Hundreds of history re-enactors — complete with cannons, horses, dogs, women, children and pyrotechnics — will recreate the events leading up to Texas winning its independence 178 years ago at the decisive Battle of San Jacinto in 1836. The largest battle re-enactment in the state is the centerpiece of the admission-free San Jacinto Day Festival held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, April 26 on the grounds surrounding the San Jacinto Monument.
Sponsored by the San Jacinto Museum of History, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the San Jacinto Volunteers, the festival is a full day of music, entertainment, food, games and fun set amidst living history.
The battle re-enactment, which begins at 3 p.m., serves as the marquee event of the day and is presented by hundreds of members of the San Jacinto Volunteers and other living history organizations from across the state. The re-enactment dramatizes the cannon duel and decisive battle in which Gen. Sam Houston led his much smaller Texian army to victory over the Mexican army.
“For the Texans, their victory at San Jacinto led to Texas’ annexation into the United States,” says Robert B. Hixon, board chairman of the San Jacinto Museum. “In the end, the United States would gain not only Texas but also New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona, California, Utah and parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming. Most Texans, and dare I say most Houstonians, don’t realize that the Battle of San Jacinto is recognized as one of the top ten battles of the world to change history.”