Bear Flag Revolt begins in California on June 14, 1846

June 14, 1846 — On This Day in the American West™
The Bear Flag Revolt Begins in California
On June 14, 1846, a small group of American settlers rode into the Mexican town of Sonoma, arrested General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo without bloodshed, and raised a hastily made banner depicting a grizzly bear and a single red star. The action marked the beginning of the Bear Flag Revolt, one of the most famous—and controversial—episodes in the history of the American West.
At the time, California was a remote northern province of Mexico, sparsely populated and only lightly governed. Yet thousands of American emigrants had begun arriving overland, encouraged by reports of fertile valleys, abundant resources, and the growing belief that the United States was destined to expand from coast to coast. Tensions between Mexican authorities and the increasing number of American settlers had been rising for months.
The rebels, numbering little more than thirty men, feared that Mexican officials planned to expel foreign settlers from the region. Acting on that belief, they seized Sonoma, captured several military officers, and declared California an independent republic. They adopted a homemade flag featuring a crude image of a grizzly bear beneath a lone red star, giving the uprising its enduring name.






