Pedro de Alberni
| Pedro de Alberni | |
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-Variant.svg){kind=small} 9th Governor of Alta California
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In office 1800–1800 |
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| Preceded by | Diego de Borica |
| Succeeded by | José Joaquín de Arrillaga |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 30, 1747 Tortosa, Catalonia, Spain |
| Died | March 11, 1802 (aged 55) Monterey, California |
| Spouse(s) | Juana Vélez |
| Profession | Explorer, soldier |
Don Pedro de Alberni, sometimes known as Pere d'Alberní i Teixidor in Catalan (Catalan pronunciation: [ˈpeɾə ðəɫβərˈni]) (Tortosa, January 30, 1747 – Monterrey, New Spain, March 11, 1802) was a Spanish soldier who served the Spanish Crown for almost all his life. He spent most of his military career in colonial Mexico. He is notable for his role in the exploration of the Pacific Northwest in the 1790s, and his later term as ninth Spanish governor of Alta California in 1800.
Pedro de Alberni was born on January 30, 1747, to a noble and wealthy family of Tortosa, Catalonia, Spain. His father, Jaume d'Alberní i Antolí, was notary public and Honourable Citizen of Barcelona who had married Maria Inés Teixidor on June 24, 1728. The couple had five sons and two daughters. In accordance to Catalan civil law, the oldest brother, Josep Antoni, was named heir to the Alberni estate, including the right to use the title of notary public. The remaining siblings received a small amount of money. For this reason, the rest of the brothers joined the military service. One brother, Gerònim, went to the Regiment of Córdoba; the other two, Joan Bautista and Jaume Pascual, joined the Foreign Volunteer Regiment. One of the sisters became a nun. Pedro joined Spain's Second Regiment of the Light Infantry on July 17, 1762 to fight as a cadet in the campaign of Portugal during the Seven Years' War when he was only fifteen years old. He remained with this regiment for five years, after which he joined the Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia (Compañía Franca de Voluntarios de Cataluña), an independent military unit composed of Miquelets (Catalan irregular troops).
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