Mission San Carlos Borroméo de Carmelo is a Christian religious center that was established by Spanish Roman Catholic priests in California. The Franciscan missionary Saint Junípero Serra founded the mission on June 3, 1770, in what is now Monterey, California. In 1771, the mission moved to its present site in nearby Carmel. The settlement is named for Saint Charles Borroméo, an archbishop of Milan, Italy, in the 1500’s. Local Eslenes Indians helped build the mission and were some of its earliest members.
Between 1769 and 1823, Spanish priests started 21 missions as centers for teaching the Indians of California about Christianity. Mission San Carlos Borroméo de Carmelo—often called Mission Carmel—became the headquarters for Serra and the center of Roman Catholic control in California. The church at the mission was built of stone quarried from the nearby Santa Lucia Mountains. Most other mission churches of that time were made of simple adobe (sun-dried bricks). Serra died at the mission on August 28, 1784, and is buried near the altar in the chapel. Another important missionary, Fermín Francisco de Lasuén, also died at the mission and is buried beside him.
In 1833 and 1834, the Mexican government seized and redistributed properties that had belonged to the missions. By 1836, Mission Carmel was abandoned and soon fell into ruin. The mission was partially restored in 1884 and became a parish church in 1933. Since that time, the property has undergone a series of restorations. In 1961, Mission Carmel was designated a minor basilica by Pope John XXIII. A minor basilica is a place of worship recognized for its religious, historical, and cultural significance.
Today, Mission Carmel is an active Roman Catholic parish and the home of Junípero Serra Elementary and Junior High School. The mission’s original priests’ quarters—the convento—have been turned into a museum dedicated to Serra. California’s first library, begun by Serra, is on display there. Four other museums on the mission grounds focus on life in Franciscan times, display artifacts and artwork, and detail the effort of restoring the mission.
