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PATIUars AND DISSIDEN-nl:
TIlE ROLE OF ETIlNICfIY IN CIVIL WAR TEXAS'
by
James Marten
When the famous Yankee tourist
Fr\'derick Law Olmsted wrote about hill
"saddle trip" through Texas in 1856, he
described the ronnict between the
planter class and the "iocongruous
foreign element of Mexicans and
Germans" on the fronlier of the Lone
Star State. z These l\m groups, which
togelher comprised about &even percent
of the population of Texas in 1860,
endured a long history of elhnic
antipathy wilh the dominant Anglo
majority that began long before Ihe
Ovil War and slretched well past
Reconstruction.
Despite this history, German.O; and
Mexicans responded 10 the war in a
wide wriety of ways; many loyally
served the Confederacy, others emibited
romplete indifference to the southern
caU&e, and some went !lO far as (0 enlist
in the Federal Army. These internal
divisions were overshadO'o\'ed by Anglo
perceptions of the disloyalty of Germans
and
Hispanics, which
spawned
widespread elhnic tensions and violence.
The conflict between Angkl and ethnic
Texans during tbe war demonstrates
that the South did nOI march into bailie
against the Union with a unified front.
The widopread dissent in the
Soulh--which is one of the conlat! in
which ethnic experiences in Texas must
be placed--ereated inte.mal threats
against the Confederacy thaI, in some
areas, loomed as important 85 external
threats from Union !lOldiers.J Because
eacb ethnic group's story contains
unique elements, we will discus,o; them
one at a time, beginning with the
Germans..
By 1860, after several decades of
immigration, lhe 30,000 Texans of
Gennan ~tack comprised &even percent
of Texas's fn:c p:!pUIBlion and tiYe
percent of its lotal p:!pUlalion. The first
ronlingent of German immigrants,
arriving in the 184Qo;, was provincial and
COI15ervalive and accepted with few
reservation.,; !.he predominant statu'
rights phila;ophy in Texas. After 1848,
however, a new strain of German
immigrants arrived in Texas. These
"Forty-EigblerB," refugees from the
failed German revolution of 1848,
settled on the western frontier in the
countier; of Gillespie, Ma.'iOn, Kerr, and
Medina. As republicans., nationalists, and
liberals,
these
intellectuals
were
accustomed to challenging authority and
the existing Siale of society. Some of
these later German colonists wen! 50 far
as 10 ban !lavery. In May 1854, liberals
issued a ~ries of resolutions later called
the "San Antonio Platform." The
platform contained a number of
progres.<;jve social, political, and religious
reforms, but i15 rn(ll;! volatile plant--as
well as its most publicized one­
declared "thai :lolavery is an evil, whose
final removal iii essential 10 tne
foundation of democracy" and urged
southern state governments 10 take
step; Lo eliminate the institution. 4
AJthough members of the German
majorilY
scrambled
to
divorce
thermeM:s from tile abolitionism of a
few of their countrymen, a suspicion of
Germans lingered among Anglo-Texans.
One rumor alleged that the Germans
were involved in the slave in..~urrection
of 1860, and
when
four
Gennan-dominated counties in West
T~ voted against the seces.~ion
IS
llSSIDENTS:
IN CIVIL WAR TEXAS'
lIeD
30,000 Texans of
Itoct romprilled seven percent
Mlisration, tbe
jcrmao
I TQlII'1 free population Btld 1M
ertetll of ita total populalioo. 1be first
ODt1:DFJl of German immigranLS,
rriYing in the 1840&, was provindal and
ODSeMtive and accepted with few
CSCMticns the predominant stat~'
ighIA pbilalophy in Taas. After 1848,
lO'II'CYCI', a new strain of Gennan
mmigrants arr1Yed in Texas. These
Forty-EightefS,' refugees from lhe
BiIed German revolution of 1848,
ettled on the western frontier in the
OJoUes of Gillespie, Ma5Ofl., Kerr, and
"'edina. AJ republicans., nalionalists, and
ibmlls,
lhese
intellectuals
were
ID:U5tOI1lf.d 10 challenging aUlhority and
he e:usling 8late of society. Some of
beae Ialer Gennan colonists went -'0 far
D 10 ban 811l\'e1)'. In May 1854, liberals
wed a series of resoluti011l!o laler called
:be "sao Anlonio Platfonn." The
:lIatfmn contained a number of
~ llOcial, political, and religious
:'Cfl::nns, but its most volatile planlt--as
It'tU as iLS mosl pUblicized one­
:Iedared "that slavery is an evil, whcw;e
IiDaJ remowl is eMenlial to Ihe
b:andation of democrncy" and urged
wlbem stale governments to talte
IlCpIIIO eliminate the inllilution. 4
Although members of Ihe German
majority
scrambled
to
divorce
lbemselYes from lhe aoolilionism of a
rcw of Ibcir countrymen, a suspidon of
Germans lingered among Anglo-Texans.
ODe rumlX alleged that the Germans
~ invoM:d in the slave insUrreclion
01 1860, and when four
GennBn4Jminated counties in West
TClai voted agail1lll lhe secession
ordinance, it underscored their lenuous
loyalty to the southern cause-at \east to
some. The reactions of many Gennans
10 lWltime pressures would amplify
lbese doubts and perceptions, and lead
10 violence and recriminatm againsl
Taall Germans by their Confederale
neighlxlrs.)
G1ven antebellum tCll8ions, it did
IlO{ surprise Anglo-TexaM that a s.iz.able
number of German-Texans diut:nted
against the Confederacy during the war.
In Bandera County, for ilUlance, at the
outbreak of the war, German residents
apparently paid no tUell, cirCUlated a
pelition demanding a reunion of the
sLales,
threatened
prominent
secessionists, stole the buggy wheel of a
Confederate judge, and threw his seal
cushions into a river. The German
fXlI5tmaster opened the mail or leading
secessionists, and local Unionists bad
formed a home guard company caUler
than joining the county militia. TI1i5
extensive disaffection was all the more
frightening, according to a local
fire-eater, because "our Southem boyIl
have almost aJljoined Capl. Adams [sie]
Company and lhe secessionists are in a
minority in the County at this time.'"
Concerned Texans grew alanned
when large groups of Germans
organized in mher parts of lhe stale. An
Austin County planter pleaded ror help
from Governor Lubboclt in Mareh 1862,
becausc "credible, reliable information"
indicated that twO hundred Gennans
bad vowed to resist the Confederate
draft, to aid Uncoln and the Nonhero
war eflon, and even ~, "to
counteMNe and asSLJI the negroes in
case of Btl invasion to rebel againat their
awnerL'
Col.
Henry
MeCulloch,
rommanding North Texas, urged Gov.
Lubbock to declare martial law in San
Antonio in order La lhwan Ihe
anticipated seizure of the local aIKnal
by a company of Unionist Gennans. 7
So widespread W8!l the perceMd
disloyalty of !be Tesas Germans tbat
vigilant Tc:mtJI lICemed lO lake special
delight in penc:cuting lhem. In !be
summer of 1862, CcRtfederale troopers
operating rear Fredericksburg arrested
ciliz.ellli, burned a few Unioni8tlI' farms,
ousted a Ioc8I militia capUlin, aDd
gener.J.IIy intimldaled man of lhe
p:lpulalion of Gillespie and the
lurrouoding couolies.. E1emenls of tbe
Thirty-3eCOnd Texas Cavalry joined the
roundup, scouling the rough hill country
around Frederieksburg, guarding the
tawn day and night, Btld hunting
"bushwhacten.." Cavalryman Thomas
Smith recorded in biB dairy that when a
suspected Unionist "ehances to fall into
the bands of the [Confederale] soldiers
he ~ dealt pretty roughly wilh and
generally mak~ h~ lasl speech with a
rope around his neclt." .A.ccording to
Smitb, "hanging is gelling 10 be as
rommon as hunling," and ~the creeb in
this vicinity are said (0 be full of dead
men!!" Proof came one day When Smith
wilnessed "a sight which J never wish
again 10 see in a civilized & enlighlened
countty"-four dead bocties f10aling in a
water hote. They had been "tbrown in
and left to rot, and Ulat too after lhey
were banged by Ihe neclt [unlllJ dead. nIl
Three
Wesl Texas Germallli
appearing before a military commission
in san Antonio in 1862 contributed 10
the impreMioo Ihal the German
populalm WBIl as a ruJe disloyal.
Wilne:sses accused Philip Braubach, a
fanner, stage driver, and !IOIJ1elime law
officer near San Antonio, of using h~
office 10 aid Union men, of recruiling
only Union-loving Gennanl for a
fronlier
defense
eompany,
of
depreciating Confederale currency, and,
acrording 10 one witness, of associaling
"with the party who halloes for lhe
Union." Julius SChlieltum alllo allegedly
deprecialed Confederate currency and,
16
in the words of a Confedenl.le sergeant,
"oever had any good news on our side,
but generally had somcLtling bad to teu.·
The third member of Ihe trio,
Ferdinand Doebbler, kept a laVern ill
Fredericksburg that v.itnesses labeled
"the place of rendezvous for people
calling themselves Union men,~ where
they could bUy "Black: RepubOCan"
newspapen;. The coun 5£:ntenced all
three men to prison for Ihe duration of
the war. u
A1lhough dissidents monopolized
the public's perception of Texas
Germaru;, hundreds of Germans served
loyally in Confederate or state military
organizations, and a number of Gennan
leaders became Confederate officen.
Carl William von RO'lenberg, the son of
a Prussian noble, had sel"'ed as a
lieutenant in \.he Prussian anny and as
Royal Architect for Frederick William I.
Bis liberal views made promotion
difficult, and tie journeyed to Texas in
]849, where he rfi'ie to the position of
chief draftsman in the General 'Land
Office. Unlite mml Gennan political
refugees who opposed slavery, tlCJWe\lcr,
he voted for secession and joined the
Confederate army as a topographical
engineer. Another German liberal,
Gustavus SChleicher, speculaled in West
Texas
land,
promoted
railroads,
publisbed
a
German-language
ne'Mipaper, and work.ed as a surveyor in
tbe 18508; after winning elwion to Ihe
stale senale in 1859, he became an
advocate of seCCSliion alld Ialer entered
[he Confederale Army as a l;<Iptain of
engineers. 10
The best·known Gennan_C.onfedcrate
was Col. August Buchel, a profe56iOnal
soldier who between 1831 and 1845
fought for Gennany and in tbe French
Foreign legion, and worked as an
instructor in the Turmh Army. An avid
duelisl, be apparently lrilte.d a man in
Germany and quickly sailed to Texas.
He continued his miJiwy career in his
new bome, rabling a company of Texas
volunteers to fi£b.t in the Mexican War
aDd .serving on Gen. Zachary Taylor's
staff at the battk of Buena Vista. A
decade 181er, wbea Juan Conina raided
Brownsville in 1859, he organized a
company of YOlunleers [hat helped drive
eortina out of tbe. RJo Grande Valley.
Apparelltly unconcerned with PJlilics
and uninterested iD tbe 6l<M:ry quesliOll.,
Buchel adapted well 10 soul hem society.
Af, one of the mQ\t experienced soldiers
in Teus, Buchel naturally sought to
contribute [0 the Confederale war
effon. Late in 1861, he became
lieutenant colonel of the Third Texas
Infanlry, stationed in South Texas. Two
years later he took. command of [he
Third Texas Cavalry and led Ihem
through the fighting in lDuisiana. He
died in combal at the battle of Pleasant
Hill in the spring of 1864, a
well-resgected and admired professional
soldier. 1
Other Gennaro; who entered the
Confederate army came from decidedly
less milita!i:stic background5 lnan
BucheL Ja;eph Bruckmuller, for
iro;lance, had only INed in Man;hall,
Texas, for three years when the war
bl'lXe out. Then, in order ~IO live up 10
my duties toward my cha;en country,"
he joined the Seventh To.as Voluntccrs.
The regiment foUght in Kenlucky,
Tennessee, Mis.sissippi, and lDuisiana,
and Bruck.muller ended up a priSOner of
war twice. The young Gennan survived
a bool of chokra and work.ed roc a
while as a hospital orderly. After hi:s
serond escape rrom the Yankees., in the
fall of 1863, he went back to work as a
shoemaker. His occupation may have
earned him an e:u:mption from funher
military service. U
De&pile thc6e conspiclloU:I examples
of loyalty to the Confederate cause, the
Gennan population of Taas rellJ,!l.ined
17
Ik cootinued bill mililary career in hit.
leW bcme, raising a rompany of Te:tal'i
IOOmlem to fight in Ibe Moican War
DId sening 00 Gen. Zachary Taylor's
Itaff at tile battle of Buena Vista. A
X:clD: Ialer, .men Juan Cortina raided
Blow. . . in 1859, be organized a
:::DIDI*JYof"«ll.unleeni that helped drive
rntiDa OUI of tbe Rio Grandt Valley.
"Pf8tetlllt urx:mcemed wiLb JnIitk::!l
md uninterated in tbe slavery question.
IJucbeI adapted welliD southern society.
I'\s me of the most elI:perienced soldiers
iD Tems, Buchel naturally sought to
XlDltibute 10 the Confederate war
:ffort. late in 1861, he became
kutenanl colonel of the 1hird Texas
Infantry, stationed in South Taou. Two
jle8tII loler he look oommand
tile
Ibitd TeIBS Cavalry and led them
ibrough tile lighting in Louisiana. He
:lied in combal at Ihe battle of Ple3.'iant
Hill in tbe spring of 1864, a
ili'eU-resoected and admired profcllSional
or
............ 11
~,.
Other Germans who entered the
Confederate anny came from decidedly
lcIlI milil:arisLic baCkgrounds than
Bucbel. lac;eph Bructmuller, for
inMance, bad only lived in Marshall,
Texas, for three yea'" when the war
Ixc*e OUI. Then, in order ~to live up to
lIlY duties toward my ChCKIl counlry,~
Dejained tbc: Seventh Texa!I Volunteers.
]be regimen! fought in Kentucky,
r~. Misaissippi, and Louisiana,
md Bruckmuller ended up a p~ner of
1181' twice. The young German survived
I bout of cholera and work:ed for a
IPlhiIe as a ho!ipital orderly. After his
!IeCODd escape from. the Yank:ees, in tbe
ran
1863, be went baek: 10 work: as a
Iboemaker. His occupation may have
earned aim 8Jl CJ:emplion from furtber
or
Iniliwyaerv1ce,u
Dc:Ipile these conspicuous eumples
Io'ja1ty ID the Confederate caU!oe, the
GennaD populatiOD of Texas remained
[)f
I
1
deeply dMded. Mailers came to H head
for thCK Texas Gennans who refulled
to adapt to the Confederacy 00 10
August 1862, in a ooe-&ided figbt 00 lbe
Nueees River, which the Dallas Herald
dubbed "The Battle With lhe Trallon."
The "bailIe" clim:necl a summer.long
campaign b'f Confederate authorita to
break resLstance to the Confedemcy,
especially to the recently paMed
conscription
acl,
in
the
German-dominated Hill Countrywe5t of
Austin. Opponenu of the war and the
draft in and near Fredericksburg had
fanned a "Loyal Union League." The
League publicly announced that it
intended to protect this exposed part of
the frontier from Indians and outlaW$.,
but Confederate officials belieYed--not
without reason-_that iu genuine purpao;e
was to resist coflScription and other
Confederate prograln!i. In May 1862, a
detachment of Confederate troops
marched to Fredericksburg to restore
order and (0 ensure the loyalty of Ihe
area's citizens to the ConfederacyY
Early in August, a party of just
(Wer sixty men, mostly German
members of the Union League, decided
to escape Confederate pe~ulion b'f
going to Meuco. A company of about
one hundred TelraS troops caught them
after tracking them for a week: through
the rugged, un!oettled, and sweltering
South Texas frontier. The Confederate!
allacked before dawn on 10 August. In
tbe ensuing fight, thirty Germans were
killed, wbile about lWenty were
wounded. No captives survived the
ballle--shorlly after Ibe firing SlOpped, a
squad of C'...onfederates shot to death the
nine injured Unionisu who had
surrendered.
The mallllacre culminated the
official campaign against disloyal
Germans in Texas., all bough for the
remainder of tbe war Hill Country
Unionisu would be terrorized b'f whal
lbe Germans appropriately called the
Confederates
who warred 00 civilian Unionist&. After
tbe
Nueca massacre, ~r,
Germans -ould never again be
perce1ved 8A a serious threat to the
Confederate war effort, as German
res.islaoce in easI«nlral Texas quickly
dwindled. One ralher blood-thirsty
Confederate wrote home after the
Nueces incideDt that "the toties in this
part of the country is getting somewhat
scarce." He aUributed their scarcity to
tbe 'o'iolence that had left di.sloyali5tA
"lying and hanging all OYer tbe woods."
Some of the dissenting Germans had
indeed been killed, while many had
escaped to Mexico, others had fOUnd
some sort of lIafe hiding place, a good
number had found refuge from
Confederate service in the companies
formed b'f the state to defend the
frontier, and still others had seUled into
an uneasy accommodation with the
Confederate authorities. 14
The antebellum and wartime
pe~ution of the 12,443 Mexican-born
residenu of Texas (2.1 percent of the
LOtal population) had Iitlle to do with
politics. Rather, the Anglos' exaggerated
perception of Mexican dil;loyalty W38 a
function of the complex relationsbips
between Mexicans, Anglm, and Afro­
American slaves. Ever since American
settlers began arriving in Tt.GI!I in the
182011, racism, economic conBict, and
intermittent warfare between Texas and
Mexico had plagued relalions between
Anglm 8Ild TejQltOs. 1bere were notable
exceptions. A tiny minority of Tejan05,
represented b'f the Benavides family of
Laredo and a few other wealthy land­
holders, 50lIght the economic benefiu
stability would bring 10 the borderlands.
They identified more with the Anglo
population than with the Mexican, and
were exempt from penalties normally
associated wilb their raceY
Hae1IgtrbrJNJe-pngs
or
18
De&pile
such
highly
visible
examples, to white Proles1anl Texans,
Catholic MeIicans appeared lazy,
ignorant, Immoral, shiftles&, dirty,
superstitious,
and
doomed
to
subservience. The laner's wretched
economic posilion--caused in pan ~ the
Anglo practice of seizing Mexican land
through complicated legal malleuveJ'S or
forced ~Ic al ludicrously low prices­
enrouraged racial arrogance. The
~
primary tonniet lay, however, in Ihe
MexicaM' antipathy toward slavery and
their friendly acceptance of blacks as
equals. "Not only [dO Mexicans]
w;ln
consider
a
nigger
equal
themselves," rompJained Ihe Co~
Christi RfV\Chero, "but they actually
murt the company of the Negroes"
Wane still, while Te~ns believed that
Mexicarv; often helped slaves escape and
usually blamed them for instigating
~ave
rebellions. DimMed accurately pomsyed
Tellll.T1li' altitudes toward Mexicans when
he wrole Ihal the lalter "were regarded
in a somewhat unchristian [one, not as
heretics or heathen to be converted with
flannel and tracts, but rather as vermin,
to be exterminated." An episode thai
refleers
these
racial
antagonisms
occurred in the aulumn of 1859, when
a landed TejatlO named Juan Cortina
gathered a large band of Mexicans from
both sides of Ute border arld terrorized
[be regiorl around Br(JlNllmlJe. Cortina's
men burned ranches, murdered several
Anglos, and aetually occupled the city
for a short time before Texas Rangers
flllally drove lbem inlo Mexioo.
Cortina's raid serv«l to furlber embiUer
Texans againsl Mexicans, and raised
serious doubl.S about the loyalty of tbe
Mexicans living in Texas."
Al\hough Hispanics, like the
Gennans.
served
in
both
lhe
Confederate
and
Union
annies,
most--ineluding
many
enlistees-­
evenlually attempled 10 BYOid the war
between the AnglCB.. The principles for
which tbe war \To'W, being fOUght meant
...ery little to them and tbey had neil her
an economic DOl' a political Slake in the
conflict. The North and the South bolh
ralher feebly endeavored 10 win
Mexicans over 10 their respective sides,
but memories of the pII5! sleeled them
against man offers. Neither tbe United
Slates DOl' the stale of Texas bad ever
lried to protect tbe property or political
rights of Mexican-Texans, and when
lhey bypocritically lried 10 enlist the
support of Hispanics, the latter generally
demoMtraled their resentment by
leaving the griJtgos 10 kill one another.
Of course, not all Hispanics could
BYOid military service. Some supported
the Union cause. In Zapala County in
April 1861, for instance, about forty
armed Mexicans marehed on the county
seat of Carrizo 10 keep county officials
from swearing allegiance to the
Confederate Slale&. Texa5lroops lurned
them away, inflicting heavy casualties.
Border raid8 by Mexican... from both
side... of the Rio Grande aL'iO plagued
the Confederacy. A group of raiders
operating out of Mexial under Antonio
Zapala called them.<oe1Yes the "Hnit
Regimenl of Union Troop\," but
seemed conlent with plundering TeJ13S
ranches
ratber
lhan
fighling
CDnfederales.
A Nueces County
Unionisl named Cecilio Balerio led a
company of cavalry thai preyed on
cotton traders along the border. In
addition to these guerrilla ul1il.S, nearly
nine hundred Mexican-Texans served
the Union more formally, many of Ihem
in the second Te:QS C.avalry, .....n0l'le
members were recruited along the Rio
Grande in 1863 and 1864. i7
Nearly lhree times as many
Mexican-Texans, however, served the
Rebels as served the Yankees. Roughly
2550 of \tlem, many from Webb,
Refugio, and Bexar Counlies. enlisted in
19
lCl\Wen the Angkls. The principks for
tIbicb the war .... being fought meant
II!:I}' .little to them and tbey had neither
a fXlIltical ultt in the
ra8ict. 1be North and the South both
'Biber feebly endeavcred to win
~eIil:am ~ to their respective sides,
:JUt mt:mories of lbc past steeled tbem
apinst mati offers. NeiLher tbe United
i&ates DIll' the state of T aas had ever
.ned 10 protect the property or politDJI
;pte of Mexic:an-Taans, and when
hey hypocritically tried to r:nli5t the
IUpport or HispaniC\, the Laller generally
!eml:lMl:raled tlleir resentment boJ
arring the gringos to till one another.
Of COUt'!ie, IXlI all Hispanics could
MJid miliUlry service. Some supponed
:be Union Wluse. In zapata County in
!\priI J86I, for ilUlal'Ice, aooUI forty
amed Mexicanll marched on the coumy
at of C3nizo (0 keep counry officials
iurn swearing allegialU to the
)mfederate States. Texas troops turned
hem away, inllicting hea'ry ~uallies.
bder raids boJ Maicans from. both
;ides of tile Rio Grande also plagued
be Confederacy. A group of raiders
lpCrBting cut or MeJIico under Antonio
~plIta called themselves the "FII'ST
«:gimeol of Union Troops," but
eemed content with plundering Taas
'anebes rather
than
fighting
::antederates. A Nueces County
JDionisl named Cecilia Balerio led 0
ompany of QJY:.j1ry that preyed on
etlan It''8ders along Ihe border. In
I1ditioD to these guerrilla unil8, nearly
lioc hundred Mexican-Texam senoed
be Union more fonnally, many of them
II the Second Teus Cavalry, wine
nemben were ruruited akJng the Rio
inlOOe in 1863 and 1864. 17
Nearly three limes as many
IIc1ican-TCIanli, ~r, served the
lcbd!i as sel'\1:d the Yankees. ROUghly
:550 of them, many from Webb,
lefugio, and Baar Counties. enlisted in
III cconomic DIll'
•
•
Confederate or state militia regimenl8.
Santos
Benavides,
the
wealthy
Mo:ican-OOm rancher, merchant, and
Rkl Grande Valley power broker,
achieved the highest level of any
Confederate Tejano, reaching the rank
of colonel in command of his own
largely Mexican regiment. 1B
Despitc the presence of Large
numbers of Hispanics in bJue and gray
uniforms, neither !>ide expect.ed nor
received the steady allegiance or their
Mexican troops. The lieutenant colonel
of the Third Texas Infanlry at Fort
Brawn complainr:d 10 his superior that
his Me.:cican soldiers, "like all lheir
counlrymen, are susceptible 10 bribes
and corruption, and cannot be
depended upon." Texans usually treated
Melticans in the same ways they had
a~ treated them. R.H. Williams, the
Confederate
Englishman
who
empathized more Ihan most Texans
with Unionists and other dissenters,
refused 10 arrest and turn over 10 the
military auLhorilies in San Anrooio fOur
Mo:ican deserters he captured. He
knew that "it was a hundred to one that
the blocxlthirsty moh would seiZe Lhem
... and hang them in the plaza." With
attitudes like these in common
circulation among Confederates, it is not
surpming
that
the
Confederate
cause-the cause of their long-time
antagonisls--iflSpired lillie enthusiasm
among Melican- Texans. In 1863, Brig.
Gen. H.P. Bee, commanding the
Departmenl or Texas, proved 10 be
more prescient than moo;t AnglOS when
he protested Ihat enfordng the
conscription Law on the southern
frontier of Texas "would have had but
the effect of drmng the Mexicall5 acrQM
the Rio Grande and made them OUr
enemies." Wherever it was attempted,
"it has proved useles&." Bee enjoyed
!lOme sucees..., however, in recruiting
Tejanos into short-term enlistmenu in
state unitL Unlike most commanders
on either !de, Bee realized that the
Confederate caUlle-or tbe Union cause,
for that maUer-was unimportant to
most Mo:ican- Americans; he also knew
that in order to win them ~r to the
Confederate States, the government
mu!§,t
protect
their "righl8 and
immunities as citi2enB."19
Federal officers Dad 00 better luck
with, nor more confidelU in, their
Mexican recruits. Despite the presence
of large numbers of T~janos in the
Union anny, few rose above the rank of
sergeant. Hispanics commanded only
five companies in the First or Se«lnd
Texas., alLhough they compmed a
majoriry of the enlisted men in at least
ten companies and served as non­
commi.s5ioned officers in roughly the
same
percentage
as
Lhe
Mo:ican'American~'<JYerall contribution
to the Union ranks. Racism no doubt
played a role in this, hut the fact that
many Anglos commanded ~Meltiwm"
companies also suggests that lhe
language
barrier,
managerial
inexperience, and a Lack of political
savvy may have posed insurmountable
ob5lacles to a Tejano rising through tile
lBnk!;, While Malioned al Brownsville
early in 1864, a lieutenant in the 19th
Iowa remarked thai the Second Texas
cavalry was "a peculiar institution and
rather a hard operation to keep in
pmper running condition." TIle troops
were
"dishonest,
cowardly
and
treachl':rous and only bide their time to
make gocxl their ~pe.~ They deserted
50 frequently tbat a guard had to be
placed "around them 10 prevent their
carryins out their rlJ"ing propensities."
As if to validate such skepticism, OYer
two hundred TejlJlJOJ desened from the
Union's Second Taas caY3lry during
the first half of 1B64.111
TIle reactions of Santos Benavides
and Adrian 1. Vidal to the Civil War
'"
rep~nt
opposite
paina
on
tbe
spectrum of TejtJllO behavior. BeI\8Yides,
CkSCended from the founder of the city
of laredo, belonged to one of the
wealtllies.t
and
ma>t
lnnuential
families-Anglo or Mexican-in Lhc lower
Rio Grande Valley. In fact, BeB8'Vides'
career revolved around his efforts to
secure stability for hiA region. Allhough
he
_
a
long_time
participlUll
ita
Mnican affairs, Benavides threw his
allegiance to the United Slates in 1848,
hoping thst it could provide the political
and economic !tabiliry 30 da.pcratety
needed along the border. He grimly
Indians
and
chased
fQugtH
oullaws-including Juan Corlina·-and
opaDdClJ
IIi;
huldings and
power. The
patriareh of lhe BenavidQl; rarnily owned
no slaves, bu I accepted slavery so he in
tum, would be accepted by his Anglo
neighbors. His own role in the Valley
economy led him to identify will Ihe
hierarchical structure of southern
S(lciety; h~ disdaifl tex
d~tant,
unre.sp:msive govemmenlS led him to
sympathize with seteliSion. As a result,
\\'flen war broke out, he &sumed his
accustomed place of leadership among
Valley Hispani~.21
By the mil of 1863, Benavides
commanded the Thirty-third TCJt8S
Regiment, leading Ihcm 8gaill5t Mexican
raideI'! and against lhe Yankee imadel'R
at Laredo and Brownsville. Ironically,
during (belle skirmishes witb. the
Federals, his own. largely Hispanic unit
collided with the Tej6llO-dominated
Second Texas. Benavides succeeded in
mCfit of his campaigns, and earned the
respect of his Conlederale COlleagues.
Benavides
repre$cnts
those
Mexicao-Te:xll1l5 who for one re85Ol:l or
anotber felt a reo;(ll"ln..'iJtlility to Texas., if
nO\. to the South, and who perceived
their interesl.& to be identical to those of
the Anglos who dominated Texas
eeonomic
and
polilical
lifc.
UnfortUNllely fOl Te:w Hisplnks, even
his effortB on behalf of lhe CDIlfederacy
failed to cbange most Toans' minds
about tbe mas& of TejlJltOJ.
Adrian J. Vidal's expcrieocc during
the war differed dramalicaUy from
Benavides' aDd symbolizc:R, Lhe way that
many HBpmic Tezam found a niche io
neitber Ute Coofedenne oor tlte Federal
c:auae. 1be iKXI of a Ml2X:an 1IrOO1an
and a wcalUly Anglo mercbatlt, Vidal
had at the age cf twenty 3eCUred a
Confederate captain's commission and
the command of a company by the
middle of 1863. His youth and race
apparently XlUred his relationships with
other Confederale officers, and in
October 1863, Vidal tilled two
Confederate courie~ and deMned with
nearly ninety men·-prirnarily Mexican
l'J8tiona15. After mhbing a few rancbet.
as he traveled up the Rio Grande
Valley, Vldal accepted a captaincy from
the Federal forces campaigning in the
Rio Grande region arid rcturned to
Brownsville, nOW" occupied by the
Yankees and from "'bieh he led his men
on IIcol..iling expeditiOM throUghOut
Soulh Tao:r.s. Huwever, after a few­
month! of arduous duty, weary of army
rules and regulations, angry at the lardy
pay and IXlOf proo.isions given his men,
and complaining about the difficulty of
futfitling his administrative duties when
he could neither read nor write EngJ.illh,
Vidal asked for an honorable discharge_
He eventually receiYed it, but not
befQfe be and malt of his men once
again deserted. LI. Benjamin McIntyre
expruc;ed no surprise that 'the gay
!'ancy little Mexican" bad left Ibe army.
"II is a great pity that the country ever
aa:epted lbese men for soldiers; be
wrote in his diary, -and "till a pity that
every yallu belly of them has nm been
pennitled to desert.- n
Vidal escaped into Mnico, where
be
foug/lt against the Mnican
)Dfi:ltUDBIdy fur Toas Hispanics, evt:n
.. ellofU CD beb&lt' or the Confederacy
IDed to c:bBl:Ige most Taans' minds
lbout the m- of TejQ1fOS.
AdriBD J, Vidal's aperience during
be 'lI'BI' differed dramatically from
bI8¥icIeI' agj symbolizes the way that
DlUI)' HiIf8ai::: Texans found a niche in
ICilber the Coofederate ocr the Federal
ause. 1be llOII of a Maic:an ~an
lDl1 a weaItby AagIo mercbant, Vidal
l8d at the age of twenty secured a
:Dnfederate captain's CDmmis.sion and
be command of a company by the
Diddle of 1863. His youth and race
lppIlI'CDtly soured his relationships with
llher Confederate officers, and in
)ctobcr
1863, Vidal tilled two
:Dnfederate courie~ and dacned with
IC8Cty ninety men-primartly Mexican
I8IioDa1lL After robbing a rew ranches
• be 1.tIM:k:d up the Rio Grande
(alley, Vidal accepted a captaincy from
be Federal forces campaigning in the
W Grande region arid returned to
JrownsvilIe, now oc:cupied by the
iIDkee£ and from which he led his men
11 5COUling expeditions throughout
icJ.Itb Texas. However, after a few
lXIlIlbs of arduous duty, weary of army
'Ulca aod regulations, angry al the tardy
II)' aod (DOt' provisions given his men,
IDd axnplaining about the difficulty of
iJlfiUiDl his adminisll'ative duties when
1IC tnlld neither read llOl' write English,
("1daI asted for an honorable di6charge.
:Ie n'Cnlually received it, but nOI
:.efare he and moM of hill men once
t,pin desened. U. Benjamin Mernt)Te
:apaeed no surprise that "the gay
BDq' bttle Mexic:an~ had left the army.
1t iI a great pity that the coumry ever
lCCCpted tbesc men for 8OIdie~," he
urote in his diary, "and :ttill a pity thal
~ yaJ/er btlly of them has oot been
)mDitled le dacrt."n
Vidal escaped inle Mexiro, where
.e fought against the Maican
21
,
Imperialists. In 1865, at the age or
twenty·one,
he
was
capTured,
ooun.manialed, and executed. His brief
career showed how btUe &taU MeIicans
living in Texas bad in Ibe affairs of their
slate and rount!)', Ill·treated in roth of
tbe armies in which he served, DOl
cornmilled 10 the principles espoused by
either side, and unwilling to abide
m;trietiol1li and hardships for causes Lhat
did DOt seem to apply to him, Vidal
rejected Tnas for his mother's
homeland. TIle chief irony of his short
life is that, even in Mexiro, he rould not
find a country in which he was either
safe or happy.:!3
Vidal provides an extreme, though
telling, example of the $hortcomings of
the
Confederacy's
policy
to'lll'ard
"outsiders" living in Texas. Although
with great effon men like Santos
Benavides and August Buchel could
overcome their foreign hirth and 1M
comfortably in TC%a!, long years or
political,
ca:JDOtDic, and
cultural
antagonism poisoned relationa between
TCIBDI aDd Tejanos and forced a vocal
minority of Germans into rebellion
against the Confederacy. The struggles
betwl:en Anglo-Texans and ethnic
minorities proyides one of tbe many
ex.a.mples or intema1 pressures thai
caused the Coofederacy to crumble
from within. Unmmmilled to the
Sl.IUetUf"e& of a IlIave IlOciety fighting for
i" life against northern "aggression,"
many elhnic Tf:la11li found few reasons
to support the Confederate war effort
and some, in fact, felt rompelled to take
up anns agail1lil it. Their often lenuous
pmjtion in Taas would CCJIltinue for
decades after Appomattox, as Germal1li
were far more likely to :tupport the
Republican Party than ~t Texal1li, and
HispaniCS continued to struggle against
the
economic
and
political
dominance--and often the \1oIent
hatred- of Anglos.2.4
NOTES
1. A ve~ion of this paper was presented at the 1989 Northern Great Plail1li
History Conference.
2 Frederick Law Olm.sted, A JOWTII!y 1hrough Taas; or, Q Saddle Tni' Of! the
SOU1hwestem Frontier (New York: Bun Franklin, lB6O; Austin: University of Texas
Press, 1958), 440.
3. The classic examination of Confederate dissent is Georgia Lee Tatum's
Disloyalty in the Conlederaq (Chapel Hill: UnioJef"!;iCy of North Carolina Press, 1934).
More recently, Carl Degler's TM Othn SCJUJh.: Southem DUseNen in the Ninefeeftth
Century (New York: Harper & Row, 1974) and Riehard Beringer's, et. at, Why the
South Lost the CjYiJ War (Athens: UniYe~ily of Georgia Press, 1986), have examined
the phenomenon of dissent in the eMI War South.
4. Walter L. Buenger, Secession and the Union in Tow (Austin: University of
Teus Press, 1984), 81; AE. Zueter, ed., TM Forty-EighJen: Political Refugees olthe
Gtmwr Re:voIuJion 01 /848 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1950), 3.25,
43·78,111.156; ZOie Odom. Newsome, "Antislavery sentiment in Teus, 1821·1861"
(MA Th~, Texa5 Technological College, 1968), 63-64; R.L Biesele, 7he Toas
State ConventiOll of Germal1li in 1854," SOUlhwestem Hutorical Quarferly 33 (April
1930), 247-261.
22
5. William W. White, "lbe Texas Slave Insurrection of 1860,~ Sou1hwestem
HurorkaJ Qwmerly 52 (January 1949), 259-2.&5; Gideon LiDcecum D.H. and Emily
Moore, 15 August 1860, Gideon l1ncecurn CoUec:tion, Barter Teus HiJlory (:eater,
university of TeJi35 at Austin; Buenger, Secession and ~ Union 67 (rne counties and
the percenLages against 8eCf:S&ion were Fayette, 52; GilI~P*e, 96; Mason, 97; aod
Medina, 60), 99-100.
6. Montague to G<W. Edward aark, 10 July 1861, Clark. papers, Governors'
Records, Texas State Archives..
7. Thomas B. White to Gov, Francis LubboCk, 20 March 1862, and McCulloch
to Lubbock, 27 March 1862, both in Lubbock. Papers, Govemors' Records, Texllfi
Slate Archives.
8. Thomas C. Smith, Here's Yer Mule: The Dimy of ThontaJ C. Smith (Waco:
TIle little Tex<ln PreM, 1958), 19-20.
9. Alwyn Barr, ed., "Records of the Confederate Military Commission in San
Antonio, 2 July.to OCtober 1862," SOUthweslern HUlOricaJ QuoI1erly 71 (Detoher
19(7),260-271,253-2.58; 73 (July 19(9), 83-'XI.
10. Louis E. Brister, ·William von Rosenberg's Kinilc A History of the Society
for the Proteetion of German Immigrants to Te:ws: SouJhwestl71f Hutoricw Qua11erly
85 (OCtober 1981), 161-163; ChriStine Sehou, "Gustavus Sehleicher: A Repre.\enlative
of the Early German Emigrants in Texas," West Tf!XfJS Hutorit:al AssociaJion Yearbook
28 (Oclober 19S2), 50-64.
11. Roben W. Slephens, August Buche!: Te:w.n Soldier of Fortune (Dallas:
Privately Printed, 1970), 1-6.
12. J~ph Bruckmuller, 'Description of the Family and Life of Ju<oeph
BruCkmuUer," typewritten tran.~lation, Barker Texa.~ History Center.
13. Dallas Herold, 6 September, 1862. The (actual details for this brief account
of an oft-told tale come from Robert W. Shook, "lbe Battle of the Nueees, 10
August 1862," Southwestern Historical Qua11erly 66 (July 19(2),31-42.
14. James B. Martin, "Terror in Texas: Violence and Fear in the Hill C'..ountry
during the Civil War," Unpublished Seminar Paper, University of Texa.~ at Austin,
1986; quoted in J.B. Wilkinson, Laredo and the Rio Grande FronJier (Austin: Jenkins
Publishing Co., 1975), 284.
15. U.S. Census Bureau, Population of the United Stales in 1860 (Washington:
Government Printing Office, 18(4), 490; Buenger, Secession and the Union 85; Belle
Gay Ash, "lbe Mexican Texan!; in the Civil War" (MA l1le.~is, East Texa.~ State
University, 1972), 11-36; Arnolda DeLeon, They Called Them Greasers: Anglo
AttiJudes Toward MexicQIU in Tf!XfJS, 1821-1900 (Austin: University of Texa.<; Press,
1983), 49-62, 75-86; carey MeWilHams, NOf1h FfTJrn Mairo: The Speutlih.Speaking
People of the UniJed Stales (New York: Greenwood Pre66 Reprint, 1968), 98-108;
leroy P. Grar, "lbe Economic History of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, 1820-1875'
(Ph.D. Dw.ertation. Harvard University, 1942), 89-100.
16. Corpw Christi Ram::hero, 3 September 1863, qUOled in John Denny Riley,
"Santos Benavides: Hi!; Influence on the Lower Rio Grande, 182.1-1891" (Ph.D.
Dissenalion, Texas Christian University, 1976), 116; 01m..~[ed, A JOW7U!'j Through
Tf!XfJS, 245; DeLeon, They Called Them Greasen, 82..83.
17. John S. Ford to GoY. Edward Clark, 21 April 1861, Ford Papers, TCUJ
Slate Archives; Brig. Gen. H.P. Bee to Don Albino Lopez, Governor of Tamaulipas,
3 February 1863, and Lopez to Bee, 11 February, 1863, War of the RebelliOfl: A
.
23
: Imwrc:elioo of 1860,w Soullnwsrern
15; <Hdeor:I LilK::ec:um D.B. and Emily
IIIeclioD, Bart:er Toas History Center,
ioN tI1Id IN Uniofl 67 «(he counties and
Ie, 52; Gi1Iesf*, 96; MfUOn, 97; and
I luly 1861, Dart: Papen, GoveI"llOl'&'
::tlol;t, 20 March 1862, and McCulloch
*
Paper&,
~
Governors' Records, Texas
Diary of Thomas C. Smith (Waco:
Dfederale Mililary Commission in san
1m! Hisrorit:al Quor1erly 71 (OctOber
...
IDcrg's Kirtilc: A Hi.\tory of the Society
CI35,. SOUlh._~em HisloriJ:al Quar1erly
'Gwtavus Schleicher: A Representative
t Teras Historical AuociaJion Yearbook
~/:
Taon Soldier of
F~
{Dallas:
of tbe Family and life of Jno;eph
Tems History Cemer.
Dc fat'tual details for this brief account
:boot, "Tbe Bailie of the Nueees, 10
~ 66 (July 1962), 31-42.
VIOk:~ and Fear in the Hill Country
Paper, University of Texas at Austin,
It 100 Gmnde Frontier (Austin: JenD[\/;
•
Compilation of the OjficWJ Records of the UniofJ and Confedt!TtJle AnnieJ
(Washington: Government Printing Office, 1880-19(1), ser. 1, V. 15, 966-967,
975·978; Nueces County Historial1 Society, The History of NU«e:J COWIJy (Austin:
JenkiM Publishing Co., 1972),64,74: Wilkinson, I...arrdo IJIId w Rio Gn:uItk FT'IJI'IIier,
28&-289; leny DorlThompson, Vaqweror in BJue and Gray (Austin: Presidial Presll,
1976), 16- 17, 22-23.
18. Thompson, Vaqweror in BJu.e and Gray, 81, 25-31.
19. U. Col. A Buchel 10 Maj. Samuel B. Davis, 5 December 1861, OR ser.
1, V. 4, 152-153; RH. Williams., With 1M Border lWffimu: MerrtlJlVJ of tile Far We.!'/,
1852-1868, E.W. W"tlliams, 00. (London: Jolm MUrrah, 1980), 275; Bee to Capt.
Edmund P. Tumer, 27 April 1863, OR ser. 1, V. 15, 1056-1057.
2il. Recorcb of the Adjutant General's Office, Record Group 94, Index to the
Compiled service Recorcb oCVolunleer Union Soldien who served from the Slate
oC Texas, National Archives Microfilm Publications; Nannie M. Ttlley, ed., Federob
on 1M Fron.Jier: The DWry of Benjamin F. Mcln.I}ft, 1862-1864 (Austin: University
of Taas Presli, 1963), 346-347, 338; Thompson, Vaqweror in Blue and Gray, 89-92.
21. I have drawn m~1 of the material on Benavide5 from John Denny Riley's
previously cited dissertation, "Santos Benavides: His Influence on the Lower Rio
Grande, 1823_189l.w
22. Thompson, Vaqweror ill Blue and Gray, 71-75; Brig. Gen. H.P. Bee to Capt.
Edmund P. Tumer, 2B October 1863, OR ser. 1, V. 26, PI. 1,448-449; Maj. Gen.
N.TJ. Dana to Brig. Gen. Charles P. Slone, 2 December 1863, OR ser. 1, V. 26,
PI. 1,8."\0-831; Thompson, Vaquero.!' iI'I BIu£ and Gray, 75-78; Tilley, 00., Federob
on the FT'IJI'IIier, 349-350.
23. Thompson, Vaqweror iI'I Blue and Gray, 79.
24. AJv.yn Barr, Reronstrucrion to Rtfonrt.: Term PolitiJ:.!', 1876-1906 (Austin:
University of TaM Press, 1911), 17; Arnoldo De Leon, The Tejano ComnwniJy,
1836-1900 (Albuquerque: Univenity of New Mexico Presll, 1982),23-36; McWilliams,
North From Mexico, 111-114, 162-188.
he UNled Sillies in 18(;() (Washington:
1ger, Secessiol't and /he Union 85; Bette
War" (MA Thesis, East Texas Stale
, They Called Them Greasers: Anglo
00 (Austin: Univenicy of Texas Presli,
lit From Mexico: The Sponish-Speaking
cawood Press Reprint, 1968), 98-108;
l..ower Rio GraDde Valley, 1820-1875"
!), 89·100.
er 1863, quote(l in John Denny Riley,
ower Rio Grande, 1823-1891" (Ph.D.
'6), 116; O\mSte(l, A /ountey 17trough
ISm,
82-83.
'k., 21 April 1861, Ford Papen, Texas
\Ibino Ulpel., Governor of TamaulipM,
muuy, 1863, War of /he Rebellion-· A
r
i
J