If Bowie Had Not Been Ill

[neferetus]

If Jim Bowie had not been ill and had not surrendered up his command to Travis, how would this have effected the battle tactics of the Alamo defenders? In my opinion, had Bowie been fit as a fiddle during the course of the siege, he may've planned a sortie to either capture, or kill Santa Anna. A captured Santa Anna would've given the Texian defenders decided leverage, to say the least. Before you scoff, think about Jim Bowie's metal. He was a daredevil more apt to 'cut slash and run' than sit put and be slaughtered.

At Concepcion, Bowie and 92 Texians defeated 400 Mexican troops by charging them, capturing their cannon and then turning it on the fleeing soldados. Bowie lost 1 man killed, none wounded. The Mexicans took at least 65 casualties. In his fight with the Lipan Apaches, Bowie withstood an all day attack by over 100 braves by constantly manuevering his little force of eleven men, so that they would not get picked off, ultimately forcing the Lipans to withdraw, due to heavy casualties. Bowie realized that the person taking the initiative was more likely to come out of the fight alive than the person who merely sat back and took it.

[Greg C.]

if bowie were not ill, i dont think the texians would have had the stealth to walk through mexican lines and through the streets of san antonio trying to find santa anna's headquarters and then go back through the town with him bound and gagged and back through mexican lines. it is a great idea for a book though.

[Davy]

Well certainly it would have beena different command structure .. lets not forget that there ws bad blood initially betwen these two.. what would this have been like then?

All I am saying is that there are a number of elements at play here ... that could have impacted such a situation.

Had SA attacked anyway (and I am sure he would have ) I think the outcome would probably been the same either way with some new twists!

Davy

[bubbabod]

I can't remember now, but wasn't Bowie the one who wanted to destroy the Alamo and anything else the Mexicans could have used? Had he been healthy, would he have given in to Travis? This is an interesting concept.

[Greg C.]

bubbabod said:

I can't remember now, but wasn't Bowie the one who wanted to destroy the Alamo and anything else the Mexicans could have used? Had he been healthy, would he have given in to Travis? This is an interesting concept.

I think Houston was the one who wanted to destroy it but left the task for Bowie to handle. And if Bowie wasn't ill, no way in hell he would have gave in to Travis. "Cut, slash, and run..."