The Battle of Gonzales was the first military engagement of the Texas Revolution. It was fought near Gonzales, Texas, on October 2, 1835, between rebellious Texian settlers and a detachment of Mexican army troops. In 1835, several Mexican states revolted. As the unrest spread, Colonel Domingo de Ugartechea, the commander of all Mexican troops in Texas, asked the settlers of Gonzales to return a cannon that the army had previously given them. When the initial request was refused, Ugartechea sent 100 dragoons to retrieve the cannon. For two days colonists used a variety of excuses to keep the soldiers at bay, allowing up to 140 Texians reinforcements to gather. In the early hours of October 2, Mexican soldiers opened fire as Texians approached their camp. After several hours of desultory firing, Mexican soldiers withdrew. Although the skirmish had little military significance, it marked a clear break between the colonists and the Mexican government. The battle, considered to have been the start of the Texas Revolution, has been referred to as the "Lexington of Texas". The cannon’s fate is disputed.

Read the rest of this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gonzales

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1535:

French explorer Jacques Cartier sailed along the St. Lawrence River and reached the Iroquois fortified village Hochelaga on the island now known as Montreal. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Cartier

1835:

Mexican dragoons dispatched to disarm settlers at Gonzales, Texas, encountered stiff resistance from a Texian militia in the Battle of Gonzales, the first armed engagement of the Texas Revolution. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gonzales

1928:

Saint Josemaría Escrivá founded Opus Dei, a worldwide organization of lay members of the Roman Catholic Church. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opus_Dei

1941:

World War II: Nazi German forces began Operation Typhoon, an all-out offensive against Moscow, starting the three-month long Battle of Moscow. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Moscow

1967:

Thurgood Marshall was sworn in as the first African-American Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thurgood_Marshall

1992:

In response to a prison riot, military police stormed the Carandiru Penitentiary in São Paulo, Brazil, killing at least 100 prisoners. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carandiru_massacre

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

heterographic (adj): 1. Misspelled; of or pertaining to an incorrect spelling or a spelling that differs from accepted standards. 2. (linguistics) Of a writing system in which a particular symbol represents more than one possible sound http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/heterographic

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

There is but one means to extenuate the effects of enemy fire: it is to develop a more violent fire oneself. --Ferdinand Foch http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Foch