Lorenzo de Zavala's remarkable accomplishments provide a tantalizing glimpse of this versatile individual--newspaperman, physician, public servant, empresario, diplomat, governor, statesman, and first interim Vice-President of the Republic of Texas.
As a representative to the convention to establish Texas's Independence, de Zavala alone among the delegates knew firsthand the experience of writing a constitution for a new Republic -- Mexico. He had served in positions at both the state and national level with the Mexican government. When Santa Anna assumed the dictatorship of Mexico in , de Zavala, ousted from his post as Mexico's Minister to France, returned directly to Texas to assume a leadership role in the Texians' fight to gain independence from Mexico.
De Zavala biographer Margaret Swett Henson notes, "Texans, then and now, have made little effort to understand Zavala. A few cosmopolitan contemporaries admired his mind and political talents, but most suspected his motives. Was he in Texas to further his land speculations? Was he cynically using Texans to further his presidential aspirations in Mexico? Anglo historians have generally ignored Zavala except for brief references to his vice presidency and footnotes in standard histories.
Here is our suggested citation. Consult an appropriate style guide for conformance to specific guidelines. University of North Texas Libraries. History "Lorenzo de Zavala Online: Empresario, Statesman, and Texas Revolutionary" gathers materials from several diverse institutions, bringing them together in one virtual collection. Basic statistics about this collection. Collection Created. Last Updated. Cite This Collection Here is our suggested citation. In accordance with the provisions of the Treaties of Velasco , Zavala was appointed, on May 27, , one of the peace commissioners to accompany Santa Anna to Mexico City, where the general was to attempt to persuade the Mexican authorities to recognize the independence of Texas.
The frustration of this plan by certain Texas military units brought an end to the peace commission. Shortly thereafter, Zavala returned to his home in poor health and relinquished his part in the affairs of state. He resigned the vice presidency on October 17, Less than a month later, soaked and half-frozen by a norther after his rowboat overturned in Buffalo Bayou, he developed pneumonia, to which he succumbed on November 15, He was buried at his home in a small cemetery plot marked by the state of Texas in The plot has since sunk into Buffalo Bayou.
They had three children, including Lorenzo, Jr. To this union were born three children; Augustine, the eldest, was the father of Adina Emilia de Zavala , who long will be remembered for her spirited role in the fight to preserve the Alamo. Zavala's memory is preserved in Texas in a number of place names, notably Zavala County, a village in Jasper County, and a rural settlement in Angelina County, and in numerous street and school names.
Zavala's political experience and reputation as a principled fighter made him an ideal ally for the Texas cause. Earlier in life, he was jailed for criticizing Spanish rule over Mexico.
And after Mexico's independence was established in , he helped write the new country's constitution. During his time in Mexico, Zavala held many elected and appointed offices. But in , Zavala's allegiance would shift north. Zavala resigned in protest and headed to Texas. Zavala's new loyalty to Texas was complete.
He signed the Texas Declaration of Independence, helped write the Texas constitution, and served as the Republic's first vice president. In October of , ill health forced him to step away from public life. A month later, on a near freezing day in November, Zavala's rowboat, with him in it, overturned in Buffalo Bayou. Zavala developed pneumonia from which he never recovered.
The hero who helped secure Texas independence was laid to rest in a family cemetery near the San Jacinto Battleground.
0コメント