>The importance of slavery is debatable. Only those who participated can really say how important. The battle was fought because Santa Anna revoked the Constitution of 1824, and took away the freedoms that the people moved to Texas for. One of those freedoms was indeed the right to own slaves. The slavery issue was a factor but not the main one initially. The revolt started as an effort to restore the Federal Republic under the Mexican constitution but evolved into a complete separatist movement instead. Historians say that Texas was issued an exemption to the slavery ban by the Mexican government which stated that they could own slaves but could not refer to them as 'slaves' which really took slavery out of the equation.

That reminds me of the film (I know there were several but the main one with John Wayne as Davy Crocket). Just before the final assault Jim Bowie (Richard widmark?) grants his manservant freedom and allows him to leave. The guy says "You say I'm a free man, and can do as I please .... I guess I'll just ... stay". He even sacrifices himself later in an attempt to protect Bowie.

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>>>In the early 1820’s Mexico allowed Americans to settle in Tejas (Texas). The Americans used slave labor, which was allowed in Mexico until 1829. Mexico allowed slavery to continue in Tejas because of the objections of the Americans living there.
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>>>December of 1835 Santa Anna amended the slavery laws to ban slavery in Texas. This is the reason the battle of the Alamo was fought. Tejano’s (people of Spanish or Mexican ancestry living in Texas) were very important to the defeat of the Mexican Army and helping to establish Texas as a Republic in 1836.
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>>Tom
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>>Hmmm, very interesting. So the stand at the Alamo, albeit very brave, wasn't all that noble after all?
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>>Terry