Mixed Blessing: The Role of the Texas Rangers in the Mexican War, 1846-1848

by Ian B. Lyles

The Texas Rangers assumed many roles during the Mexican War (1846-1848), fighting in both the northern and central theaters. Along with frontier knowledge and combat experience, they also brought prejudices and they earned a reputation for ill-discipline. Thus, the central research question is whether the Texas Rangers contributed to the success of conventional army forces or did they materially hinder Generals Taylor and Scott more than they helped? Analysis begins by discussing the Mexican War, the Texas Rangers, and the concept of Compound Warfare (CW) (conventional and unconventional forces employed simultaneously to gain a synergistic advantage). CW theory is used to evaluate the Rangers' contributions. Ranger actions in support of Taylor's first battles and his movement to and conquest of Monterey, followed by the Battle of Buena Vista are described and evaluated. The Rangers' counter-guerilla operations in both theaters are evaluated next. The conclusion is that the Texas Rangers did contribute positively overall to the success of American commanders throughout the war despite some problems and atrocities. The final chapter also discusses the work's current relevance and suggests way for today's commanders to avoid problems when integrating irregular forces from differing cultures into the laws of war.

122 pages, Paperback

First published August 24, 2012

Reviews

[Moises Cordova]

A very good evaluation of the effectiveness of Texas Rangers during the War, brief and easy to read. The author's statement: indispensable in combat and intolerable in peace is a very accurate summary of the Texas Rangers performance in the war.

However I have some concerns about the book, the author says he is not trying to justify war crimes of the Texas Rangers however I got the impression that he subtly tries to do that, but maybe this is just my bias.

In the other hand there are things that are clearly errors or omissions, the book says:

Santa Anna surrendered [...] signing a treaty that recognized Texas’ independence and established a border along the Rio Grande. In a remarkable act of good faith [...], the Texans released Santa Anna to carry news of the treaty to Mexico City.

This is actually not true, the treaty established that Santa Anna was going be released, however this was cancelled at the last minute because there was too much discontent in Texas about Santa Anna and he was kept prisoner for seven months, after that he was not sent to Mexico but to USA. It can be said that the Treaty was broken by Texas first. Indeed Santa Anna himself wrote a complain to the Texan President Burnet because of this.

Another section says about Juan Seguin:

Seguin, son of an old Mexican family in Texas, joined the Texans in revolt in 1835. In 1842 however, Seguin switched side and joined Mexican General Woll in his invasion of Texas and occupation of San Antonio. The Texans never forgave Seguin’s betrayal.

This section forgets that Seguin had to escape Texas due the threats against him and his family, this was consequence of a general antimexican sentiment (and tejanos were still considered mexicans by many) in independent Texas.

Maybe these errors are because the author wanted to focus on the main subject of the book, so he didn't study the war in a more general sense, but they are still stains in the book.

[Diana Petty-stone]

Excellent information about the Texas Rangers during the Mexican War.