How a Yellow Rose Helped Win a Revolution

Written by Administrator on 21 April 2011.

emilylrge On the morning of April 21, a beautiful young lady, Emily D. West, served breakfast for Mexican General Santa Anna in his tent.

Young Emily was captured by the Mexican army 5 days earlier. Her beauty caught the eye of General Santa Anna. It seems that Santa Anna fancied himself as quite the ladies man and had weakness for beautiful women.

That morning, General Sam Houston climbed a tree to spy into the Mexican camp. Upon seeing Emily go into Santa Anna's tent with a champaign breakfast, he reportedly remarked "I hope that girl makes him [Santa Anna] neglect his business and keeps him in bed all day."

By afternoon, the great final battle for the independence of Texas was engaged. The Mexican army was caught completely by surprise, and Santa Anna was literally caught "with his pants down." The Mexican army was defeated in less than 20 minutes.

Emily's peculiar role in the decisive Battle of San Jacinto was immortalized in the song "The Yellow Rose of Texas."