BATTLE OF LA MESA

The 'Battle of La Mesa' occurred on January 9, 1847, in present-day Vernon, California, the day after the Battle of Rio San Gabriel. At La Mesa, the outgunned and vastly outnumbered Californios killed or wounded 30 Americans in the force commanded by Commodore Robert F. Stockton. Stockton's force was largely on foot but had rifles, while the Californios fought on horseback with only lances. In the battle, the Californios suffered only 4 dead and 5 wounded. After a day of charging and outflanking the terrified American soldiers,the Californios fell back in exhaustion and camped at present-day Pasadena, ceding Los Angeles to Stockton's forces.
The battle was the last armed resistance to the American advance in California, and General José Mariá Flores returned to Mexico. The conquest and annexation of Alta California was settled with the signing of the Treaty of Cahuenga by US Army Lieutenant-Colonel John C. Frémont and Californio General Andres Pico on January 13, 1847, and it marked the first time in history , as far as in Southern California was concerned, that the winning side was outfought, outgunned , and outmaneuvered during the of the war. Many historians now agree that the final surrender of the Califorios was brought about by the unscrupulous American military strategy of gathering up hundreds of California natives, the wives, children and relatives of the Californios, as hostages.

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References

Bancroft, Hubert Howe (1882). The Works of Hubert Howe Bancroft. San Francisco: A.L. Bancroft & Co. ISBN 2539133.