California (province) 2219003 217691750 2008-06-07T05:47:46Z TriniMuñoz 7154406 {{unreferenced|date=February 2008}} The '''province of California''' was a colony of [[Spain]] in [[North America]], part of that European power's vast American empire of [[Viceroyalty of New Spain|New Spain]]. It covered the territories of the current [[Political divisions of Mexico|Mexican states]] of [[Baja California]] and [[Baja California Sur]] and of the modern-day [[U.S. state]]s of [[California]], [[Nevada]], [[Utah]], and parts of northern [[Arizona]] and southwestern [[Wyoming]]. In 1773 it was divided into [[Alta California]] and [[Baja California peninsula|Baja California]], along a line close to the modern-day [[United States]]-[[Mexico]] border, with the lands to the north given to the [[Franciscan]] Order and those to the south to the [[Dominican Order]]. Alta California and Baja California in turn became federally run territories of the federal government under the [[1824 Constitution of Mexico|1824 Constitution]] following [[Mexican War of Independence|Mexico's independence]] from Spain. Alta California was later ceded to the United States under the 1848 [[Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo]]. ==See also== *[[History of California]] *[[Las Californias]] [[Category:History of California]] [[zh:加利福尼亞省]] {{California-geo-stub}}