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To the Heirs of Ballí Spanish & Mexican Land Grants Battle of Medina Memorial Service |
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The information below will provide details of the Memorial Service. ______________________________________________________________________________
Our Lady of Mt Carmel Catholic Church Media Advisory The community of Losoya welcomes you to the “Tejano Battle of Medina Memorial Service.” The event will begin at 2:00 P.M. in the air conditioned community hall on SaturdayAugust 21, 2010. Scheduled speakers are Texas historians Robert Thonhoff, Jose Antonio Lopez and Dan Arellano, with Master of Ceremonies Maclovio Perez. As the exclusion of Mexican Americans from Ken Burns WW II Documentary and the current battle with the State Board of Education has proven, we must tell our own stories. The following is one of those stories. The “Battle of Medina,” on August 18, 1813, was the biggest and bloodiest battle ever fought on Texas soil. The Republican Army of the North consisted of two to three hundred American volunteers, one to two hundred Native Americans and eight to nine hundred Tejanos. Out of this number only one hundred would survive: which proves beyond any shadow of a doubt that the ones with the most to lose would fight the hardest and that the Tejanos and their Native American allies stood and fought to the last man. During the onset of the battle it is written that Colonel Miguel Menchaca had been ordered to withdraw his men whereas Menchaca responds “Tejanos do not withdraw,” and he plunges back into the thick of battle. And it was not till he was shot through the neck and he fell from his horse mortally wounded, that the Tejanos became discouraged, yet as discouraged as they were twice more they rallied and twice more they rode into battle. After the battle over a thousand bodies were left to rot on the battlefield for over nine years as a warning to future insurrectionists. The following day as the victorious Spanish Mexican Army captures San Antonio another 327 Tejanos would be arrested and three a day would be executed and then beheaded; their heads placed on spikes around the square for all to see. No one would be spared the wrath of the Spanish General Joaquin de Arredondo, not even the women and children. Around four hundred of the wives, mothers and daughters of the Tejanos would be arrested and forced on their knees from four in the morning till ten at night to grind the corn to make las tortillas to feed the despised Spanish Army and through the windows of their makeshift prison the mothers could see their children searching for food and shelter. The “Battle of Medina,” the forgotten history of our Tejanos, these first sons and daughters of the State of Texas …..unknown and unrecognized for their ultimate sacrifice. And now it is time to honor our ancestors who fought and died for freedom 197 years ago. For more information contact: www.tejanoroots.org or www.battleofmedina.org Dan Arellano, Author/ Historian/Realtor ______________________________________________________________________________ We have added a new section on the home page of the Balli website. Its name is “The Balli History Time Capsule” there you will find very interesting and historical things about the family. If you have family history you would like to share please send the information to: Ricardo P. Ballí124 West Tulip Ave. McAllen Texas, 78504 Pictures or accompanying information will not be returned. They will be kept for future use. Sincerely, |
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