Descriptive Summary
Peña, José Enrique de
la
José Enrique de la Peña
Collection
1835-1840, 1857
1 ft., 3
in.
Center for American History, The
University of Texas at Austin
Materials are in Spanish and English.
Use RestrictionsAccess to the original narrative is
restricted. Photocopies are available for research use.
Biographical Note
Mexican Army officer Lt. Col. Jose Enrique de la Peña (approximately
1805-1841) served under General Antonio López Santa Anna during the 1836
campaign in Texas. As an anti-Santa Anna agitator and an outspoken opponent of
the Mexican centrist government, Lt. Col. Peña found himself in a series of
Mexican prisons beginning in 1838. He disappears from the historical record
after the publication of his pamphlet “A Victim of Despotism” in 1839. He is
believed to have died in 1841 or 1842.
Scope and Contents
The bulk of the collection consists of Peña’s personal papers that
provide an eyewitness account of the Mexican army’s campaign to suppress the
Texas Revolution. The personal papers, or narrative, fall into two sections: a
field diary (109 pages) and an extended memoir (400 pages) based upon the
diary. Peña wrote the memoir by verifying happenings he recorded in his field
diary and by adding information based upon his fellow officer’s reports.
The Peña account provides a look at the maneuverings of the Mexican
Army in Texas, descriptions of disputes between Santa Anna and his officers, a
recounting of the Battle of San Jacinto, and a version of Col. James Fannin’s
execution at Goliad. Additionally, a detailed description of the Battle of the
Alamo includes a report that Mexican soldiers captured David Crockett after the
battle ended and executed him on Santa Anna’s orders.
Also in the
collection are Mexican military records from the Texas Revolution including an
itinerary of the Battalion of San Luis, an official list of Mexican army
commanders and officers taken prisoner at San Jacinto, a commentary on General
Filisola’s narrative of the Texas campaign, and correspondence received by
Peña.
Cite as
José Enrique de la Peña Collection, 1835-1840, 1857, Center for
American History, University of Texas at Austin
Related MaterialPublished English
translation: Peña, José Enrique de la. With Santa
Anna in Texas: A Personal Narrative of the Revolution. Translated and
edited by Carmen Perry. College Station: Texas A&M Press, 1997.
On-line exhibit of related materials:
"To Whom Was This Sacrifice Useful?": The Texas
Revolution and the Narrative of José Enrique de la Peña
Index Terms
Subjects (Persons)
Bowie, James, d.
1836.
Crockett, Davy,
1786-1836--Death and burial.
Fannin, James Walker,
1804?-1836.
Filisola,
Vicente.
Pena, Jose Enrique de la,
1807-1841 or 2--Diaries.
Pena, Jose Enrique de la,
1807-1841 or 2--Resena y diario de la campana de Texas.
Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez
de, 1794?-1876.
Travis, William Barrett,
1809-1836.
Subjects
Generals--Mexico.
Mexico. Ejército.
San Jacinto, Battle of,
1836.
Texas. Army.
Texas--History--Revolution,
1835-1836--Campaigns.
Texas--History--Revolution,
1835-1836--Personal narratives, Mexican.
Subjects (Places)
Alamo (San Antonio,
Tex.)--Siege, 1836--Personal narratives, Mexican.
Goliad (Tex.)--Massacre,
1836.
Photocopy One
2J146
2J146
José Enrique de la Peña narrative,
1836
2J146
Military records
2J146
Lt. Col. Nicolás de la Portilla note on Texas
campaign, March 18, 1836 (Copia de un apunte suelto de la Campaña de Tejas, que
principia en 18 de Mazo de 1836, y no se trasladó al diario general por haberse
estrabiado)
2J146
Itinerary of Battalion of San Luis (Potosí) on Texas
campaign, begins November 1835 (Batallón activo de San Luís, 1a división de
operaciones sobre Texas: Itinerario de las jornadas que ha hecho…desde…San Luís
Potosí…17 de Noviembre de 1835)
2J146
Official list of Mexican army commanders and officers
taken prisoner at San Jacinto, April 21, 1836 (Relación de los gefes y
oficiales que cayeron prisioneros en la acción de San Jacinto)
2J146
Summary of actions against Texas rebels by division
of General Urrea, beginning 25 February (1836) (Extracto de las acciones que
sufrieron los sublevados de Tejas, por la división del Sr. General Don José
Urrea)
2J146
Commentary on General Filisola’s narrative of Texas
campaign, undated (Contradicciones en cuanto a lo que escribó y dijo el Sr.
Filisola)
2.325/D32a
Roster, armaments, munitions, and uniforms of the
Mexican Army of Operations, Matamoros, June 30-July 1, 1836 (Ejercito de
Operaciones)
2J146
Correspondence
2J146
2 letters to José Enrique de la Peña,
1840
2J146
Miscellaneous documents,
1836, 1857, and undated
Photocopy Two
2J147
José Enrique de la Peña narrative,
1836
2J147
Military records
2J147
Lt. Col. Nicolás de la Portilla note on Texas
campaign, March 18, 1836 (Copia de un apunte suelto de la Campaña de Tejas, que
principia en 18 de Mazo de 1836, y no se trasladó al diario general por haberse
estrabiado)
2J147
Itinerary of Battalion of San Luis (Potosí) on Texas
campaign, begins November 1835 (Batallón activo de San Luís, 1a división de
operaciones sobre Texas: Itinerario de las jornadas que ha hecho…desde…San Luís
Potosí…17 de Noviembre de 1835)
2J147
Official list of Mexican army commanders and officers
taken prisoner at San Jacinto, April 21, 1836 (Relación de los gefes y
oficiales que cayeron prisioneros en la acción de San Jacinto)
2J147
Summary of actions against Texas rebels by division
of General Urrea, beginning 25 February (1836) (Extracto de las acciones que
sufrieron los sublevados de Tejas, por la división del Sr. General Don José
Urrea)
2J147
Commentary on General Filisola’s narrative of Texas
campaign, undated (Contradicciones en cuanto a lo que escribó y dijo el Sr.
Filisola)
2.325/D41a
Roster, armaments, munitions, and uniforms of the
Mexican Army of Operations, Matamoros, June 30-July 1, 1836 (Ejercito de
Operaciones)
2J147
Correspondence
2J147
2 letters to José Enrique de la Peña,
1840
2J147
Miscellaneous documents,
1836, 1857, and undated
Color Photocopy
2J56
José Enrique de la Peña narrative,
1836
Originals [RESTRICTED]
3W22
Military records
3W22
Lt. Col. Nicolás de la Portilla note on Texas
campaign, March 18, 1836 (Copia de un apunte suelto de la Campaña de Tejas, que
principia en 18 de Mazo de 1836, y no se trasladó al diario general por haberse
estrabiado)
3W22
Itinerary of Battalion of San Luis (Potosí) on Texas
campaign, begins November 1835 (Batallón activo de San Luís, 1a división de
operaciones sobre Texas: Itinerario de las jornadas que ha hecho…desde…San Luís
Potosí…17 de Noviembre de 1835)
3W22
Official list of Mexican army commanders and officers
taken prisoner at San Jacinto, April 21, 1836 (Relación de los gefes y
oficiales que cayeron prisioneros en la acción de San Jacinto)
3W22
Summary of actions against Texas rebels by division
of General Urrea, beginning 25 February (1836) (Extracto de las acciones que
sufrieron los sublevados de Tejas, por la división del Sr. General Don José
Urrea)
3W22
Commentary on General Filisola’s narrative of Texas
campaign, undated (Contradicciones en cuanto a lo que escribó y dijo el Sr.
Filisola)
3W22
Roster, armaments, munitions, and uniforms of the
Mexican Army of Operations, Matamoros, June 30-July 1, 1836 (Ejercito de
Operaciones)
3W22
Correspondence
3W22
2 letters to José Enrique de la Peña,
1840
3W22
Miscellaneous documents,
1836, 1857, and undated