his supplies in an attempt to lighten the load. That afternoon, Urrea's cavalry encircled the Texans on open prairie near Coleto . After several hours of fighting, the Mexicans defeated the Texans and Fannin surrendered.

The Massacre

After Fannin's surrender, he and 400 Texan troops were marched back to Goliad and held prisoner by Urrea. Santa Anna refused Urrea's request that Fannin and his troops be treated as prisoners of war, and ordered Urrea's command to execute all the prisoners, which they did on March 27th.

The outcome of the Goliad Campaign is generally to the strategies of Colonel Fannin and General Urrea: Fannin divided his forces, hesitated several times and improvised his strategy on the spot, while Urrea had a clear objective, pursued the Texans vigorously, and organised his own forces quickly.

The Goliad massacre became the most prominent symbol of the brutality that the Texans had ascribed to the Mexican army, and in particular to Santa Anna. During the latter part of the Texas Revolution, "Remember Goliad" was chanted by soldiers, along with chants of "Remember the Alamo." Over time, however, the campaign and the resulting massacre have become overshadowed in history by the Battle of the Alamo. In part, this is because Goliad had no otherwise famous figures involved: while Davy Crockett, James Bowie and Santa Anna have all passed into history as legends, James Fannin, William Ward and Jose de Urrea have faded into obscurity.