Answer:
Following the Mexican War of Independence, Texas became part of Mexico. Under the Constitution of 1824, which defined the country as a federal republic, the provinces of Texas and Coahuila were combined to become the state Coahuila y Tejas.[Note 2][13][14] Texas was granted only a single seat in the state legislature, which met in Saltillo, hundreds of miles away.[15][16] After months of grumbling by Tejanos (Mexican-born residents of Texas) outraged at the loss of their political autonomy, state officials agreed to make Texas a department of the new state, with a de facto capital in San Antonio de Béxar.[15]
Texas was very sparsely populated, with fewer than 3,500 residents,[Note 3] and only about 200 soldiers,[17][18] which made it extremely vulnerable to attacks by native tribes and American filibusters.[19] In the hopes that an influx of settlers could control the Indian raids, the bankrupt Mexican government liberalized immigration policies for the region. Finally able to settle legally in Texas, Anglos from the United States soon vastly outnumbered the Tejanos.[Note 4][20][21] Most of the immigrants came from the southern United States. Many were slave owners, and most brought with them significant prejudices against other races, attitudes often applied to the Tejanos. Mexico's official religion was Roman Catholicism, yet the majority of the immigrants were Protestants who distrusted Catholics.
