Many academic sources identify the desire of Anglo Texans to preserve slavery in Texas after Mexico abolished it in 1829-30 as an important cause of secession. With Juneteenth being made a federal holiday such issues are perhaps particularly pertinent. Some examples of academic commentary on the importance of maintaining slavery to the Revolution:
"Ironically, a Revolution fought to secure slavery from Mexican interference provided far more opportunities for slave resistance than had ever existed under Mexican rule."[1]
"In 1835-1836, the simmering tensions between Anglo settlers and the Mexican government boiled over. A number of issues, not the least of which was slavery, lay behind the rift."[2]
"Texas slaveholders thus found the institution troublesome and unsettling, but, at the same time, it benefited them to the extent that they would attempt a revolution to keep it."[3]
A recent book has a thoughtful discussion of the historiography of the Texas Revolution and takes this multi-causal explanation: Adopting a wider perspective, indeed, reveals how a complex tangle of cotton, slavery, and Mexican federalism—rather than any single factor—produced the fights that eventually led to the Texas Revolution.
[4]
From an entire article written on the subject: From the Anglo Texan perspective the constitutional changes of [1830] once again threatened liberty and interrupted economic progress, their version of which included a system of slave labor. Texans took up arms in 1835 against a regime that apparently intended to undermine their political ideals, their emerging prosperity, and their understanding of social and racial peace. Clearly the challenge to slavery contributed to the Texas decision to resist the new order in Mexico.
[5]
There are many more relevant but this is just what I've had time to research so far. With this in mind, I've added the following sentence to the header:
Mexico had officially abolished slavery in Texas in 1830, and the desire of Anglo settlers to maintain the institution of chattel slavery in Texas was also a major cause of secession.[6][7][8]
Frankly, I think the role of slavery in the Revolution should have much greater prominence on this page, but obviously careful research is needed. Thoughts and comments welcome! Noteduck (talk) 06:15, 23 June 2021 (UTC)
- While I appreciate you trying to make slavery an important issue of the Texas Revolution, it is just not true. The problems with Texians fighting the Mexican government had lasted for many years and had more to do with corruption and taxes than anything else. There were very few slaves in Texas at the time - most Texians were poor farmers. I am a member of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas and have done extensive history on the state. You cannot make the claim that slavery was an important issue just by citing a few quotes out of some book. You must look at the bigger picture and true history. Slavery in Texas was just not that big of an issue in 1836. At all. Tammywarren (talk) 19:29, 8 March 2022 (UTC)
- Can you cite your sources that slavery was not a major issue? Because there's scientific research to back up the position that the Texas Revolution was about slavery - but what about your point? Where is your evidence? You need to cite scientific literature. Sreyes88 (talk) 00:10, 20 May 2023 (UTC)
- Revisionist history at best. 209.169.75.90 (talk) 22:52, 15 June 2023 (UTC)
- Where are your scientific research sources? 146.85.131.114 (talk) 03:39, 22 June 2024 (UTC)
- This page is coming under attack. I just undid an edit that was very clearly politically motivated, and cited a poor quality source that also did not validate the claims of the edit, downplaying the role of slavery. ~2026-37615-1 (talk) 02:29, 18 January 2026 (UTC)
level-5 vital article is rated FA-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
