Shouting "Remember the Alamo!" and "Remember Goliad!", roughly 900 Texan soldiers surprised General Antonio López de Santa Anna's encamped force near the San Jacinto River. The battle itself lasted only about 18 minutes of fighting, though the slaughter and pursuit continued for hours; Santa Anna was captured the next day and forced to sign treaties recognizing Texan independence.
Sam Houston had spent weeks retreating eastward, frustrating his own men and the Texas government, while Santa Anna's forces grew overconfident after victories at the Alamo and Goliad. On the afternoon of April 21, with Mexican soldiers napping through the customary siesta and no proper sentries posted, Houston gave the order to attack across open ground near present-day Houston.
The Texan charge overwhelmed the camp almost instantly; disciplined formation dissolved within minutes and became a rout. Texan casualties totaled around nine dead; Mexican losses exceeded 600 killed with hundreds more captured, a lopsided outcome driven by fury over the Alamo massacre weeks earlier.
Santa Anna, found the next day disguised as a common soldier, was brought before Houston and negotiated the Treaties of Velasco, ending the war and recognizing the Republic of Texas—though Mexico would later repudiate the treaties, setting the stage for decades of border conflict.