Native Americans lived in what is now Texas long before Europeans arrived. Among the tribes living there at one time or another were the Apache, Caddo, Coahuiltecan, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Comanche, Kankawas, Kickapoo, Lipan, Shawnee, and Tonkawa.

The first Europeans to arrive in what is now Texas were the Spanish, in the form of Alonso Alvarez de Pineda, who mapped the coast in 1519. A more famous Spaniard, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, traversed the northern and southwestern parts of the area in the 1540s.

The French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de LaSalle was in the area in the late 17th Century, as he was in other states in that part of the country. In 1685, he established Fort St. Louis at Matagorda Bay. LaSalle was killed two years later, and the fort was abandoned.

The Spanish built missions throughout the 18th Century, including the Mission San Antonio de Valero in 1718. Also set up during this time were the towns of Goliad, Nacogdoches, and San Antonio. Spanish settlement increased throughout the area, and conflicts between Spanish and Native Americans were not uncommon.

Parts of northern Texas were included in the Louisiana Territory, which was owned by France originally, then went to Spain, then went back to France, then ended up with the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase. The United States at this time insisted that the Louisiana Territory included all of Texas; Spain disagreed. The 1819 Adams-Onís Treaty sorted this out, with the U.S. renouncing all claims to Spain in exchange for Spain's agreeing to the American takeover of Florida.

Mexico won its independence from Spain in 1821. The same year, a number of American settlers arrived in Texas, which was then part of Mexico, settling along the Brazos River. Among them was Stephen F. Austin. They began setting up a colony in 1823. A number of these settlers came to be known as the Old Three Hundred.

Texas was lumped in with Coahuila in the 1824 Mexican constitution. Settlers from the United States kept coming, more and more all the times. They referred to themselves as Texians. In 1830, Mexico banned further immigrants from America, encouraging more people from Mexico to settle in the Texas area. At the same time, Mexico banned slavery.

The residents of the Texas area had a convention in 1832 and another one in 1833. The purpose of the conventions was to draw up a set of changes to be presented to the Mexican government. One of those proposals was to make Texas a separate province. Austin took these demands to the Mexican government in 1833. He was arrested. The government's official response was to reject all requests made by the Texians.

A struggle for control of Texas ensued, lasting several years. By 1834, more than 30,000 Americans lived in Texas, compared to 7,800 Mexicans.

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