California (province)
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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]]
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