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Present-day Baja California of Mexico was misrepresented in early maps as an island.This example c. 1650. Restored. The first European explorers, flying the flags of Spain and of England, sailed along the coast of California from the early 16th century to the mid-18th century, but no European settlements were established.
The Spanish settlement of Alta California was the last colonization project to expand Spain's vastly over-extended empire in North America, and they tried to do it with minimal cost and support. Approximately half the cost of settling Alta California was borne by donations and half by funds from the Spanish crown.
The Caribbean islands became less central to Spain's overseas colonization, but remained important strategically and economically, especially the islands of Cuba and Hispaniola. Smaller islands claimed by Spain were lost to the English and the Dutch, with France taking half of Hispaniola and establishing the sugar-producing colony of St ...
Alta California ('Upper California'), also known as Nueva California ('New California') among other names, [a] was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula , it had previously comprised the province of Las Californias , but was made a separate province in 1804 (named Nueva California ). [ 1 ]
Soromenho was followed in 1602 by Sebastián Vizcaíno, whose coastal explorations in 1602 surveyed several California locations for future colonization, including San Diego, the California Channel Islands and Monterey. Vizcaíno sailed north from Mexico (as Cabrillo had done), a much more difficult undertaking because of the prevailing winds ...
The Province of Las Californias (Spanish: Provincia de las Californias) was a Spanish Empire province in the northwestern region of New Spain.Its territory consisted of the entire U.S. states of California, Nevada, and Utah, parts of Arizona, Wyoming, and Colorado, and the Mexican states of Baja California and Baja California Sur.
Las Californias claimed by Spain under the governance of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, 1768–1804; Portolá-Crespí Expedition 1769–1771, Discovers Most of California Coast from San Diego to San Francisco, Claims Land for Spain. Pedro Fages 1st Expedition 1770 Discovers East San Francisco Bay, Salinas Valley & Santa Clara Valley.
Expansion came through exploration and colonization expeditions led by Portolá (1769), his successor Pedro Fages (1770), Juan Bautista de Anza (1774–76), the Franciscan missionaries and others. Independent Mexico retained the division but demoted the former provinces to territories, due to populations too small for statehood.