Colonel Juan Morales’s Uniform
The mostly volunteer Texian army didn’t have a standard uniform, and Texian soldiers fought in clothing ranging from U.S. Army uniforms to buckskins.
By contrast, the Mexican Army was a professional army with a standardized uniform code. This was most obvious in the brightly colored officer uniforms which were patterned after the colonial Spanish and Napoleonic armies, but with a distinctive Mexican flair. Look closely at the buttons and belt buckle on Colonel Juan Morales’s uniform jacket. They are embossed with the eagle and snake, the symbol of the young nation.
Enlisted men didn’t fare as well. They were supposed to be issued standard uniforms and equipment, but the army suffered from uniform shortages throughout the Texas campaign, and it was rare for an entire regiment’s attire to match.
Despite leaving on campaign in December 1835, many of the soldiers weren’t provided winter gear or proper shoes for the cold, brutal march to Texas. On February 13, a freak blizzard blanketed northern Mexico and the travelling troops in more than fifteen inches of snow. According to General José de Urrea’s account of the war, six of his men who had not been issued greatcoats froze to death in the storm.
Cleaning and mending the army’s uniforms during the five-month campaign fell to the soldaderas, the wives and girlfriends of the soldiers who accompanied the army. The soldaderas were a crucial part of the Mexican army, and were responsible for cooking, foraging, providing medical care and other tasks essential to the wellbeing of the army on the march.