Council House Fight

Council House Fight
	Part of Texas-Indian Wars
	; The Plaza and the Council House in San Antonio
Date	March 19, 1840
Location	San Antonio, Republic of Texas
Result	Entire Comanche peace delegation killed
Belligerents
Texas Rangers and Texas Militia	Comanche
Commanders and leaders
Hugh McLeod; George Thomas Howard; Mathew Caldwell (WIA)	Muk-wah-ruh †
Strength
Approximately 100	33 chiefs and warriors, and 32 family members and/or retainers
Casualties and losses
7 killed; 10 wounded; (most from friendly fire)	35 killed; 29 captured and imprisoned

The Council House Fight, often referred to as the Council House Massacre,^[1] was a fight between soldiers and officials of the Republic of Texas and a delegation of Comanche chiefs during a peace conference in San Antonio on March 19, 1840. About 35 Comanche men and women under chief, Mukwooru (aka Muguara) represented just fraction of the Penateka band of the southern portion of the Comanche tribe. He knew he had no authority to speak for the Southern tribes as a whole and thus, any discussions of peace would be simply a farce. However, if Mukwooru could re-establish a lucrative trade with the San Antonian's perhaps a peace, by proxy, could be established. Just as the Comanche had done had been done for centuries in San Antonio, Santa Fe and along the Rio Grande. They would rob one settlement and sell to the other.^[2]^[3]

On March Chief Muguara brought in some trade articles and horses as well as an abused and tortured^[4] 14-year captive white girl named Matilda Lockhart that they had kidnapped and hoped that they'd fetch a better price for her ransom, than what they received from nine year old, James Putnam/Putman just two weeks before. If the price was right, they may soon deliver over more captives.^[5]^[6]

The remainder of the Penateka Comanche were, at the time, at Enchanted Rock with thirteen other captives that they planned to sell one by one to fetch better prices.^[5]^[7]

The Southern Comanche had broken the 1835 as well as the 1838 treaty traveling hundreds of miles down the Colorado River and Guadalupe Rivers into the Texas settlements to steal horses and abduct children and had no intention of stopping this lucrative market economy that gave their young men a purpose. The various bands of the Southern Comanche had about thirty white captives and sixty Mexican captives, all abducted in recent raids.^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]

The council at the courthouse in San Antonio began when the 30 Comanche men were invited into a courthouse in downtown San Antonio. The men brought their women and secreted several tomahawks under the blankets held by the women. They left their rifles with their horse handlers out front and unstrung their bows and walked in as a procession and sat on the floor facing the table of Texian representative including judges and Colonels. Captive Matilda Lockhart was delivered over, and when the other captives were not, and when they asked for a better price, the Texians took the Comanche delegation as hostages for a forced prisoner exchange. Soldiers from a nearby building entered the premises, the Comanche began to stab The council ended with 12 Comanche men shot to death inside the Council House and 23 others killed outside Two elderly men and two dozen women were held captive in order to obtain an exchange for the remaining Texan children held by the Comanche.

^ Anderson (2005), p. 274.
^ Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Kavanagh, Thomas W. The Comanches: A History, 1706-1875. United States, University of Nebraska Press, 1999.
^ Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b Dolbeare, Benjamin, and Webster, Dolly. A Narrative of the Captivity and Suffering of Dolly Webster Among the Comanche Indians in Texas: With an Account of the Massacre of John Webster and His Party, as Related by Mrs. Webster. United States, Yale University Library, 1986.
^ The Morning Star. (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 293, Ed. 1 Monday, March 30, 1840 Page: 2 of 4
^ Cite error: The named reference :9 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference :10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Bedford, Hilory G. Texas Indian troubles. The most thrilling events in the history of Texas illustrated, book, 1905; Dallas, Tex.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth33017/: accessed April 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Public Library.
^ Bedford, Hilory G. Texas Indian troubles. The most thrilling events in the history of Texas illustrated, book, 1905; Dallas, Tex.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth33017/: accessed April 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Public Library.

[1] Anderson (2005), p. 274.

[:7-2] Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:2-3] Kavanagh, Thomas W. The Comanches: A History, 1706-1875. United States, University of Nebraska Press, 1999.

[:8-4] Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:0-5] Dolbeare, Benjamin, and Webster, Dolly. A Narrative of the Captivity and Suffering of Dolly Webster Among the Comanche Indians in Texas: With an Account of the Massacre of John Webster and His Party, as Related by Mrs. Webster. United States, Yale University Library, 1986.

[:1-6] The Morning Star. (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 1, No. 293, Ed. 1 Monday, March 30, 1840 Page: 2 of 4

[:9-7] Cite error: The named reference :9 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:10-8] Cite error: The named reference :10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:5-9] Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:11-10] Bedford, Hilory G. Texas Indian troubles. The most thrilling events in the history of Texas illustrated, book, 1905; Dallas, Tex.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth33017/: accessed April 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Public Library.

[11] Bedford, Hilory G. Texas Indian troubles. The most thrilling events in the history of Texas illustrated, book, 1905; Dallas, Tex.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth33017/: accessed April 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Public Library.

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