The California Republic' (also called theBear Flag Republic), like the Republic of Texas, was created as the byproduct of increasing tensions between the United States and Mexico. California Republic began on June 10, 1846 when John C. Frémont and his men in Sonoma declared independence from Mexico. The rebellion itself started on June 14.
The republic's first and only president was William B. Ide. On July 9, 1846 a U.S. Navybattleship, commanded by John D. Sloat, docked in Monterey, routed the detachment of the Mexican Coast Guard garrisoning the port in a minor skirmish (the Battle of Monterey), and alerted Frémont and his men that the Mexican-American War had begun. The "Bear Flaggers" joined the war effort and replaced their flag with the Stars and Stripes. Under the 1848Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexico formally surrendered its claim over the territory. Though the Republic's Constitution was never repealed, the "State of California" was admitted to the Federal Union two years later.
A significant legacy of the California Republic is the State of California's adoption of the flag—which has a grizzly bear and the words "California Republic" near the bottom—as the State Flag of the U.S. state, the "State of California." This was the flag created by Frémont and his men; this led their actions to be dubbed the "Bear Flag Revolt."
The bear designed on the flag was the source of much entertainment, due to its closer resemblance to a hog.
Because of their flag, the insurgents immediately became known as the Bears and their uprising became known as the BearFlagRevolt.
The BearFlagRevolt put the territory claims of Mexico into question, paving the way for the United States to seize control of the Pacific Coast shortly thereafter.
The flag of California was first flown during the BearFlagRevolt and was adopted by the California state legislature in 1911.
Revere handed the BearFlag to Midshipman John E. Montgomery, who, because the flag snagged a few times as it was lowered, would later write in a letter to his mother "Cuffy came down growling"--"Cuffy" being his nickname for the bear on the flag.
The original BearFlag was preserved in San Francisco until it perished in the fire that followed the San Francisco earthquake of 1906.
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