Customer Reviews

California Conquered: The Annexation of a Mexican Province, 1846-1850

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a direct paternal descendant of Jose Vicente Feliz, the first comisionado of El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles. In other words, my fifth great-grandfather was the first mayor of Los Angeles during the Spanish period. For over five generations, our family has passed down the stories of how the conquest of our ancestral lands were conquered by the Army of The West. This account by Harlow most accurately conforms to the family oral histories, which I have heard through the years from my Feliz, Peralta, Yorba, Cota & Lugo relatives. For example, it has long been understood by our family that it was Josef Tomas Feliz (a grandson of Jose Vicente Feliz) who hosted the signing of the treaty of El Campo de Cahuenga between the conquering military and the local city dignataries. Harlow notes that this took place in "the Feliz adobe," while others have omitted that fact. Also, according to our family histories, my second great-grandfather --Manuel Celestino Feliz--was a judge of the Californio period and, this book is detailed enough to report on the conditions of the take-over that placed "the locals" in charge of "their own judicial system" during the crucial years prior to statehood. Moreover, while most other accounts deny that the Mormon Batallion had anything to do with the policing of the locals. Mormon historians, in fact, claim that the Mormon Batallion "did not fire their guns" during their part in the Army of the West. Conversely, Harlow writes that "the Mormons" served during "the occupation" period as a "police" force. Indeed, from the perspective of an Angelino whose family has maintained an oral history of those activities, I can recommend this work as the most accurate of the histories I've read on the period of the conquest of my home state of California.

Without question the best book I have read on the tranistion period of Califonria's history. The writer brings forth the tension of the relationships between the Californian military commander and the govenor Pio Pico, between Kearny, Fremont and Stockton. It clearly shows the positives and flaws of all the characters that came into play. Very easy to read.