<Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> Commanders </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Notable commanders </Th> <Td> Stephen F. Austin Sam Houston (WIA) James Fannin (POW) (Executed) William Travis † James Bowie † Davy Crockett † Frank W. Johnson Edward Burleson Stephen F. Austin George Fisher Philip Dimmitt John Linn George Collinsworth Benjamin Milam † William Scott William Ward (POW) (Executed) George H. Burroughs Thomas H. Breece Robert C. Morris Jack Shackelford Juan Seguín Plácido Benavides Salvador Flores Manuel Leal </Td> </Tr> <P> The Texian Army, also known as the Army of Texas and the Army of the People, was a military organization consisting of volunteer and regular soldiers who fought against the Mexican army during the Texas Revolution . Approximately 3,700 men joined the army between October 2, 1835, during the Battle of Gonzales through the end of the war on April 21, 1836, at the Battle of San Jacinto . After gaining independence the Texian Army would be officially known as the Army of the Republic of Texas . In 1846, after the annexation of Texas by the United States, the Army of the Republic of Texas merged with the US Army . Sam Houston became the new commander in chief of the new Texas army . </P> <P> When Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821, the former Spanish province of Texas became part of the Mexican state Coahuila y Tejas . Many of the people who lived in Texas, which had included the land north of the Medina and the Nueces Rivers, 100 miles (161 km) northeast of the Rio Grande, west of San Antonio de Bexar, and east of the Sabine River, wished to be a separate state again . For the first time, the government of Texas encouraged immigrants from the United States to settle its lands . By 1834, an estimated 30,000 English speakers lived in Texas, compared to only 7,800 of Spanish heritage . The bankrupt Mexican government was unable to offer Texas much military support . Many of the settlements had created small militias to protect themselves against raids by Indian tribes . </P>

Who was named commander in chief of texas forces by the new national government of texas