Biography gaspar de portola

Spanish Army officer and colonial administrator

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is de Portolá and the second or maternal family name is Rovira.

CaptainGaspar de Portolá y Rovira (January 1, – October 10, ) was a Spanish Army officer and colonial administrator who served as the first governor of the Californias from to Born in Catalonia into an aristocratic family, he is best known for leading the Portolá expedition into California, which laid the foundations of Spanish rule in the region Californian cities like San Diego and Monterey, and bestowed names to geographic features throughout California, many of which are still in use.^[1]

Early life

Gaspar de Portolá y Rovira was born on January 1, in Os de Balaguer, Catalonia, into a family of minor Spanish nobility.

After he came of age, Portolá joined the Spanish Army, being commissioned as an ensign in and a lieutenant in He saw service in Italy during the War