Diego de Borica (1742–1800) was a

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

colonial Governor of the Californias, from 1794 to 1800.

Family

Diego de Borica y Retegui was born in

Vitoria-Gasteiz es, vitoriano, vitoriana, , population_density_km2 = auto , blank_name_sec1 = Official language(s) , blank_info_sec1 = Spanish, Basque , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

to a family connected to Father Fermín de Lasuén's. In 1780 Diego de Borica married Maria Magdalena de Urquidi, a Mexican-Basque direct descendant of one of the founders of Durango, Mexico.

Military advance as governor

As the governor, Diego de Borica and Father Lasuén determined that five more missions were needed in 1795 along El Camino Real. Borica sent expeditions from four different missions to find suitable new settlements that were no more than one day's travel as military escorts were necessary. By August 1796, Borica notified Viceroy Miguel de la Grúa Talamanca that no increase in troops was necessary. The first missionary site selected in 1796 was

Mission San José Mission San José may refer to: *Mission San José (California), a Spanish mission in Fremont, California * Mission San Jose, Fremont, California, a neighborhood * Mission San Jose High School, a high school in Fremont, California *Mission San José ...

near the pueblo of the same name. During Borica's tenure as governor, five missions were founded: Mission San José (June 11, 1797),

Mission San Juan Bautista Mission San Juan Bautista is a Spanish mission in San Juan Bautista, San Benito County, California. Founded on June 24, 1797 by Fermín Lasuén of the Franciscan order, the mission was the fifteenth of the Spanish missions established in presen ...

(June 24, 1797),

Mission San Miguel Arcángel Mission San Miguel Arcángel is a Spanish mission in San Miguel, California. It was established on July 25, 1797 by the Franciscan order, on a site chosen specifically due to the large number of Salinan Indians that inhabited the area, whom th ...

(July 25, 1797),

Mission San Fernando Rey de España Mission San Fernando Rey de España is a Spanish mission in the Mission Hills community of Los Angeles, California. The mission was founded on 8 September 1797 at the site of Achooykomenga, and was the seventeenth of the twenty-one Spanish mis ...

(September 8, 1797) and

Mission San Luis Rey de Francia Mission San Luis Rey de Francia ( es, Misión San Luis Rey de Francia) is a former Spanish mission in San Luis Rey, a neighborhood of Oceanside, California. This Mission lent its name to the Luiseño tribe of Mission Indians. At its prime, ...

(June 13, 1798). In 1795, Borica gave

José Darío Argüello José Darío Argüello (1753–1828) was a Querétaro-born Californio politician, soldier, and ranchero. He served as interim Governor of Alta California and then a term as Governor of Baja California. Biography José Darío Argüello was born ...

a Spanish land grant known as

Rancho de las Pulgas Rancho de las Pulgas was a 1795 Spanish land grant in present-day San Mateo County, California to José Darío Argüello. The literal translation is "Ranch of the Fleas", probably named after a village of the local Lamchin people. The grant wa ...

. This rancho was the largest grant on the

San Francisco Peninsula The San Francisco Peninsula is a peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area that separates San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. On its northern tip is the City and County of San Francisco. Its southern base is Mountain View, south of Palo A ...

spanning . In 1797, Borica ordered the construction of a

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

to protect the

cove A cove is a small type of bay or coastal inlet. Coves usually have narrow, restricted entrances, are often circular or oval, and are often situated within a larger bay. Small, narrow, sheltered bays, inlets, creeks, or recesses in a coast are o ...

east of Point Medanos. The location initially was named "Bateria San Jose" and was chosen because the

promontory A promontory is a raised mass of land that projects into a lowland or a body of water (in which case it is a peninsula). Most promontories either are formed from a hard ridge of rock that has resisted the erosive forces that have removed the so ...

overlooked

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland. San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...

and

Alcatraz Island Alcatraz Island () is a small island in San Francisco Bay, offshore from San Francisco, California, United States. The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, and a military pris ...

. Borica provisioned the unit with five brass cannons. On orders from Viceroy La Grúa Talamanca, Borica established a school grounds at the center of

Villa de Branciforte Branciforte, originally named Villa de Branciforte, was the last of only three secular ''pueblos'' founded by the Spanish colonial government of Alta California. The pueblo was established in 1797 on the eastern bluff of the San Lorenzo River, fac ...

in 1797. Also in 1797, he granted José María Verdugo's retirement. Verdugo was the grantee of

Rancho San Rafael Rancho San Rafael was a Spanish land grant in the San Rafael Hills, bordering the Los Angeles River and the Arroyo Seco in present-day Los Angeles County, southern California, given in 1784 to Jose Maria Verdugo. Geography The rancho includes t ...

. In 1795 Borica gave a land grant of

Rancho Nuestra Señora del Refugio The Rancho Nuestra Señora del Refugio ("Ranch of Our Lady of Refuge") was a Spanish land grant to José Francisco Ortega in 1794 and is the only land grant made under Spanish and confirmed by USA in 1866 to Jose Maria Ortega.under the US Suprem ...

, "Ranch of Our Lady of Refuge" in present day

Santa Barbara County, California Santa Barbara County, California, officially the County of Santa Barbara, is located in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 448,229. The county seat is Santa Barbara, and the largest city is Santa Maria. Santa Barba ...

José Francisco Ortega José Francisco Ortega (1734 – February 1798) was an indigenous Californio soldier and early settler of Alta California. He joined the military at the age of twenty-one and rose to the rank of sergeant by the time he joined the Portola expedition ...

. (in 1813 the grant again confirmed by Governor

José Joaquín de Arrillaga José Joaquín de Arrillaga was a Basque people, Basque officer that served twice as Governor of the Californias and as the first Governor of Alta California, following the partition of the Californias in 1804. He is the only Spanish-era governor ...

, also again by Mexican Governor

José Figueroa José Figueroa (1792 – 29 September 1835), was a General and the Mexican Governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835. He wrote the first book to be published in California. Background and governorship Figueroa was a Mestizo of Spanish a ...

to Antonio María Ortega.actcards.califa.org, Rancho Refugio
/ref> Before stepping down as governor, Borica recommended reappointing

to organize military defenses for California.

Intellect, concerns, and initiatives

Borica was a member of the Royal Basque Society (1779-1793) and influenced by the Enlightenment's ideas of progress (cf. circumstances in the Basque districts back in Europe), showing a concern for the welfare of his subjects. However, his attempts to establish settlements in California—for which purpose he thought of

Catalans Catalans (Catalan language, Catalan, French language, French and Occitan language, Occitan: ''catalans''; es, catalanes, Italian language, Italian: ''catalani'', sc, cadelanos) are a Romance languages, Romance ethnic group native to Cataloni ...

—and launch the economic development of California were largely foiled by the Spanish Crown's failure to back up his effort. At a time when the publications of the Royal Basque Society encouraged sheep raising and wool growing, Borica fostered maximum autonomy for the Californian missions by spreading sheep among the ranchers, engaging even personally in that pursuit. He was successful during his office, but by the time of California's detachment from Mexico, flocks had diminished significantly.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Borica, Diego de 1742 births 1800 deaths 18th-century Spanish military personnel Spanish explorers of North America Basque explorers Californios Explorers of California Governors of the Californias People from Vitoria-Gasteiz Spanish generals

Family

Military advance as governor

Intellect, concerns, and initiatives

See also

References