Script error. The Goliad Massacre, set in the town of Goliad on March 27, 1836, was an execution of Republic of Texas soldier-prisoners and their commander, James Fannin, by the Mexican Army. Despite the protests for clemency by General José de Urrea, the massacre was reluctantly carried out by Lt. Colonel José Nicolás de la Portilla under orders of the President of Mexico, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.