The
Baja California peninsula (
SpanishSpanish or Castilian is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that originated in northern Spain and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile, evolving into the principal language of government and trade in the Iberian peninsula...
:
Península de Baja California, meaning
Lower California peninsula) is a
peninsulaA peninsula is a piece of land that is nearly surrounded by water but connected to mainland via an isthmus. Word origin: Latin paenīnsula : paene, almost + īnsula, island.A peninsula can also be a headland, cape, island promontory, bill, point, or spit....
in western
MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. It extends some 1250 km (775 miles) from
MexicaliMexicali is the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California Norte. Mexicali is also the seat of the Municipality of Mexicali. Founded on March 14, 1903, Mexicali is situated on the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to Calexico and is the northernmost city in Latin America, located at .The link is...
,
Baja CaliforniaBaja California is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, north...
, in the north to
Cabo San LucasCabo San Lucas is a city at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula at , in the municipality of Los Cabos in the state of Baja California Sur, Mexico. As of the 2005 census, the population was 56,811 people...
,
Baja California SurBaja California Sur is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, south of the 28th parallel...
, in the south, separating the
Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and...
from the
Gulf of CaliforniaThe Gulf of California is a body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland...
(or "Sea of Cortés"). The total area of the Peninsula is 143,396 km
2.
In the minds of European explorers California existed as an idea before it was discovered.
The
Baja California peninsula (
SpanishSpanish or Castilian is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that originated in northern Spain and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile, evolving into the principal language of government and trade in the Iberian peninsula...
:
Península de Baja California, meaning
Lower California peninsula) is a
peninsulaA peninsula is a piece of land that is nearly surrounded by water but connected to mainland via an isthmus. Word origin: Latin paenīnsula : paene, almost + īnsula, island.A peninsula can also be a headland, cape, island promontory, bill, point, or spit....
in western
MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. It extends some 1250 km (775 miles) from
MexicaliMexicali is the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California Norte. Mexicali is also the seat of the Municipality of Mexicali. Founded on March 14, 1903, Mexicali is situated on the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to Calexico and is the northernmost city in Latin America, located at .The link is...
,
Baja CaliforniaBaja California is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, north...
, in the north to
Cabo San LucasCabo San Lucas is a city at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula at , in the municipality of Los Cabos in the state of Baja California Sur, Mexico. As of the 2005 census, the population was 56,811 people...
,
Baja California SurBaja California Sur is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, south of the 28th parallel...
, in the south, separating the
Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and...
from the
Gulf of CaliforniaThe Gulf of California is a body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland...
(or "Sea of Cortés"). The total area of the Peninsula is 143,396 km
2.
History
In the minds of European explorers California existed as an idea before it was discovered. The earliest known mention of the
idea of California was in the 1510 romance novel
Las Sergas de Esplandián by Spanish author
Garci Rodríguez de MontalvoGarci Rodríguez de Montalvo was a Spanish author who arranged the modern version of the chivalric romance Amadis of Gaul, written in three books in the 14th century by an unknown author...
. The book described the
Island of CaliforniaThe Island of California refers to a long-held European misconception, dating from the 16th century, that California was not part of mainland North America but rather a large island separated from the continent by a strait now known instead as the Gulf of California.One of the most famous...
as being west of the Indies, "very close to the side of the Terrestrial Paradise; and it is peopled by black women, without any man among them, for they live in the manner of
AmazonsThe Amazons are a nation of all-female warriors in Classical and Greek mythology. Herodotus placed them in a region bordering Scythia in Sarmatia...
."
Following
Hernán CortésHernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marqués del Valle de Oaxaca was a Spanish conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the King of Castile, in the early 16th century...
conquest of Mexico, the lure of an earthly paradise as well as the search for the fabled Strait of Anián, helped motivate him to send several expeditions to the west coast of New Spain in the 1530s and early 1540s. The first expedition reached the Gulf of California and California, and proved the Island of California was in fact a peninsula. Nevertheless, the idea of the island persisted for well over a century and was included in many maps. The Spaniards gave the name "California" to the peninsula and to the lands north, including both Baja California and
Alta CaliforniaAlta California was formed when Spain separated the Dominican Missions from the Franciscan Missions in approximately 1769 with the founding of the first Alta California mission in San Diego...
, the region that became parts of the present-day U.S. states of
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
,
NevadaNevada is a state located in the western region of the United States. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas. The state's nickname is Silver State, due to the large number of silver deposits that were discovered and mined there...
, and others.
Partition
New Spain's province of California was divided into
Alta CaliforniaAlta California was formed when Spain separated the Dominican Missions from the Franciscan Missions in approximately 1769 with the founding of the first Alta California mission in San Diego...
and Baja California on May 19, 1773 near San Juan Bautista Creek by
Fray Francisco PalóuFrancisco Palou was a Franciscan missionary, administrator, and historian on the Baja California peninsula and in Alta California. Father Palou's contributions to the Californian and Mexican monastery movement are vast. Along with his mentor, Junipero Serra, Palou worked to build numerous missions...
. A marker is erected in the place where the dividing committee began the measurements for the province's partition. The marker is behind the
Misión San Miguel Arcángel de la FronteraMission San Miguel was established on 28 March, 1787 by the Dominican missionary Luis Sales among the Kumeyaay Indians of northwestern Baja California, Mexico...
, near
Ensenada, Baja CaliforniaEnsenada , or Port of Ensenada for its port, is the third-largest city in the Mexican state ofBaja California. It is located 116 km south of Tijuana, at...
.
Translated into
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that developed in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. As a result of the military, economic, scientific, political, and cultural influence of the British Empire during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, and of the United States since the mid 20th century,...
, the inscription on the marker reads:
San Juan Bautista Creek (Crespi, May 1 for the setting of the first international division line between Old or Lower California (Dominicans) and New or Upper California (Franciscans) five leagues to the north (Valley of the Medanos) being established by: Priest Francisco Palou on 19 August 1773 (Mojonera of Palou) in compliance with the instructions put forth on the April 7 1772 Concordato. Rosarito Historical Society, Baja California A.C. at The Mission, Baja California, on 20 May 1990. Fieldwork and research: Mario Reyes Meléndez. Monument donation: Christenson - Carrozo Family. Construction: Students of the School of Tourism at U.A.B.C.(Autonomous University of Baja California).
Territory
The whole peninsula of Baja California was a Spanish, then Mexican territory from 1804 until 1931.
Timeline
- 1532: Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marqués del Valle de Oaxaca was a Spanish conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the King of Castile, in the early 16th century...
sends three ships north along the coast of MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
in search of the Island of CaliforniaThe Island of California refers to a long-held European misconception, dating from the 16th century, that California was not part of mainland North America but rather a large island separated from the continent by a strait now known instead as the Gulf of California.One of the most famous...
. The three ships disappear without a trace.
- 1533: Cortés sends a follow-up mission to search for the lost ships. Pilot Fortún Ximénez
Fortún Ximénez was Spanish sailor who led a mutiny during an early expedition along the coast of Mexico and is the first European known to have landed in Baja California....
leads a mutiny and founds a settlement in the Bay of La Paz before being killed.
- 1539: Francisco de Ulloa
Francisco de Ulloa was a Spanish explorer who explored the west coast of present-day Mexico under the commission of Hernán Cortés...
explores both coasts.
- 1690s–1700s: Spanish settlement in California
- 1804: The Spanish colony of California is divided into Alta ("Upper") and Baja ("Lower") California.
- In 1850, after Alta California
Alta California was formed when Spain separated the Dominican Missions from the Franciscan Missions in approximately 1769 with the founding of the first Alta California mission in San Diego...
has been annexed by the United States, Baja California is further divided into northern and southern territories.
- 1853: William Walker
William Walker was an American filibuster or pirate who attempted to conquer several Latin American countries in the mid-19th century. He appointed himself President of the Republic of Nicaragua in 1856 and ruled from that year to 1857...
, with 45 men, captures the capital city of La PazLa Paz is the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur and an important regional commercial center. The city had a 2005 census population of 189,176 persons, but its metropolitan population reaches roughly 200,000 persons because of surrounding towns like el Centenario, el Zacatal...
and declares himself President of the Republic of Lower California. Mexico forces him to retreat a few months later.
- 1930: Baja California is further divided into Northern and Southern territories.
- 1952: The North Territory of Baja California becomes the 29th state of Mexico, Baja California
Baja California is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, north...
. The southern portion, below 28°N, remains a federally administered territory.
- 1973: The 1700km (1060 miles) long Trans-Peninsular Highway (Mexican Federal Highway 1
Mexican Federal Highway No. 1 follows the length of the Baja California Peninsula from Cabo San Lucas , at the southern end to Tijuana in the north...
), is finished. It is the first paved road that spans the entire peninsula. The highway was built by the Mexican government to improve Baja's economy and increase tourism.
- 1974: The South Territory of Baja California becomes the 31st state, Baja California Sur
Baja California Sur is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, south of the 28th parallel...
.
- 1989: Baja California
Baja California is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, north...
elects Ernesto Ruffo AppelErnesto Ruffo Appel is an American-born Mexican politician famous for being the first state governor not belonging to the Partido Revolucionario Institucional since its formation in 1929....
the first non PRIThe Institutional Revolutionary Party is a Mexican political party that wielded power in the country—under a succession of names—for more than 70 years. The PRI is a member of the Socialist International, as is the rival Party of the Democratic Revolution , making Mexico one of the...
governor since 1929.
Political divisions
The peninsula is divided into two parts:
- The northern part is the state
The United Mexican States is a federation made up of thirty-one "free and sovereign states". These states constitute one federated State or Union. The federal government has exclusive jurisdiction over the Federal District, a territory which does not belong to any state but to all, as well as...
of Baja CaliforniaBaja California is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, north...
. The citizens of Baja California are named Baja-Californiano (Lower-Californian in English).
- The southern part, below 28° north, is the state of Baja California Sur
Baja California Sur is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, south of the 28th parallel...
. The citizens of Baja California Sur are named Sud-Californiano (South-Californian in English).
- Mexicali
Mexicali is the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California Norte. Mexicali is also the seat of the Municipality of Mexicali. Founded on March 14, 1903, Mexicali is situated on the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to Calexico and is the northernmost city in Latin America, located at .The link is...
is the capital of the state of Baja CaliforniaBaja California is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, north...
.
- La Paz
La Paz is the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur and an important regional commercial center. The city had a 2005 census population of 189,176 persons, but its metropolitan population reaches roughly 200,000 persons because of surrounding towns like el Centenario, el Zacatal...
is the capital of the state of Baja California SurBaja California Sur is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the southern half of the Baja California peninsula, south of the 28th parallel...
.
Geographic features
A series of mountain ranges runs the length of the peninsula, which are known as the
Peninsular RangesThe Peninsular Ranges are a group of mountain ranges which stretch 1500 km from southern California in the United States to the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California peninsula; they are part of the North American Coast Ranges that run along the Pacific coast from Alaska to Mexico...
, and extend into
Southern CaliforniaSouthern California, or SoCal, is defined as the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its population centers around three major metropolitan areas, each of which have over 3 million people; the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area with over 12 million inhabitants, the San Bernardino-Riverside...
.
- The Sierra Juárez
Sierra de Juárez is a mountain range on the Baja California Peninsula, of Baja California, Mexico. It is part of the Peninsular Ranges, and the Laguna Mountains of California lie to the north, and the Sierra San Pedro Mártir lies to the south....
is the northernmost range in Mexico.
- The Sierra San Pedro Mártir
Sierra de San Pedro Mártir is a mountain range that runs north-south along the middle part of northwestern Baja California, Mexico. with its name Spanish for "mountains of Saint Peter the Martyr". The highest point is Cerro de la Encantada,...
lies south of the Sierra Juárez, and is higher. The highest point is Cerro de la Encantada, 3096 m.
- The volcanic complex of Tres Virgenes
Tres Virgenes is a complex of volcanoes located in the state of Baja California Sur, on the Baja California Peninsula in northwestern Mexico. It is composed of three volcanoes, aligned northeast-southwest, with El Viejo, the oldest, to the northeast, El Azufre in the middle, and the youngest, El...
lies in Baja California Sur, near the border with the state of Baja California.
- The Sierra de la Giganta
The Sierra de la Giganta is a mountain range of Baja California Sur state in northwestern Mexico. The range extends parallel to the coast of the Gulf of California, west of the town of Loreto. The Sierra de la Giganta is one of the landforms in the Peninsular Ranges, which extend 1500 km from...
runs along the shore of the Gulf of California south of the Tres Virgenes complex.
- At the south end of Baja California Sur, the Sierra de la Laguna
The Sierra de la Laguna is a mountain range on the Baja California Peninsula of Mexico. It lies at the southern end of the peninsula in the state of Baja California Sur, and is the southernmost range of the Peninsular Ranges....
forms an isolated mountain range rising to 2406 m.
- The Bahía de los Ángeles
The ' is a bay located along the east side of the Baja California Peninsula, in the state of Baja California, in northwest Mexico. The bay faces the Sea of Cortez, and has a desert climate. It has many islands off the coast, and is famous for its fabulous fishing...
is a bayHeadlands and bays are two related features of the coastal environment.- Geology and geography :Headlands and bays are often found together on the same stretch of coastline. A bay is surrounded by land on three sides, whereas a headland is surrounded by water on three sides. Headlands are...
located on the east side of the peninsula facing the Gulf of California.
Geology
The Baja California peninsula was once a part of the
North American PlateThe North American Plate is a tectonic plate covering most of North America, Greenland and parts of Siberia and Iceland. It extends eastward to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and westward to the Chersky Range in eastern Siberia. The plate includes both continental and oceanic crust. The interior of the...
, the tectonic plate of which mainland Mexico remains a part. About 5 million years ago, the
East Pacific RiseThe East Pacific Rise is a mid-oceanic ridge, a divergent tectonic plate boundary located along the floor of the Pacific Ocean. It separates the Pacific Plate to the west from the North American Plate, the Rivera Plate, the Cocos Plate, the Nazca Plate, and the Antarctic Plate...
began cutting into the margin of the North American Plate, initiating the separation of the peninsula from it. Thereafter, the East Pacific Rise continued to propagate northward, up through what is now the Gulf of California. The propagating tip of the spreading center is now located somewhere in the
Salton SeaThe Salton Sea is a saline, endorheic rift lake located directly on the San Andreas Fault. The lake occupies the lowest elevations of the Salton Sink in the Colorado Desert of Riverside and Imperial Counties in Southern California. Like Death Valley, it is located below sea level, with the current...
basin. The Baja California peninsula is now part of the
Pacific PlateThe Pacific Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate beneath the Pacific Ocean.The north-eastern side is a divergent boundary with the Explorer Plate, the Juan de Fuca Plate and the Gorda Plate forming respectively the Explorer Ridge, the Juan de Fuca Ridge and the Gorda Ridge...
and is moving with it away from the East Pacific Rise in a north northwestward direction. It is an ongoing example of a type of crustal block known as a
terraneA terrane in geology is a fragment of crustal material formed on, or broken off from, one tectonic plate and accreted — "sutured" — to crust lying on another plate. The crustal block or fragment preserves its own distinctive geologic history, which is different from that of the surrounding areas...
.
Just up the coast from
Santa Rosalia, Baja California SurSanta Rosalía is a city located on the Baja California peninsula, in the northern part of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. It was named after Saint Rosalia, although the reason for the name is not quite clear since the Misión de Santa Rosalía is not located by the town, but rather in...
is a prominent
area of volcanic activityThe large La Reforma Caldera is located on the eastern coast of the central Baja California Peninsula, facing the Gulf of California, near Santa Rosalia, Baja California Sur. The outer rim of the caldera is defined by dark-colored rocks made out of very fluid lava. A dome of rock in the center of...
. The arid climate of Baja California allows the dramatic volcanic features of the landscape to stand out clearly for the visitor.
Ecoregions
The peninsula is home to several distinct ecoregions. Most of the peninsula is
deserts and xeric shrublandsDeserts and xeric shrublands is a biome characterized by, relating to, or requiring only a small amount of moisture. Deserts and xeric shrublands receive an annual average rainfall of ten inches or less, and have an arid or hyperarid climate, characterized by a strong moisture deficit, where annual...
, although pine-oak forests are found in the mountains at the northern and southern ends of the peninsula. The southern tip of the peninsula, which was formerly an island, has many species with affinities to tropical Mexico.
- California chaparral and woodlands
The California chaparral and woodlands is a terrestrial ecoregion of central and southern California and northwestern Baja California , located on the west coast of North America...
, which covers the Mediterranean climateA hi Mediterranean climate resembles the climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, which includes most of the area with this climate type worldwide...
northwestern corner of the peninsula, as well as CedrosCedros Island is a Mexican island in the Pacific Ocean....
and GuadalupeGuadalupe Island, or Isla Guadalupe is a volcanic island located 241 kilometers off the west coast of Mexico's Baja California peninsula and some 400 kilometers southwest of the city of Ensenada in Baja California state, in the Pacific Ocean...
islands.
- Sierra Juarez and San Pedro Martir pine-oak forests
The Sierra Juárez and San Pedro Mártir pine-oak forests is an ecoregion that covers the higher elevations of the Sierra Juárez and Sierra San Pedro Mártir ranges of the northern Baja California Peninsula in Mexico, near the border with California .-Setting:The ecoregion covers an area of 4000 km²...
in the upper reaches of the Sierra Juárez and Sierra San Pedro Mártir ranges in the northern peninsula.
- The Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert is a North American desert which straddles part of the United States-Mexico border and covers large parts of the U.S. states of Arizona and California and the northwest Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur...
extends into the northeastern portion of the state, east of the Sierra Juárez and Sierra San Pedro Mártir.
- The Baja California Desert
The Baja California desert is a Desert ecoregion of Mexico's Baja California Peninsula.-Geography and climate:The ecoregion covers 77,700 square kilometers , and includes most of the Peninsula's western slope. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the east by the Peninsular Ranges...
extends along the Pacific side of the peninsula for most of its length.
- The Gulf of California xeric scrub
The Gulf of California xeric scrub is a xeric shrubland ecoregion of Mexico's Baja California Peninsula.-Setting:The Gulf of California xeric scrub covers an area of 23,600 square kilometers , lying on the eastern side of the peninsula along the Gulf of California, and extending to several of the...
extends along the Gulf of California side of the peninsula for most of its length.
- San Lucan xeric scrub
The San Lucan xeric scrub is a xeric shrubland ecoregion of Mexico's Baja California Peninsula.-Setting:The San Lucan xeric scrub covers an area of 3,900 square kilometers at the southern tip of the peninsula. The xeric scrub extends from coast up to 250 meters elevation, where the Sierra de la...
lies in the lowlands of the peninsula's southern tip.
- Sierra de la Laguna dry forests
The Sierra de la Laguna dry forests are a subtropical dry forest ecoregion of the southern Baja California Peninsula in Mexico. The dry forests cover the lower elevations of the Sierra de la Laguna, from elevation. They are surrounded at lower elevations by the San Lucan xeric scrub, which lies...
are found on the lower slopes of the Sierra de la Laguna.
- Sierra de la Laguna pine-oak forests
The Sierra de la Laguna pine-oak forests is a subtropical coniferous forest ecoregion, found in the Sierra de la Laguna at the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula of Mexico.-Setting:The ecoregion encompasses an area of 1100 km²...
are found at higher elevations in the Sierra de la Laguna.
Sources
External links