Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio López de Santa Anna Pérez de Lebron was arguably the dominant political figure of Mexico during the decades following its independence in 1821. He served as the country's president on multiple occasions (six to eleven times, depending on how one counts his leaves of absence) and led Mexico to military victory and military ruin.
Born in Jalapa, Veracruz, Santa Anna joined the Spanish army in time for Mexico's War of Independence, and rose in the ranks. Among his postings was the suppression of a filibustering expedition led by a former U.S. Army officer, and including many U.S. citizens, in 1813. Santa Anna, like many other Spanish royal officers, switched sides in the War of Independence in 1821. After initially supporting the monarchy of Augustín de Iturbide, he led the revolt that overthrew the emperor in 1823.
His popularity following the defeat of a Spanish invasion in 1829 led him to the presidency in 1833. Santa Anna initially retired to his hacienda, leaving Vice President Valentín Gómez Farías in charge of the country. But when reforms Gómez Farías instituted proved unpopular, Santa Anna supported a governmental change and revocation of the 1824 Constitution, precipitating rebellions in several regions of the country. Santa Anna personally led the successful suppression of a revolt in Zacatecas in May 1835.
Santa Anna then turned his sights toward developments in Texas after the outbreak of a rebellion there in October 1835. He took a leave of absence from the presidency and gathered an army in San Luís Potosí. In January-February 1836, he marched that army 365 miles in 29 days, surprising the Texas rebel forces in San Antonio. After his army's victory at the Alamo, he proceeded eastward with his army, until his capture on April 22, after the Battle of San Jacinto.
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