[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 201 (Thursday, December 20, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1714]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             THE TASTE OF FREEDOM--THE REPUBLIC OF FREDONIA

                                 ______
                                 

                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 20, 2018

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, December 21, 1826 marks the beginning 
of the Fredonian Rebellion.


 =========================== NOTE =========================== 

  
  December 20, 2018 on page E1714 the following appeared:Mr. POE. 
Mr. Speaker, December 21, 1826marks the beginning of the Fredonian 
Rebellion.
  
  The online version has been corrected to read: Mr. POE of Texas. 
Mr. Speaker, December 21, 1826marks the beginning of the Fredonian 
Rebellion.


 ========================= END NOTE ========================= 
 This was the result of a conflict between the Mexican government and 
 Haden Edwards, a settler in Texas, and reflected the growing tension 
 between Mexico and settlers in Texas. Settlers that Mexico had wanted 
                           to live in Texas.
  Haden Edwards received his empresarial grant in 1825, which allowed 
him to settle up to 800 families in East Texas, near Nacogdoches. The 
land this grant included was surrounded by a mixture of Native American 
tribes and other settlers. From the beginning of Edwards' time in 
Texas, he was a controversial figure. He posted signs around 
Nacogdoches demanding that all landowners show evidence of their claims 
or forfeit their land. Some of these landowners held earlier grants 
from Spain and Mexico that dated back more than 100 years, but not all 
of these landowners possessed the necessary legal documentation.
  Tensions between Edwards and Mexico escalated even more in March 
1826, when Edward's son-in-law, Chichester Chaplin, won the mayoral 
election in Nacogdoches. The election was contested, and the political 
chief in San Antonio, Jose Antonio Saucedo, reversed the election 
results and ordered Chaplin to turn over his mayoral duties to his 
opponent, Samuel Norris.
  In 1826, Mexico revoked Edwards' land grant and ordered him to leave 
Texas. A Mexican military commander even set out to Nacogdoches from 
San Antonio with 100 soldiers to enforce this resolution. Instead of 
leaving, Edwards vowed to recruit an army and win independence from 
Mexico. He was supported by the settlers he had brought to Texas. He 
also hastily signed a treaty with the Cherokee to strengthen his claim.
  The newly minted republic only survived for about five weeks. When 
Mexican military forces arrived on January 31, 1827, the 
revolutionaries retreated back across the Sabine River to the United 
States. Not a single Cherokee warrior had shown up to join the revolt.
  Though the Fredonian Rebellion accomplished little, it is viewed by 
some to be the true beginning of the Texas Revolution and eventual 
independence from Mexico. Citizens of Nacogdoches, inspired by the 
taste of freedom, would go on to welcome Sam Houston to their city and 
elect him to the first colonists' convention in 1833. General Sam 
Houston became the commander-in-chief of the Texas army. Thus, setting 
a course for revolution, independence, and liberty in 1836.
  And that's just the way it is.

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