Santos Benavides was a Confederate

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 colonel

Colonel (United States)

In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...

 during the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

. Benavides was the highest-ranking Tejano

Tejano

Tejano or Texano is a term used to identify a Texan of Mexican heritage.Historically, the Spanish term Tejano has been used to identify different groups of people...

 soldier in the Confederate military.

Biography

Benavides was born in Laredo

Laredo, Texas

Laredo is the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, located on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 236,091 making it the 3rd largest on the United States-Mexican border,...

, the seat of Webb County

Webb County, Texas

Webb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. The official 2010 population for the county is 250,304. In 2000, its population was 193,117, and in 2006 its population had been estimated to have reached to 231,470. Its county seat is Laredo...

, a descendant of Don Tomas Sanchez de la Barrera y Garza

Don Tomás Sánchez

Don Tomás Sánchez de Barrera y de la Garza was a veteran Spanish Captain who founded Laredo, Texas, United States and Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico, at the time it was one town in the Nuevo Santander Province.-Origins:...

, the founder of Laredo. Benavides also served as county judge in Webb County in 1859. He was the captain of the 33rd Texas Cavalry, also called Benavides' Regiment, until he was promoted to colonel in November 1863.

On May 22, 1861, at the Battle of Carrizo (also called Battle of Zapata), Benavides engaged the local Tejano leader Juan Cortina

Juan Cortina

Juan Nepomuceno Cortina Goseacochea , also known by his nicknames Cheno Cortina and the Red Robber of the Rio Grande, was a Mexican rancher, politician, military leader, outlaw and folk hero...

 (who had invaded Zapata County, an event usually referred as the Second Cortina War), and drove him back into Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

. Probably his greatest contribution to the Confederacy was securing passage of Confederate cotton

Cotton

Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

 to Matamoros, Tamaulipas

Matamoros, Tamaulipas

Matamoros, officially known as Heroica Matamoros, is a city in the northeastern part of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from Brownsville, Texas, in the United States. Matamoros is the second largest and second...

, Mexico, in 1863. On March 18, 1864, Major Alfred Holt led a force of about two hundred men from the command of Col. Davis near Brownsville, Texas

Brownsville, Texas

Brownsville is a city in the southernmost tip of the state of Texas, in the United States. It is located on the northern bank of the Rio Grande, directly north and across the border from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Brownsville is the 16th largest city in the state of Texas with a population of...

 to destroy five thousand bales of cotton stacked at the San Agustín Plaza in Laredo. The next day, Benavidez defended Laredo against the Union's First Texas Cavalry, whose commander was Colonel Edmund J. Davis

Edmund J. Davis

Edmund Jackson Davis was an American lawyer, soldier, and politician. He was a Southern Unionist and served as a Union general in the American Civil War, besides serving one term as the 14th Governor of Texas.-Early years:...

, a Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 native who had previously offered Benavides a Union generalship, and defeated the Union forces. Colonel Santos Benavides commanded forty-two men and repelled three Union attacks at the Zacate Creek

Zacate Creek

Zacate Creek is a small stream of water located in Webb County, Texas which runs through Laredo, Texas. The creek is formed inside Laredo, Texas city limits and runs southwest for 10 miles until it connects to the Rio Grande. Zacate Creek has several ditches leading to it. The terrain surrounding...

 in what is known as the Battle of Laredo

Battle of Laredo

The Battle of Laredo was fought during the American Civil War. Laredo, Texas was a main route to export cotton to Mexico on behalf of the Confederate States. On March 18, 1864, Major Alfred Holt led a union force of about 200 men from Brownsville, Texas to destroy 5,000 bales of cotton stacked at...

.
Davis was elected in 1869 as the first ever Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 governor of Texas

Governor of Texas

The governor of Texas is the head of the executive branch of Texas's government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Texas Legislature, and to convene the legislature...

.

After the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 ended, he resumed his merchant and ranching activities and remained active in politics. He died in Laredo and was buried there.

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