Battle of the Alamo

The Battle of the Alamo occurred between February of 1836 through March of the same year, during the Texas Revolution. Over two thousand Mexican soldiers besieged the Alamo Mission, a small fort in San Antonio, Texas, with just one hundred and fifty-five Texans defending it. Although the Mexicans over-ran the fort eventually, they had six hundred casualties due to the tenacity of the defenders.

Two of the more famous heroes of the Alamo was the Tennessean, Davy Crocket and James Bowie.

Connection to Halo universe
Historically, the Alamo can be viewed alongside Reach, with a handful of defenders standing against a vast army and trying to hold their ground for as long as they can. Both were tactical disasters but strategic victories that eventually led to the victory of the defender's faction.

The battle is notable in the Halo universe as Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb compares his situation to that of William Barret Travis, one of the commanders at Alamo. Whitcomb is surrounded by thirty Covenant ships, with just the Ascendant Justice-Gettysburg hybrid ship available. He faces a moral dilemma, whether to die fighting the Covenant and be a hero like Travis, or to do the logical thing and flee, leaving the rebels to die. Whitcomb chooses the latter option, stating "This isn't the Alamo and I'm not Colonel William Barret Travis, although I dearly wish I were. No, we're running. We're trading hundreds of lives for billions." In addition, at the end of Halo: First Strike, just as Whitcomb is about to make the ultimate sacrifice, he tells Master Chief "Now listen, son, remember when we talked about the Alamo. You know every one of the brave defenders in those fights died. They knew the odds, but they hurt the enemy. Both were tactical defeats, but in the end they were also brilliant strategic victories. They made the enemy afraid. Just a few good soldiers fighting for what's right made the difference." He compares his own sacrifice to that of the Texans.

Trivia
A reference to the Alamo can also be heard during the Halo 2 campaign when two marines say: "This is our Alamo!" "Hey, I'm not from Texas, buco!"