Sante Fe Expedition

Several settlements on the east side of the upper Rio Grande belonged to the Mexican state of New Mexico. The Texas government decided to include these settlements within the boundaries of Texas. Believing that the people in these communities desired to be part of Texas, Lamar organized a combined military and commercial expedition to the region on June 9, 1841.

The Sante Fe Expedition

This Santa Fe Expedition consisted of 321 soldiers, merchants, and civilians. Their goal was to establish trade with people of the region, and ideally, to take control of New Mexico. Lamar was convinced that Santa Fe would welcome the Texans with open arms.

The Sante Fe Expedition

The group traveled 1,300 miles, fighting through Comanche territory, only to run out of supplies once in New Mexico. The Texans had expected to be welcomed and certainly had not anticipated armed resistance, but Governor Manuel Armijo of New Mexico had Mexican soldiers waiting to intercept the Texans. Exhausted from the march and with very few provisions, the Texans surrendered as prisoners to the Mexican government.

The Sante Fe Expedition

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Governor Armijo wanted the Texans to be killed, but he allowed his military officers to vote on their fate. By only 1 vote, the officers voted to spare the Texans lives. Still prisoners, they were forced on a 2,000 mile march from Sante Fe to Mexico city. They were held at Perote Prison in the Mexican state of Vera Cruz until June 13, 1842 when the United States government was able to negotiate their release. The attempt to invade New Mexico angered the Mexican government and made relations even worse than before Lamar’s term.

The Sante Fe Expedition