Pedro Fages - Career

Career

Fages was born in Guissona, Lleida province, Catalonia, Spain. In 1767, Lieutenant Fages left Spain with the Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia for New Spain, to serve under Domingo Elizondo in Sonora. In 1769, Fages was selected by Viceroy José de Gálvez to lead the shipborn portion of the Gaspar de Portolà led expedition to found San Diego, California. Fages sailed from the Baja California Peninsula town of La Paz on January 10, 1769, aboard the San Carlos, and arrived at San Diego Bay on April 29 with scurvy-ridden troops, after sailing over 200 mi (320 km) off course because of cartography errors. Fages accompanied the 1769 and 1770 land expeditions to locate Monterey Bay. During this time he was promoted to captain.

After Portolà left California in 1770, Pedro Fages served as the somewhat independent military governor of California Nueva (New California), which was later to become Alta California, headquartered in Monterey. During this time, Fages explored by land San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, the Carquinez Strait, the San Joaquin River, and surrounding areas; and earned his nickname l'ós while hunting bears near San Luis Obispo. Fages quarreled with Father Junípero Serra, president of the Alta California missions, and was replaced in 1774 by Fernando Rivera y Moncada.

In 1777 Fages returned to Sonora to fight the Apaches, where he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. In 1781 he successfully quelled the Quechan (Yuma) Indian revolt and temporarily reopened the Colorado River crossing of the Anza trail at Yuma, Arizona. The Quechan's successfully re-closed the trail for the next 50+ years after he and his troops departed.

Pedro Fages was appointed Governor of Las Californias in 1782, replacing Felipe de Neve. He returned to Monterey, which had replaced Loreto as the capital of the Californias in 1777. Fages was promoted to colonel in 1789, and resigned his governorship in 1791. Pedro Fages moved back to Mexico City, where he died in 1794.