On April 3, 1836, the Texas Navy ship Invincible encountered the Mexican Warship Montezuma (aka Moctezuma) near the mouth of the Rio Grande. The Invincible was outfitted with 9 cannon, ranging from four to six pounders and an eighteen pounder at midship. After an exchange of broadsides, the Montezuma ran aground on a sandbar, the crew swam ashore and the Invincible continued firing on the Mexican ship until she was destroyed. In 1999, Hurricane Bret exposed the remains of a shipwreck near the mouth of the Rio Grande on the US Mexico border. It is believed that this wreck is the Montezuma. The wreck is still visible right at the waterline on Boca Chica Beach. This historic site is relatively safe from treasure hunters due to the constant survellance of the area by the US Border Patrol.
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