Alférez In medieval Iberia, an ''alférez'' (, ) or ''alferes'' (, ) was a high-ranking official in the household of a king or magnate. The term is derived from the Arabic ('' al-fāris''), meaning "horseman" or "cavalier", and it was commonly Latinised ...

Juan Prado Mesa was a prominent

Californio Californio (plural Californios) is a term used to designate a Hispanic Californian, especially those descended from Spanish and Mexican settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries. California's Spanish-speaking community has resided there sinc ...

military commander in

Alta California Alta California ('Upper California'), also known as ('New California') among other names, was a province of New Spain, formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but ...

. He was born a subject of the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

, and performed his military duties as an officer of the

Republic of Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Career

Mesa was a soldier stationed at the

San Francisco Presidio The Presidio of San Francisco (originally, El Presidio Real de San Francisco or The Royal Fortress of Saint Francis) is a park and former U.S. Army post on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in San Francisco, California, and is part o ...

in 1828. He was promoted to Corporal at

Mission Santa Clara de Asís Mission Santa Clara de Asís ( es, Misión Santa Clara de Asís) is a Spanish mission in the city of Santa Clara, California. The mission, which was the eighth in California, was founded on January 12, 1777, by the Franciscan order. Named for ...

in 1832 and again to Sergeant in 1836. In 1835, when

Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo Don Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo (4 July 1807 – 18 January 1890) was a Californio general, statesman, and public figure. He was born a subject of Spain, performed his military duties as an officer of the Republic of Mexico, and shaped the trans ...

moved his troops to Sonoma, Mesa was made commander of the San Francisco Presidio. Later Mesa served as the commander of the

Santa Clara Mission Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

guard. Juan Prado Mesa was wounded in battle with aboriginals and died from his wounds in 1845.

Family

His grandfather was Corporal Jose Valerio Mesa who accompanied

Juan Bautista de Anza Juan Bautista de Anza Bezerra Nieto (July 6 or 7, 1736 – December 19, 1788) was an expeditionary leader, military officer, and politician primarily in California and New Mexico under the Spanish Empire. He is credited as one of the founding fa ...

on the Anza Expedition to Alta California. His father was Jose Antonio Mesa who was awarded

Rancho Los Medanos Rancho Los Medanos (from the Spanish: ''Rancho Los Médanos'' meaning Sand Dunes Ranch) was a Mexican land grant in present-day Contra Costa County, California given in 1839 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Jose Antonio Mesa and Jose Miguel Garcia. T ...

in 1839.Ogden Hoffman, 1862, ''Reports of Land Cases Determined in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California'', Numa Hubert, San Francisco He married Mycaela Higuera and had a daughter, Encarnacion who inherited about 900 acres of her father's land grant.

Rancho and legacy

For his service, in 1839 he received a

land grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...

of one square league from Governor Juan Alvarado named

Rancho San Antonio de Padua Rancho San Antonio was a Mexican land grant in present-day Santa Clara County, California given in 1839 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Juan Prado Mesa. The grant was bounded by Adobe Creek to the north and Stevens Creek to the south, and included ...

. The grant was bounded by Adobe Creek to the north and Stevens Creek to the south, and included

Permanente Creek Permanente Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed February 3, 2013 stream originating on Black Mountain in Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is the na ...

, and present-day

Los Altos Hills Los Altos Hills (; ''Los Altos'', Spanish language, Spanish for "The Heights") is an List of municipalities in California, incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 8,4 ...

.Diseño del Rancho San Antonio
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alferez Juan Prado Mesa Californios Mexican military officers People of Mexican California Year of birth missing Year of death missing