Page:History of California, Volume 3 (Bancroft).djvu/490

472 frontier, with headquarters at Sonoma. He was the son of the 'sargento distinguido' Ignacio Vallejo and of María Antonia Lugo, being, on the paternal side at least, of pure Spanish blood, and being entitled by the old rules to prefix the 'Don' to his name. In childhood he had been the associate of Alvarado and Castro at Monterey, and his educational advantages, of which he made good use, were substantially the same as theirs. Unlike his companions, he chose a military career, entering the Monterey company in 1823 as cadet, and being promoted to be alférez of the San Francisco company in 1827. He served as habilitado and as comandante of both companies, and took part, as has been recorded in preceding chapters, in several campaigns against the Indians, besides acting as fiscal or defensor in various military trials. In 1830 he was elected to the diputacion, and took a prominent part in the opposition of that body to Victoria. In 1832 he married Francisca Benicia, daughter of Joaquin Carrillo, and in 1834 was elected diputado suplente to congress. He was a favorite of Figueroa, who gave him large tracts of land north of the bay, choosing him as comisionado to secularize San Francisco Solano, to found the town of Sonoma, and to command the frontera del norte. In his new position Vallejo was doubtless the most independent man in California. His past record was a good one, and both in ability and experience he was probably better fitted to take the position as comandante general than any other Californian. He was not personally so popular as either Alvarado or Castro, because chiefly of his reserved, haughty, aristocratic, military manner; yet it is evident that his name and his strength carried great weight with the people, since the revolutionists were forced to represent him as their leader, even without his consent. The reasons of his conservatism were well enough known, and little doubt was felt that he would accept the command offered him. Accordingly Alvarado, in his letter of November 7th,