Texas Revolution Had Its Tories, Too

Before the General Council adjourned on Nov. 14, 1835, the delegates voted in favor of the arrest of a repentant rebel on a charge of treason.

In April of that year, John A. Williams called upon the colonists to show proper respect for the laws of Mexico. He was living proof that the Texas Revolution, like the struggle for American independence 60 years earlier, had its Tories, too.

Williams had not always been such a law-abiding citizen. In 1826 he enthusiastically endorsed the Fredonian plot to turn eastern Texas into a separate republic. Only at the last minute did he heed the advice of Stephen F. Austin and abandon the doomed adventure.

Having learned his lesson, Williams labored long and hard to get back in the Mexicans