Diputación de Alta California

Diputación de Alta California
Alta California
Type
Type
History
Founded1822[1]
Disbanded1837
Succeeded byDiputación de las Californias
Structure
Length of term
Two years
Meeting place
Monterey, Alta California[1]

The Excelentísima Diputación de Alta California (Spanish for "Most Excellent Deputation of Upper California) was the unicameral legislature of Alta California, during its period as a Mexican territory. It was the first legislature of what is now California.[2]

History

Alta California was supposed to have formed a provincial diputación while still part of the Spanish Empire, when the 1812 Constitution of Cádiz was officially received and enacted in Alta California in 1820.[3] However, Governor Pablo Vicente de Solá believed that Alta California was not sufficiently developed or ready to govern itself, and thus a diputación was never formed during Spanish rule in California.[3]

The Diputación de Alta California was finally created in the aftermath of the War of Mexican Independence and California's separation from the Spanish Empire in 1822.[1]

In 1827, the diputación voted to change the name of Alta California to "Moctezuma", to honor the famed Aztec Emperor and the nascent Mexican independence, but this decision was overturned by the Mexican Congress of the Union.[4] At the same time, vocal Juan Bandini proposed the renaming of the Los Ángeles to "Victoria de Los Ángeles", which similarly was approved by the diputación but rejected by the Mexican Congress.[5]

Disbandment

Following the death of Governor José Figueroa in 1835, Carlos Antonio Carrillo, who served representing Alta California in the Congress of the Union in Mexico City, announced that the diputación would move its location from Monterey to Los Angeles.[2] However, the diputación ignored Carrillo's announcement and did not move itself from Monterey and awaited the arrival of the newly-appointed governor, Mariano Chico.[2]

Governor Chico's tenure was short lived, owing to the Californio resistance to Mexico City's appointed governor and the subsequent rebellion led by Juan Bautista Alvarado, a member of the diputación representing Monterey, who convinced the diputación to issue the Declaration of Independence of Alta California from Mexico on November 3, 1836.[1]

With the reunification of Alta California and Baja California into a single territory known as the Department of the Californias on 10 December 1836, the diputación was dissolved with the creation of the Junta Departamental, more commonly known as the Diputación de las Californias.[6]

Composition

The diputación was made up of 7 members (vocales), as well as a secretary in charge of calling votes and recording legislative logs. Each member represented one of the 4 presidio military districts or the 3 civilian pueblos: [7]

Members of the diputación were elected by the local ayuntamiento (municipal government) of the civilian pueblos or appointed by the presiding Commandant of the presidios.[4] Substitutes (suplentes) were chosen as alternate members, to serve in the diputación when a member was otherwise unable.

Members

Members (Vocales) of the Diputación de Alta California
Name Constituency Tenure Notes References
Pío Pico Los Angeles 1828-1834
1845		 Senior Vocal of the diputación in 1831-1832. [8]
José Castro Monterey 1824-1825
1833-1836		 Senior Vocal of the diputación in 1835. Suplente in 1822. [8]
Juan Bautista Alvarado 1834-1836 Senior Vocal of the diputación in 1836.
Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo San Francisco 1830-1832 [9][10]
José Tiburcio Castro Monterey 1828-1831
Antonio María Osio 1830-1832 [10]
José Joaquín Ortega San Diego 1830-1834 [10]
Juan Bandini San Diego 1827-1828
1845-1846		 [5]
Manuel Jimeno Casarín 1834-1835
1839-1842		 [10]
José Ramón Estrada 1837 [11]
Tiburcio Tapía 1827
1833		 [11][10]
Francisco María Ortega 1822-1824 [11]
Carlos Antonio Carrillo 1828
1833-1835		 [11]
Juan Bautista Alvarado 1839 Cousin of similarly-named Juan Bautista Alvarado. [11]
Carlos Antonio Castro 1822-1825
1830		 Substituted by Ignacio López in 1822. Suplente in 1822 and 1839. [11]
Francisco María Castro 1822-1825 [11][10]
José Aruz 1822 [10]
Ignacio López 1822 [10]
José Antonio Carrillo Los Angeles 1822-1824
1828
1833-1834		 [11]
José Palomares Los Angeles 1822 [10]
José Mariano Estrada 1827 [10]
Ygnacio Martínez 1827 [10]
Antonio María Ortega 1827 [10]
Antonio Buelna 1827-1830
1834-1835		 [10]
Anastasio Carrillo 1827-1828 [10]
Vicente Sánchez 1828 [10]
Salvio Pacheco 1830 Suplente in 1834-1835. [10]
Santiago Argüello 1832 [10]
Tomás Yorba 1832 [10]
Francisco de Haro 1833-1834 [10]
José Antonio Estudillo 1833-1835 [10]
Rafael Gómez 1836 [10]
David Spence 1836 [10]
Manuel Crespo 1836 [10]
Joaquín Gómez 1836 [10]
José de la Guerra y Noriega 1836 [10]

Secretaries

Secretaries of the Diputación de Alta California
Name Tenure Notes References
Francisco de Haro 1822-1823 [10]
José Joaquín de la Torre 1824-1825 [10]
Juan Bautista Alvarado 1827-1834 [11]
Agustín V. Zamorano 1834 [10]
José M. Maldonado 1834-1835 [10]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Pérez, Emmanuelle (2014). "The Evolution of Political Practices in Mexican Alta California and the Rise of the Diputados". California History. 91 (1). University of California Press: 72–73. doi:10.1525/ch.2014.91.1.72.
  2. ^ a b c Moyano Pahissa, Angela (1990), La Resistencia de Baja California a la Invasión Norteaméricana (1846-1848), Mexico City: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
  3. ^ a b Pérez Tisserant, Emmanuelle (5 October 2018), El papel de las revoluciones en California ¿marcador identitario o factor de politización?, Paris: HAL
  4. ^ a b Cherny, Robert W.; Lemke-Santangelo, Gretchen; Griswold de Castillo, Richard (2021). Competing Visions: A History of California. Moraga, California: Saint Mary's College of California. ISBN 978-1133943624.
  5. ^ a b Barrows, H. D. (1899). "Juan Bandini". Annual Publication of the Historical Society of Southern California and Pioneer Register, Los Angeles. 4 (3): 243–246. doi:10.2307/41167735.
  6. ^ Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía - Evolución histórica de los municipios de México de 1810 a 2020
  7. ^ Beebe, Rose Marie; Senkewicz, Robert M (2023). Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo: Life in Spanish, Mexican, and American California (Volume 7 of Before Gold: California under Spain and Mexico Series). Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 9780806192611.
  8. ^ a b California Under Spain and Mexico (1535-1847) - Irving Berdine Richman
  9. ^ SF Genealogy - The Beginnings of San Francisco
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac Engelhardt, Zephyrin (1908). The missions and missionaries of California. Oklahoma: San Francisco, Cal. : The James H. Barry company. ISBN 9780806192611. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i Santa Barbara County Genealogical Society - First Families of California
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