Goliad is best known for what happened here on Palm Sunday, March 27, 1836, during the Texas revolution. Col. James Fannin and 341 of his men, after surrendering and being held captive for a week, were killed by Mexican troops under Gen. Santa Anna. That was nearly double the number of Texans killed three weeks earlier at the Alamo. The two events inspired the Texans' battle cry at San Jacinto, where independence was secured: "Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!"
But Goliad is not just a shrine of the Texas revolution. Presidio La Bahia, established in 1749, is the oldest standing fort west of the Mississippi. Two Franciscan missions, one of them partially restored, introduced Catholicism and cattle ranching to the region. And the hero of Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican national holiday commemorating a victory over French invaders, was born here.