In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

129 I t i s e a s y t o f e e l s y m pa t h e t i c toward those hardy Mexican Texans whose only guilt was to live through a tumultuous era of revolutions and wars. Life was heavy-handed to them. But at least we can learn from their difficult existence. Ramón Múzquiz was one such tortured soul.1 Like his contemporaries, Múzquiz possessed the ability to survive and even thrive in a difficult frontier environment . But, unlike most of his peers, Don Ramón retained a sense of fairness and proportion even as Texas descended into bitter partisan politics, ethnic strife, and ultimately all-out war. He was equally accepted by political allies and rivals, by business partners and competitors , by Mexicans and foreigners. In fact, he remained in good stead with most everyone he had occasion to meet and thus became the ultimate insider in an exceedingly fractious world. For this reason alone Ramón Múzquiz’s biography remains as relevant today as it did nearly two centuries ago. Múzquiz belonged to one of the most prominent families of explorers and settlers in the entire northeast of New Spain. He could trace his lineage back to Joseph Antonio de Ecay Múzquiz, one of the founders of the town of Santiago de la Monclova, Coahuila. More than a century later the family still thrived in the area. Ramón was born in 1797 in the town and presidio of Santa Rosa in the municipality of Monclova. To get a sense of his early circumstances, suffice it to say that his birthplace, which also functioned as the clan’s ancestral home, would be later renamed Múzquiz to honor the memory of another family member, Melchor Múzquiz, who briefly occupied the presidency of Mexico during 1832.2 Within this sprawling family Ramón belonged not to a dying twig but to a promising branch. He was the son of Catarina González de Paredes and Lieutenant Miguel Francisco de Ecay y Múzquiz.3 By the end of the eighteenth century, Lieutenant Múzquiz was the presidial commander of Santa Rosa. This was a position of authority and privilege that nonetheless required considerable sacrifice.4 In 1800, when Ramón was still a toddler, Lieutenant Múzquiz was dispatched to Nacogdoches to take command of the military post there. At that time Nacogdoches was the remotest Mexican town in RAMÓN MÚZQUIZ the ultimate insider Andrés Reséndez 1 3 0 · a n d r é s r e s é n d e z Texas and easily the most exposed to the advancing wave of foreign settlers. It also lay along a crucial corridor employed by various indigenous and nonindigenous groups engaged in the horse trade between Texas and Louisiana. In short, Nacogdoches showcased all the perils but also all the opportunities that Texas had to offer. And Ramón’s father found himself at the center of it all. Lieutenant Múzquiz regularly visited Indian camps and confronted peripatetic individuals harboring all kinds of schemes. His most memorable achievement was the capture of Philip Nolan and his band of adventurers in 1801 (he also prevented Nolan’s subsequent escape by discovering that a certain Don Pablo Lafita had smuggled a metal file into Nolan’s cell).5 The Múzquiz family must have possessed a distinct sense of noblesse oblige and patriotism. Yet the unruly frontier also offered some avenues of advancement that Lieutenant Múzquiz did not overlook. His responsibilities as military commander did not prevent him from becoming involved in some commercial ventures. He was even accused of contraband trade at La Bahía del Espíritu Santo (and also of having an illicit relationship with the wife of Juan de la Cruz).6 Although it is impossible to ascertain the veracity of the accusation, smuggling was common among military commanders posted in border areas. It simply came with the territory. The rewards that could be reaped were enormous, and the regulations coming out of Mexico City must have seemed outright silly in a place like Nacogdoches. In 1804 Lieutenant Múzquiz was ordered to go back to Coahuila along with his hundred-man detachment.7 But by then his ties to Texas were impossible to sever. From his base in central and northern Coahuila the able lieutenant would continue his activities to the...

Share