1836: "Remember the Alamo" was yelled out by Sam Houston as his Texicans pulled off a surprise attack that slaughtered the Mexican army to win the Battle of San Jacinto. Following the victory, they captured General Antonio López de Santa Anna and forced him to recognize the independence of the Texas Republic.
Also today in history:
43 BC: Aulis Hirtius defeated Marc Antony again in the Battle of Mutina, but he was killed in the process.
1521: Emperor Charles I defeated the Communards in the Battle of Villalar.
1796: Général de Division Napoleon Bonaparte and the Army of Italy defeated the Piedmontese in the Battle of Mondovi.
1914: U.S. Marines landed at Veracruz, Mexico, beginning a six-month occupation.
1945: American forces secured Ie Shima, off the Okinawa coast, at a cost of 5,000 dead in five days.
1954: The U.S. Air Force flew a battalion of French reinforcements to Vietnam for battle of Dien Bien Phu.
1975: Nguyen Van Thieu resigned the presidency of South Vietnam after 10 years in office. Thieu gave an emotional, rambling speech signaling his resignation and casting blame on U.S. for abandoning South Vietnam.
