Texian
Iliad: A Military History of the Texas Revolution
By
Stephen
L. Hardin
Reviewed by Monty Rainey
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Reading this book, seeing his
numerous appearances in historical documentaries and
hearing him lecture, has set Stephen Hardin apart as the
consummate authority on Texas history. In his book, TEXIAN
ILIAD: A MILITARY HISTORY OF THE TEXAS REVOLUTION, Hardin
goes far beyond the usual narratives on Texas history,
which often tend to narrow their scope to selected events
such as the Alamo, San Jacinto, or possibly Goliad. Here,
you will find a detailed account of the events, which led
up to the revolution as Hardin begins his narrative with
the 1824 overthrow of the constitutional government by
Santa Anna and ends with his capture at San Jacinto.
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Of particular note is how
dysfunctional the Texian militia was. Hardin concisely
depicts the seemingly endless power struggle and how many of
the volunteers followed their own leader and ignored
"high command", such as it was. Most people are
fairly familiar of the power struggle between Travis and
Bowie, but those two merely scratched the surface of
squabbles among the Texian forces. Hardin also does a much
better job than most historians at portraying the valuable
contributions of the tejanos, led by Juan Seguin.
The book is also laden with wonderful illustrations, maps,
photographs and portraits. It concludes with forty pages of
author's notes and perhaps the most comprehensive
bibliography available on Texas' struggle for independence.
If your goal is the best accounting of the Alamo, there may
well be superior sources, but for an overall narrative of
the entire history of the Texas Revolution, this book is at
the top of the list.
Monty Rainey
www.juntosociety.com
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