page_title: San Jose, California
section_title: Mexican period
hierarchical_section_title: San Jose, California / History / Mexican period
caption_attribution_description: English: Thomas Fallon monument
context_page_description: San Jose, officially the City of San José, is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and the largest city in Northern California, by both population and area.
  With an estimated 2019 population of 1,021,795, it is the third-most populous city in California and the tenth-most populous in United States. Located in the center of the Santa Clara Valley, on the southern shore of San Francisco Bay, San Jose covers an area of 179.97 square miles. San Jose is the county seat of Santa Clara County, the most affluent county in California and one of the most affluent counties in the United States. San Jose is the main component of the San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara Metropolitan Statistical Area, with an estimated population of around 2 million residents in 2018. It is also the most populous city in both the San Francisco Bay Area and the San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland Combined Statistical Area, which contain 7.7 million and 8.7 million people respectively.
  San Jose is notable as a center of innovation, for its affluence, Mediterranean climate, and extremely high cost of living.
context_section_description: San Jose became part of the First Mexican Empire in 1821, after Mexico's War of Independence was won against the Spanish Crown, and in 1824, part of the First Mexican Republic. With its newfound independence, and the triumph of the republican movement, Mexico set out to diminish the Catholic Church's power within Alta California by secularizing the California missions in 1833.
  In 1824, in order to promote settlement and economic activity within sparsely populated California, the Mexican government began an initiative, for Mexican and foreign citizens alike, to settle unoccupied lands in California. Between 1833 and 1845, thirty-eight rancho land grants were issued in the Santa Clara Valley, 15 of which were located within modern day San Jose's borders. Numerous prominent historical figures were among those granted rancho lands in the Santa Valley, including James A. Forbes, founder of Los Gatos, California (granted Rancho Potrero de Santa Clara), Antonio Suñol, Alcalde of San Jose (granted Rancho Los Coches), and José María Alviso, Alcalde of San Jose (granted Rancho Milpitas).
  In 1835, San Jose's population of approximately 700 people included 40 foreigners, primarily Americans and Englishmen. By 1845, the population of the pueblo had increased to 900, primarily due to American immigration. Foreign settlement in San Jose and California was rapidly changing Californian society, bringing expanding economic opportunities and foreign culture.
  By 1846, native Californios had long expressed their concern for the overrunning of California society by its growing and wealthy Anglo-American community. On July 11, 1846, with the onset of the Mexican–American War, Captain Thomas Fallon conquered San Jose in the name of the Bear Flag Revolt for the California Republic, officially ending Mexican rule in Alta California.
caption: Thomas Fallon equestrian statue; 10th Mayor of San Jose.
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