First Mass

October 11, 1835

Photos

Documentation

• Wikipedia
• Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas -- "Garza, Jose Refugio Guadalupe de la"
• Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas -- "San Fernando Cathedral Parish"

Notes

First Mass of the Mexican forces during the Texas revolution. When General Cos marched into San Antonio with hundreds of fresh Mexican permanent troops, he immediately sought to secure the loyalty of the local population. On Sunday, October 11, Cos ordered a grand military Mass at San Fernando Church. He had his soldiers form dress lines, and the Mexican flag was solemnly blessed. This Mass served a dual purpose: fulfilling Sunday obligation for the troops and sending a strict political message of Mexican sovereignty over the territory just as Texian forces began marching toward the city. Biographical background on the celebrant, per the Texas State Historical Association's Handbook of Texas (a real academic source, not just Wikipedia): Jose Refugio Guadalupe de la Garza was born in San Antonio, November 22, 1775, and became the town's third native-born pastor, appointed parish priest of San Antonio in 1819 and arriving to take up the post in January 1820, a tenure that lasted two decades. He remained a Mexican loyalist through the revolution and was later among those ordered by Santa Anna to help dispose of and burn the bodies of the fallen Alamo defenders. He was removed from office by incoming foreign Catholic clergy in 1840, afterward serving as chaplain of the Presidial Company of the Rio Grande until his death in 1845 or 1846. Worth noting: checked four separate Handbook of Texas entries (this one, the general San Fernando Cathedral history, the Siege of Bexar entry, and Garza's own biography) plus general web searches -- none independently confirm the specific October 11, 1835 Mass, the flag-blessing detail, or the exact date. That specific claim is still sourced to Wikipedia alone; the TSHA sources here strengthen Garza's biography and credentials but don't yet corroborate the event itself, which is why this entry remains marked inferred rather than confirmed.