User:WCCasey/sandbox

Further reading on Gold Rush years

 * Bryant, Edwin (1849). What I Saw in California: a Description of Its Soil, Climate, Productions, and Gold Mines, with the Best Routes and Latest Information for Intending Emigrants; to Which is Annexed an Appendix Containing Official Documents and Letters Authenticating the Accounts of the Quantities of Gold Found, with Its Actual Value Ascertained by Chemical Assay; also Late Communications Containing Accounts of the Highest Interest and Importance from the Gold Districts; with a Map. Available online at Project Gutenberg.
 * Colton, Walter (1850). Three Years In California, New York, A. S. Barnes: H. W. Derby & co. Available online at Hathitrust Digital Library

California government under Spain and Mexico

European exploration of the western coast of a land named after a mythical island called California began with Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, sailing under the flag of the Spanish Empire in 1542. Over the following years, many others ships sailed along that coast - most of them Spanish Manila galleons, but also British and French raiders and explorers like Francis Drake. In 1602, Sebastian Vizcaino identified two potential northern harbors: one he named San Diego (Cabrillo's San Miguel); another on the southern end of what he named the Bahia de Monterrey. In the 1700s, Russians established trading posts in Alaska, and began gradually moving south. The perceived foreign threat to lands claimed but never occupied by Spain finally goaded the empire into action.

It wasn't until 1769, 227 years after Cabrillo, that the Spanish Portolá expedition became the first European exploration of California by land. Portolá's march began Spanish pacification, occupation and colonization, also introducing the governmental structure of colonial New Spain.

Governmental organization in California changed in some important ways in the 50+ years of Spanish Empire rule after Portolá, and even more changes followed Mexican independence in 1822. In other ways, however - especially at the local level - California government remained much the same until cession to the United States in 1848, following the Mexican-American War. Isolation from the central government in Mexico City resulted in slow colonial population growth and limited economic development.

Colonial rule of the Spanish Empire
During more than two centuries in the Americas, the Spaniards had developed a strategy for expansion into new areas. It began with military-led exploration to conquer and/or pacify the Native Americans living there. To assist in pacification, the Roman Catholic Church sent missionaries along with the soldiers, to minister to the explorers, set up mission outposts and begin to proselytize among the local population. Once pacification was achieved, settlers could be brought in to establish secular communities with civil governance.

These three institutions - military, church and government - were employed from the beginning in Spanish colonial California. Authority in the Portolá expedition was split between military (commander Gaspar de Portolá) and church (Franciscan missionary leader Junipero Serra). Separate civil authority was not needed for the first few years, until secular settlements (pueblos) were established.

Civil government leadership at all levels was by appointment, in a hierarchical structure. The Crown appointed a Viceroy and other top-level colonial officials; the Royal Treasury appointed customs officials; the Viceroy appointed governors; governors appointed local leaders. Only on the lowest governmental levels was there anything like democracy. Church and military had their own separate systems of hierarchy and appointments.

Regional government
The Viceroyalty of New Spain administered all Spanish possessions in the New World north of the Isthmus of Panama (and also the Philippines). The Viceroy was the direct representative of the Spanish monarchy, and held nominal authority over all governmental agencies: military, judicial and civil. At the time of the Portolá expedition, the Viceroy of New Spain was Carlos Francisco de Croix, marqués de Croix.

Below the Viceroyalty, New Spain was divided into a number of administrative areas. The basic regional unit was headed by a gobernador (governor). In 1768, Portolá became the first governor of a new province named Las Californias, with the capital at Loreto. At first, the only Spanish presence was in the lower two-thirds of the peninsula, but the next year's expedition began an expansion to the north.

Prior to Portola's arrival, California was probably (cite needed) governed as a smaller administrative unit called a Corregimiento, whose chief executive was a Corregidor. The Corregimento was subordinate to the nearest established province: Provincias de Sonora, Ostimuri, y Sinaloa.

The driving force behind California colonization was Visitador (inspector general) José de Gálvez, probably the most important Spanish government official in shaping the beginnings of today's California. He conceived, promoted and organized the Portolá expedition, first European land exploration of the Pacific Coast north of Mexico.

In 1776, Gálvez created a new regional division with authority over the new California settlements, called the Provincias Internas. The arrangement did not last long, however. Las Californias province was removed from Provincias Internas jurisdiction in 1793 (Richman, p.159).

In 1804, Las Californias was split into Baja (lower) and Alta (upper) provinces, with the border not far from today's United States-Mexico border. While Baja California's other three sides were water, Alta California began without defined borders to the north or east. The Adams-Onis Treaty of 1819 created a line to the north, but the east never had an established border. Spanish settlement never reached very far inland from the seacoast, nor within two hundred miles of the 1819 northern line.

The first governors were both military and civil. Lieutenant Governor (military governor) Pedro Fages, third in command on the Portolá expedition, succeeded Portolá in charge of the new northern areas in 1770, with headquarters at the new Presidio of Monterey.

Governor, staff, comisionado (commissioner or special representative), customs officials (appointed by governor or sent from capital?).

Timeline

 * 1768. Las Californias province included the Baja California peninsula and new lands to the north - Gaspar de Portola was appointed first comandante-general and governor.
 * 1769-70 The Portola expedition explores north-northwest from Loreto, paralleling the coastline and establishing presidios and missions at San Diego and Monterey (soon moved south a few miles to Carmel.
 * 1770 Monterey became the administrative center - military, civil and missions - of the new northern frontier areas of Las Californias. Portola returned to Mexico, appointing the expedition's third in command, Pedro Fages, to stay on in Monterey as military governor at the presidio.
 * 1804 Las Californias split into Baja and Alta California provinces. That border - originally the border between northern Franciscan and southern Dominican mission authority - was about 30 miles south of today's Mexico-United States border established by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848.
 * 1821 Mexico wins independence from Spain, taking both Californias with it. In the new governmental organization, Alta California's population was not large enough to be a state, so it became a territory. A territorial representative body, called a Diputación, was established, with 7 members - one from each presidio and pueblo - plus a secretary.
 * 1830 A more conservative, centralist regime took over in Mexico City.
 * 1835 In December, Las Siete Leyes (The Seven Laws) were enacted in Mexico City, recombining Alta and Baja Californias into a French-style departamento once again called Las Californias. The change had little practical effect in far-off California.
 * 1836 Juan Bautista Alvarado led a rebellion against the appointed governor (Gutierrez) and briefly established a de facto independent California. Isaac Graham led a group of American rifleros in support. After armed confrontation followed by negotiations, Alvarado's group relinquished control, but the central government appointed Alvarado governor the next year to appease localist sentiments.
 * 1846 The Mexican-American War began and, by the beginning of 1847, United States military forces were in control of Alta California.
 * 1848 The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo officially ceded Alta California (and all other Mexican lands to the east) to the United States.

Mission
In 1767, the church-wide Suppression of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) left a vacuum in New Spain missionary leadership. The Jesiuts' former authority in Las Californias was given to the Franciscan order. When Galvez organized the exploration and expansion to the north, Dominicans were put in charge of established Baja missions, while the Franciscans were tasked with establishment of new northern missions. Junipero Serra was appointed first president of the missionary effort, reporting to the College of San Fernando de Mexico, the Franciscan order headquarters in Mexico City. Franciscans remained in control of all 21 Alta CA missions until secularization in the 1830s, and still run Mission San Antonio de Padua. The other missions became regular parish churches. 1769 San Diego, first Alta mission and second Franciscan California mission (first was Velicata) Governance: headquarters, local priests, mayordomos (administrators), asistencia managers. Presidio chapel priests were not always Franciscans (San Diego Dominican in Alvarado bio)

Near each mission was a residential area for "reduced" natives. These native communities were under the authority of the mission priests.

The Church operated more-or-less independently, but cooperation with government and military was achieved though tradition and negotiation.

During implementation of the Mexican secularization act of 1833, new mayordomos were appointed by the governor to audit mission holdings and oversee transfers to private ownership.

Presidio
A comandante-general (sometimes called Lieutenant Governor), overseeing four military districts (by 1781), each with a presidio headquarters: Presidio of San Diego, Presidio of Santa Barbara, Presidio of Monterey, Presidio of San Francisco (Richman, p.140). Each presidio had a garrison. Small garrison units were assigned to each of the missions (and pueblos?), under command of a cabo. Commandante, prefectos (military equivalent of a comisionado),

Around the presidios, residential areas for non-military support personnel grew up, under authority of the presidio commander. Each presidio had its own Rancho Nacional to supply food to the garrison.

Military ranks
In ascending order (from Naylor, p.28-29):
 * soldado - enlisted man
 * cabo - corporal
 * sargento - sergeant
 * alférez - a subordinate officer rank roughly equivalent to lieutenant, subaltern or adjutant
 * teniente - a temporary designation for a field commander below the rank of captain
 * capitán - captain, often commander of a presidio, usually commanding officer in the field
 * sargento mayor - a commissioned rank above an ordinary captain
 * general - a commissioned high command rank
 * comandante-general - civil as well as military commander

Pueblo
The first two California secular pueblos are now the third-largest and largest cities in the state: San Jose in 1777 and Los Angeles in 1781. A third (and last) Spanish colonial pueblo was the Villa de Branciforte, founded in 1797 near Mission Santa Cruz. Branciforte never thrived, and was eventually absorbed into today's city of Santa Cruz, California.

Each pueblo had an appointed "strong" mayor (alcalde), and a town council (cabildo or ayuntamiento). Council members (regidores) were often chosen by their peers. Settlers recruited in Mexico and elsewhere were known as pobladores. Many retired soldiers (invalidos) chose to stay in Alta California after their ten-year enlistments ended.

Three: Pueblo de San Jose (1777), Pueblo de Los Angeles (1782), Villa de Branciforte (179_), settled by Branciforte called a Villa because it was settled partly by retired soldiers (invalidos) (mayor +), cabildo or Ayuntamiento (council), regidor (council member), Juez de paz (Justice of the peace), Juez del campo (Justice of the country - brands) Los Angeles and San Jose had comisionados in 1786 to represent governor Fages in local affairs: "At San Jose, Ignacio Vallejo was comisionado, and at Los Angeles, Vicente Felix" (Richman, p.152)

Other communities
In addition to the three officially established pueblos, less formal communities grew up around the missions and presidios. The larger and more successful ranchos also developed residential communities, many of which formed the basis of today's towns and cities. Seaports such as Yerba Buena (San Francisco) and San Pedro also supported communities.

Mongoliad links
Book 4: World tree (Yggdrasil), Allfather (List of names of Odin), Baba Yaga, Battle on the Ice Book 5: Catharism, Albigensian Crusade, Château de Montségur, Raymond VII, Count of Toulouse (use only in blog)

History of Architecture in California
Although there are many articles on individual California architectural styles, individual important buildings, and architects, there is not now an umbrella article on this subject. I would like to be able to compare timelines for different styles, showing when they were first seen, and when they fell out of favor. A related subject is the evolution of building methods and materials. An umbrella article could tie together many of the articles in Category:Architecture in California.

Ranchos of California
Add any of this?

The new leaders of the state of California soon discovered that the Mexican government had given a number of grants just before the Americans gained control. The Mexicans rewarded faithful supporters and hoped to prevent the new immigrants from gaining control of the land. Sponsored by California Senator William M. Gwin, in 1851 the United States Congress passed "An Act to Ascertain and Settle Private Land Claims in the State of California". The Act required all holders of Spanish and Mexican land grants to present their titles for confirmation before the Board of California Land Commissioners. Contrary to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, this Act placed the burden of proof of title on landholders. The Californios were required to prove the validity of the grants they had received and establish their exact boundaries. Land had until the gold rush been of little value and boundary locations were often quite vague, referring to an oak tree, a cow skull on a pile of rocks, a creek, and in come cases a mountain range.

The Public Land Commission, established to review land grant claims, heard 813 cases involving private land claims; 604 claims were confirmed; 190 rejected; and the rest were withdrawn. Of these 813 cases, only three of the Board's were conclusive; the rest were appealed to the U.S. District Court. When California was admitted as a state in 1850, the US District Court of California was divided into two districts, the Northern and the Southern. A significant number of claims were finally decided by the US Supreme Court.