Manuel Micheltorena (died September 7, 1853), Brigadier General of the Mexican Army, Adjutant-General of the same, Governor, Commandant-General and Inspector of the Department of the California. He received this appointment by the President of Mexico, Antonio López de Santa Anna and served from December 30, 1842 until his ouster in 1845.
Micheltorena was instrumental in the privatisation of California land. With loyalties firmly seated in Mexico City, he faced criticism, opposition and eventually war from the Californios. He led a rag-tag team of soldiers comprised of criminals of lower-class mixed ancestry, who were derisively referred to as cholos. They were insufficient to sustain him in the 1845 Battle of La Providencia against Juan Bautista Alvarado.