Missions of California (History Compass)

The Spanish influence on California took hold between the mid-18th and early 19th centuries, as a result of the ""mission system,"" an offshoot of Spanish colonization. With both religious and economic purposes in mind, the Spanish government set out to convert local natives in Alta California to Catholicism and to train them in farming and industrial skills, which would support the mission communities of religious leaders, soldiers, and converted natives. This anthology looks at the founding of twenty-one California missions, the controversial relationship between the missionaries and the neophytes, and the impact of Spanish architecture and daily lifestyles at the missions of California.