Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez De
Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez De (1794–1876), Mexican general and politician.An opportunist, Santa Anna shifted allegiance from party to party in Mexico. As dictator, his consolidation of power in 1835 prompted resistance in several Mexican regions, including Texas. Santa Anna took personal command of an army of 6,000 in early 1836. He made significant strategic and tactical errors in the campaign against the Texas War of Independence, which ultimately resulted in his defeat and capture at the Battle of San Jacinto.
Despite his slaughter of the defenders of the Battle of the Alamo, and the execution of those captured around Goliad, Santa Anna survived death threats and imprisonment. He returned to Mexico in time to lead resistance against the French in 1838, made a triumphal return from exile in 1846, and recruited an army of 25,000 to face the United States in the Mexican War.
Again, Santa Anna displayed more talent for rallying support and planning a campaign than for executing strategy. His only offensive of the war failed at the Battle of Buena Vista (1847), due mainly to superior U.S. artillery under Gen. Zachary Taylor.
He then implemented a plan to defend easternmost mountain passes, confining the enemy to unhealthy coastal areas. However, at Cerro Gordo (1847), Santa Anna failed to reinforce positions that were turned, resulting in a rout. He managed to collect a considerable force in retreat to Mexico City but was unable to inspire the confidence necessary for a strong resistance. Mexico City fell to Gen. Winfield Scott's army, and Santa Anna was exiled once more. He returned to rule as “perpetual dictator” from 1853 to 1855, when revolutionaries finally drove him from power.
Santa Anna's failure as a military commander resulted from a character susceptible to delusions of grandeur but lacking in trust sufficient to delegate details to sub ordinates.
[See also Mexican Revolution, U.S. Military Involvement in the.]
Despite his slaughter of the defenders of the Battle of the Alamo, and the execution of those captured around Goliad, Santa Anna survived death threats and imprisonment. He returned to Mexico in time to lead resistance against the French in 1838, made a triumphal return from exile in 1846, and recruited an army of 25,000 to face the United States in the Mexican War.
Again, Santa Anna displayed more talent for rallying support and planning a campaign than for executing strategy. His only offensive of the war failed at the Battle of Buena Vista (1847), due mainly to superior U.S. artillery under Gen. Zachary Taylor.
He then implemented a plan to defend easternmost mountain passes, confining the enemy to unhealthy coastal areas. However, at Cerro Gordo (1847), Santa Anna failed to reinforce positions that were turned, resulting in a rout. He managed to collect a considerable force in retreat to Mexico City but was unable to inspire the confidence necessary for a strong resistance. Mexico City fell to Gen. Winfield Scott's army, and Santa Anna was exiled once more. He returned to rule as “perpetual dictator” from 1853 to 1855, when revolutionaries finally drove him from power.
Santa Anna's failure as a military commander resulted from a character susceptible to delusions of grandeur but lacking in trust sufficient to delegate details to sub ordinates.
[See also Mexican Revolution, U.S. Military Involvement in the.]
Bibliography
Antonio Santa Anna, Ann Fears Craw Ford, ed., The Eagle: The Autobiography of Santa Anna, 1988.
Paul D. Lack
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Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez De