The Fredonia Rebellion

Haden Edwards received a grant from Mexico to settle 800 families in East Texas near Nacogdoches, but much of the land was already occupied by early Spanish settlers, Indians, and Anglo squatters, and the disturbance caused by his intrusion led the Mexican government to revoke his grant. In response, on December 16, 1826, Haden Edwards and his brother Benjamin entered Nacogdoches, raised their red-and-white flag before the Stone Fort, and proclaimed the Republic of Fredonia. Their movement, known as the forty-four-day Fredonia Rebellion, rested on an uncertain alliance with the Cherokees, reflected in the flag's colors, and the banner bore the words "Independence Freedom and Justice" along with the signatures of sixteen original Fredonians. The name Fredonia, coined in the early days of the American republic, was used poetically like Columbia in reference to the United States and implied a place of freedom. The Fredonian army numbered no more than thirty men, their Cherokee allies deserted them, Stephen F. Austin raised a militia against the rebellion, and Mexico sent troops from San Antonio to disperse it. On January 28, 1827, the Fredonians abandoned their cause and retreated eastward across the Sabine.

Nacogdoches, Texas · United States