The El Paso Legion surrendered after just four days of fighting, completely taking Houston by surprise.
Houston had estimated that even if General Anthony was no great shakes, he could hold out for a few months.
More than a hundred men had held out for sixteen days at the Alamo. That showed the Mexicans had no idea how to lay siege to a city.
The El Paso Legion had more than two thousand men, along with the support of volunteers who kept arriving from all over the United States. Houston had also left a regiment behind in Austin to help defend it.
But the El Paso Legion held out for only four days, and lost half of all Texas's artillery. Austin was also in grave danger. Houston's main force, together with the volunteers from Boston, numbered only 1,500 men.
Houston now had two choices:
One was to keep going toward the United States and hope it could send troops to rescue Austin in time.
Of course, that was almost impossible. Even if the United States sent troops, they couldn't reach Austin within a few days. If Austin's defenders waited for American reinforcements, the entire city would likely be reduced to scorched earth before they arrived.
The other choice was to return to Austin at once, gather every supply and soldier he could along the way, and defend the city to the last while waiting for the United States to send help.
Of course, he might well meet the same fate as the Alamo Legion and the El Paso Legion before him, swallowed up by the flames of war.
But Austin was a formidable fortress, with high walls and deep moats, ample food supplies, and a position as the last barrier protecting the northern plains of Texas.
If Texas fell, the