Abstract
Abstract Upon Mexico’s independence, its Regency dispatched commissioner Agustín Fernández de San Vicente to ensure the allegiance of officials and residents of remote Alta California. His strategies for this pivotal commission are analyzed for the first time here. Fernández, inspired by the grand style of the new emperor, Agustín Iturbide, designed a lavish presentation meant for mass appeal. Literature on the commission has been dominated to date by the biased and belated eyewitness testimony of Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo and Juan Bautista Alvarado, who depicted Fernández as a sleazy demagogue. This article critically examines their interventions and the conditions under which these were produced. Their stories about the commissioner drinking and gambling were probably exaggerated. Locals never found out that Fernández was lying about being a canon.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
