Contrary to movie and legend, we now know that the defenders of the Alamo in the war for Texan independence did not die under brilliant sunlight, defending their stations against hordes of Mexican infantry. Instead the Mexicans launched a predawn attack, surmounting the walls in darkness, forcing a wild melee inside the fort before many of its defenders had even awoken.In this book, Dr. Tucker, after deep research into Mexican accounts and the forensic evidence, informs us that the traditional myth of the Alamo is even more off-base: most of the Alamo's defenders died in breakouts from the fort, cut down by Santa Anna's cavalry that had been pre-positioned to intercept the escapees.About the AuthorPhillip Thomas Tucker, winner of the Douglas Southall Freeman Award in 1993, is an historian for the United States Air Force in Washington, D.C., and lives in Maryland.