Independent Southern California

Pio Pico, Governor of Alta California, wanted California to become a British protectorate rather than part of the United States. He had the capital of his territory in Los Angeles.

What if during the Mexican-American War Pio Pico declared independence for a southern California Republic and requested British recognition and protection?

Most American settlers were north of San Francisco Bay, so I imagine a territory with a northern border that stretches from the bay to the Sierra Nevada, south, and then follows the Colorado River to the Gulf of California.

If the US doesn't have half of the California coast, I could imagine an effort to get the port at Guaymas.
 
It would probably be a noticeably poorer country without nearly as many people. If the US doesn't own southern California then the shipping that moved from San Francisco to LA after the 1906 earthquake probably sticks around long enough for San Fran to recover completely since trans-shipping through this new nation would add tariffs and costs.. I suspect that San Fran would remain unchallenged as the west coast's largest city.
 
Southern California is semi-arid, and until the discovery of oil and the various irrigation projects bringing water from the north (now a separate country) Southern California was relatively sparsely populated and a mix of ranching and agriculture.
 
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