Baja California peninsula

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Satellite view of Baja California peninsula

The Baja California peninsula (English: Lower California peninsula) is a peninsula in North America in western Mexico. It extends some 1250 km (775 miles) from Mexicali, Baja California in the north to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur in the south, separating the Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of California (or "Sea of Cortés").

History

See also: Origin of the name California

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 Montalvo. The book described the Island of California 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 Amazons."

Following Hernán Cortés 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 Baja 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 California, the region that became parts of the present-day U.S. states of California, Nevada, and others.

Partition

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Photo of the marker

New Spain's province of California was divided into Alta California and Baja California on May 19, 1773 near San Juan Bautista Creek by Fray Francisco Palóu. 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 Frontera, near Ensenada, Baja California.

Translated into English, the inscription on the marker reads:

San Juan Bautista Creek (Crespi, May 1769) This was the starting point 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).

Timeline

• 1532: Hernán Cortés sends three ships north along the coast of Mexico in search of the Island of California. The three ships disappear without a trace.
• 1533: Cortés sends a follow-up mission to search for the lost ships. Pilot Fortún Ximénez leads a mutiny and founds a settlement in the Bay of La Paz before being killed.
• 1539: Francisco de Ulloa 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 has been annexed by the United States, Baja California is further divided into northern and southern territories.
• 1853: William Walker, with 45 men, captures the capital city of La Paz 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. The southern portion, below 28°N, remains a federally administered territory.
• 1973: The 1700km (1060 miles) long Trans-Peninsular Highway (Mexican Federal Highway 1), is finished. It is the first paved road that spans the entire peninsula.^[1] The highway was built by the Mexican government to improve Baja's economy and increase tourism.^[2]
  • 1974: The South Territory of Baja California becomes the 31st state, Baja California Sur.

  Political divisions

  The peninsula is divided into two parts:

  • The northern part is the state of Baja California.^[3] 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. The citizens of Baja California Sur are named Sud-Californiano (South-Californian in English).

    Geographic features

    A series of mountain ranges runs the length of the peninsula, which are known as the Peninsular Ranges, and extend into Southern California.

    • The Sierra Juárez is the northernmost range in Mexico.
    • The Sierra San Pedro Mártir 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 lies in Baja California Sur, near the border with Baja California state.
    • The Sierra de la Giganta runs along the shore of the Gulf of California south of Tres Virgenes.
    • At the south end of Baja California Sur, the Sierra de la Laguna forms an isolated mountain range rising to 2406 m.
    • The Bahía de los Ángeles is a bay 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 Plate, the tectonic plate of which mainland Mexico remains a part. About 5 million years ago, the East Pacific Rise 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 Sea basin. The Baja California peninsula, and its core, called by geologists, the Salinian Block, is now part of the Pacific Plate 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 terrane.

    Ecoregions

    The peninsula is home to several distinct ecoregions. Most of the peninsula is deserts and xeric shrublands, 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, which covers the Mediterranean climate northwestern corner of the peninsula, as well as Cedros and Guadalupe islands.
    • Sierra Juarez and San Pedro Martir pine-oak forests in the upper reaches of the Sierra Juárez and Sierra San Pedro Mártir ranges in the northern peninsula.
    • The Sonoran Desert extends into the northeastern portion of the state, east of the Sierra Juárez and Sierra San Pedro Mártir.
    • The Baja California Desert extends along the Pacific side of the peninsula for most of its length.
    • The Gulf of California xeric scrub extends along the Gulf of California side of the peninsula for most of its length.
    • San Lucan xeric scrub lies in the lowlands of the peninsula's southern tip.
    • Sierra de la Laguna dry forests are found on the lower slopes of the Sierra de la Laguna.
    • Sierra de la Laguna pine-oak forests are found at higher elevations in the Sierra de la Laguna.

    See also

    • Spanish missions in California

    Notes

    1. ^ Baja Highway: Drive the Baja California Peninsula
    2. ^ Barkenbus, Jack, The Trans-Peninsular Highway: A New Era for Baja California, Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs, Vol. 16, No. 3. (Aug., 1974), pp. 259-273.
    3. ^ Baja California, it is sometimes informally referred to as Baja California Norte, to distinguish it from both the Baja California peninsula, of which it forms the northern half, and Baja California Sur, the adjacent state that covers the southern half of the peninsula. While it is a well-established term for the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, however, its usage would not be correct, because Baja California Norte has never existed as a political designation for a state, territory, district or region.

    
    

    External links

    • Baja News in English
    • Google maps
    • Virtual Bajabg:Долна Калифорния (полуостров)

    ca:Península de Baixa Califòrnia da:Californiske Halvø de:Niederkalifornien es:Península de Baja California fr:Péninsule de Basse-Californie ko:바하칼리포르니아 반도 id:Jazirah Baja nl:Neder-Californië (schiereiland) ja:バハ・カリフォルニア半島 pl:Półwysep Kalifornijski ru:Нижняя Калифорния fi:Kalifornian niemimaa sv:Baja California