Presidio of Monterey (Monterey, California)
Monterey · California · Spanish Colonial Era
History & Significance
The Royal Presidio of San Carlos de Monterey was established on June 3, 1770, by an expedition led by Fray Junípero Serra, Gaspar de Portolá, and lieutenant Pedro Fages, accompanied by Catalonian volunteers and soldiers. Engineer Miguel Costansó surveyed the site on June 4, 1770, selecting a level location near Lake El Estero, approximately bounded by Webster and Fremont streets in what is now downtown Monterey.
By November 1770, the adobe square was sufficiently enclosed for safety, and by June 1771, the basic structure was complete except for a new stone church to replace the original brush structure. In February 1777, Felipe de Neve arrived to govern Alta and Lower California from Monterey, making the presidio the territorial capital.
In 1818, Argentine privateer Hipólito Bouchard attacked Monterey in the only known land and sea battle fought on the West Coast. During the Mexican–American War in 1846, Commodore John D. Sloat occupied the presidio unopposed and relocated the fort to a hilltop location overlooking the harbor, which became the modern installation. In 1946, the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center relocated to the Presidio of Monterey, where it remains today.
Key Facts
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Sources
- https://mchsmuseum.com/local-history/spanish-colonization/montereys-first-years-the-royal-presidio-of-san-carlos-de-monterey/
- https://mchsmuseum.com/local-history/spanish-colonization/the-founding-of-monterey/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidio_of_Monterey,_California
- https://monterey.gov/your_city_hall/departments/museum/early_monterey_history.php
- https://home.army.mil/monterey/about/history
- https://www.nps.gov/places/old-custom-house-ca.htm
- https://www.dliflc.edu/about/command-history/online-exhibit-history-of-the-presidio-of-monterey/