The following essay originally appeared as a feature article in the Austin American Statesman, July 29, 2012, on the eve of the 150th anniversary of the Battle of the Nueces, which took place August 10, 1862, on a remote stretch of the Nueces Rivers between about sixty German Unionists from the Texas Hill Country and a much larger Confederate force.
“Moral Battles: During the Civil War, German settlers had hard choice, in paralleled in days of Vietnam “
How to reconcile dissent with the will of the majority is a recurring dilemma for any democracy, especially in periods of civil strife and war. The Founding Fathers seriously wrestled with the issue (sometimes contentiously), as both the federalist and anti-federalists papers clearly show. Jefferson himself admonished, “that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression.” These deliberations resulted in our unique American solution: the Bill of Rights, this great document of World History, that guarantees such things as habeas corpus, due process, and freedom of speech and peaceable assembly.
For Texas history, the Battle of the Nueces gains in importance when seen in this light. August 10th will mark the 150th anniversary of the bloody encounter between German Unionists of the Texas Hill Country, who attempted to flee to Mexico to avoid conscription during the Civil War, and a larger and better equipped Confederate force. The little town of Comfort, TX, located just off Interstate 10 between San Antonio and Kerrville, will host a commemoration of the event. This is a fitting venue since many of the German Unionists hailed from the surrounding area and also because in 1866 survivors erected a monument in the town to those who either were killed outright during the battle or were subsequently executed by the Confederate forces.
The monument, an imposing obelisk, reads: Treue der Union [True to the Union] and is inscribed with the names of those who fell. It is said to be the only monument of its kind in the South. Recent scholarship has challenged this assertion, but whether true or not, the controversy is an aside, and should not obscure the central significance of the event behind it.
Contemplating this significance, I am struck by the parallels between the dilemma of the German Unionists in the Texas Hill Country during the Civil War and the hard choices of those who opposed the Vietnam War. In this respect, the German story intersects with my own life story in a direct way, and I have the uncanny sense that I, and those who shared my convictions, also have some small ownership in this large and improbable stone marker in Comfort, TX. But before expanding this point, a short background for those unfamiliar with the story of the ‘Reckoning on the Nueces’ on a hot summer day in the summer of 1862.
Texas was the seventh state to join the Confederacy, and it did so only after a referendum. Approximately two-thirds of the white male population voted to secede, which left a substantial minority, including the then-governor of the state, Sam Houston, opposed to secession. For his part, Houston resigned his office rather than take the oath of allegiance to the Confederacy. The plebiscite was contentious, arousing strong passions on both sides and leaving a residue of animosity. Although diffused throughout the state and prevalent among all nationalities, opposition was concentrated in the Hill Country where German immigrants had settled in isolation in the 1840s and 1850s and developed communities that were all but slave-free. For Texas, the real Civil War played out within the state between the majority who supported and the minority who opposed secession. The Battle of the Nueces was the most spectacular manifestation of this internal clash.
Many of the Germans had immigrated originally for political reasons. Fed up with the all-pervasive authority and lack of political and religious freedom of the petty kingdoms and dukedoms that made up Germany at the time, they had made the difficult decision to seek a new life on the Texas frontier. Not a few had actually found inspiration in the example of the Texas Revolution where a few thousand intrepid Texians had successfully seceded from a nation of twenty million, and had done so while maintaining their institutions of democratic government. But there was one big fly in the ointment, and that was the institution of Negro slavery
In the spring of 1862, General Hébert, Confederate Commander of the Department of Texas, received an alarming report to the effect that the German settlers in Fredericksburg and the Hill Country were, “Unionist to a man,” and that there was a brewing rebellion on the vulnerable back door of the Confederacy; if true, a disturbing situation that called for an immediate and forceful response. No credible evidence has yet surfaced to substantiate that there was, in fact, an organized insurrection, but it is certainly clear, as revealed by the overwhelming vote against secession, that the vast majority of the German settlers were Unionist and reluctant either to swear allegiance to the Confederacy or to serve in the military.
Fearing for ‘national security,’ to use a contemporary term, General Hébert reacted quickly. He dispatched a command of Texan Partisans to Fredericksburg under the command of Captain Duff with orders to root out the conspiracy “by all means necessary,” including imposition of martial law, suspension of habeas corpus, and summary execution. Duff and his men scoured the countryside for signs of disloyalty. Anyone suspected was summarily lynched. The reign of terror he perpetrated has left a legacy of bitterness that lingers to this day.
Duff’s heavy hand forced hard choices on the Germans: swear an oath of allegiance to a government that was fighting to secede from the Union in order to preserve slavery; a position they abhorred, or resist. Most reluctantly acquiesced, but a large party of German men (and a handful of Unionists Anglos) fled to the west where they assembled and prepared to make their way to Mexico. They were intercepted and surprised by Duff’s men while camped on the Nueces River about fifty miles west of San Antonio. A fierce battle ensued with numerous casualties on both sides. Although outnumbered and outgunned, the Texas Germans put up a fierce resistance. After repulsing several assaults, they felt compelled to retire with their walking wounded. The severely injured were left on the field along with the dead in the full expectation that the wounded would be treated and the dead would be given proper burial. Instead, the wounded were shot and all the bodies left to rot where they fell. The executions and desecration of the dead, above all, left a bitter aftertaste.
Many considered this to be a war crime. None other than Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, lent credence to this interpretation. After being informed of Hébert’s actions in suspending habeas corpus and imposing martial law, he immediately countermanded the orders and admonished the general that his actions had been high-handed, illegal, and contrary to the principals of a democracy.
Similarly, upon receiving the dreaded letter from the selective service that began with the words, “Greetings, you are hereby ordered…” those of us who could not support our government’s policies in Vietnam suddenly found ourselves standing at the crossroads. What to do? Dissent was barely tolerated and conviction did not count for a deferment. Kent State was our Battle of the Nueces. One could flee the country, wrangle a coveted slot in the National Guard, shoot oneself in the foot, or apply to become a conscientious objector. I chose the latter course although acceptance was unlikely, but to my surprise my local draft board approved my application perhaps because I had applied to be a 1-A-O conscientious objector, that is someone willing to put on a uniform and serve but only without weapons training and without weapons.
As with all 1-A-Os, I trained as a combat medic at Ft. Sam Houston and served as such in Vietnam. I was surprised to find that many of my fellow trainees were similar to me, that is, they had sought and been granted CO status for other than religious reasons. Looking back, I am proud to have been part of an admirable, though largely forgotten, tradition, for non-combatant medics supported their comrades on the front lines in all the wars of the twentieth century, and hundreds, perhaps thousands, perished not only in obedience to duty, but also in accord with conscience.
As I reflect now on the meaning of the Battle of the Nueces, several thoughts strike home: first, that accommodating dissent is a perennial challenge for our democracy, which each generation must address anew. Secondly, that the monument erected to the Germans who fell on that hot day in August 1862 possesses significance larger than the single event it memorializes. Finally, that the Texas Germans on the Nueces were, after all, on the right side of history, and this should give pause for thought.
Postscript April 2025
With the full press attack on the Bill of Rights to the US Constitution, Freedom of Speech and Assembly, the issues raised in my essay then are even more pressing today. The “Treue der Union” Monument in Comfort now stands as a testament of support for the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights, which is under serious attack.
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