[cmsgop]

Lone Star and Schnitzal ????

[Textide]

From Europe, the Adelsverein had purchased more than three million acres of Texan land. But the group soon discovered it was unsuitable for farming and was occupied by some 10,000 warring Comanche Indians.

Oops....

Interesting article.

[HoustonCurmudgeon]

Ping

[Paleo Conservative]

To complement weaponry brought with them, correspondence sent back to Germany by Prince Solms-Braunfels in 1844 urgently called for more heavy artillery and rifles.

"Arms were sent over labelled only as ?personal baggage?," said Prince Sachsen-Altenburg. "Hence it was not always documented at the US end."

What US end? Texas was an independant republic in 1844!

[Paleo Conservative]

The prince added that Britain considered sending military equipment overland from California. Messages between Lord Aberdeen, the foreign secretary, and the new German community were handled by William Kennedy, the British consul in Galveston.

That doesn't sound too well thought out. How were the going to carry heavy armaments across 1500 miles of desert. I-10 wasn't built till another 125 years later, and and there weren't any railroads.

[aposiopetic]

"The government messenger was instructed to hand over the correspondence personally to the British consul. But instead of that, he was met by a US spy who drank him under the table and intercepted the information that was then sent to the White House."

Oops.

[PhiKapMom]

New Braunsfels definitely has a German heritage with Wurstfest every year -- great food! Used to go buy the German Advent calandars at Oma's in New Braunsfels. A lot of that part of Texas is German. Boerne where I lived was also German with a Bergesfest for Father's Day weekend along with Fredricksburg and their Octoberfest. Smaller towns all around the San Antonio area north to Austin have a German background.

[TXnMA]

Interesting twist on Texas history! This subject should produce more than a few theses and dissertations...

Of course, we Texans are now well aware that locations founded and settled by German immigrants are some of the finest and most colorful communities in Texas. (Schulenberg, Kerrville, New Braunfels, Lueders, Fredericksburg, etc. come to mind.)

Perhaps it is best that this plot took so long to be revealed; many of Texas' finest citizens now claim German ancestry. They are an important and well-regarded part of this folk we call "Texans". Our culture would be far less rich without them.

(FWIW, I do not count myself among them -- my ancestors were mostly Scots -- but I certainly appreciate the contributions Teutonic Texans have made to our fair State.)

[dinok]

Yah...ve vill cross dah border unt vork jobs no American vill vant. Ven dhere are enough of us to be a political force...ve vill take over the South Vest.

"For the race everyching...for the untermencen...nocing"

Where have I heard this before?

[GOP Jedi]

Dang, this sounds just like the plot of a Flashman novel. I could see Sir Harry drinking the Brit agent under the table and pinching his message just because he doesn't like the blighter, and Queen and Country be damn'd ... he definitely doesn't like the Prussians.

[ellery]

wow

[Held_to_Ransom]

Interesting story, though I think that the effort was generally viewed as a British plot at the time. In any case, that was where the blame was laid that got Congress to go after getting Texas.

The story does fit perfectly though, and there was a large number of Germans in Texas who went on to produce the highest grade of cotton on the American market before the Civil War. Their cotton got a penny more a pound on the market (when a penny had real meaning) and they produeced it solely without the use of slaves.

This caused a lot of grief in Texas before and during the Civil War, and the Germans areas were practically in open revolt against the government of Texas from secession on. There is a famous fairwell speech given a Texan in Congress right before the war that was interrupted by visitors screaming at him from the gallery when he blames the fighting in Texas before Fort Sumter on the slaves and not on the Germans who were responsible it. Germans also played a major role in Missouri in keeping it from turning traitor.

[nutmeg]

ping!

Please FReepmail me if you want on or off my infrequent ‘miscellaneous’ ping list.

[eddie willers]

he was met by a US spy who drank him under the table and intercepted the information that was then sent to the White House."

Three Margaritas at Austin's El Rancho should do it.

[Lunatic Fringe]

Im glad it failed... Bratwurst and Dos Equis do not mix.

[1rudeboy]

I should've posted a link to the following thread earlier. Also, I was traveling in Germany when John Wayne died. It made the headline of every paper. Huge headlines, in fact.

German Who Brought Cowboys To the Rhineland Wins Fans in U.S.

[LibertyAndJusticeForAll]

This is better than the Zimmerman Telegram!

Now if they'd stayed they might have found oil a little later.

[Consort]

Ich Habe Sporen Jenen Jingle Jangle Jingle Erhalten.

[tubebender]

Ah...the mystery is solved. I always wondered why my Dads parents settled in South West Texas (Quero?) in the 1890s. My mothers German parents were already there.

[SolidSupplySide]

The prince added that Britain considered sending military equipment overland from California.

I doubt this would have been practical.

The Americans would not have allowed Britain to send the military equipment through California. That would have violated the Monroe Doctrine.

Secondly, even if the Americans allowed Britain to send arms overland, the Mexicans would have intercepted them before they got to Texas. Mexico had no interest in seeing a rearmed Texas. Mexico still considered Texas a Mexican province. Mexico would have been opposed to this anglo-saxon scheme.