Anastasio Somoza García
Dictator of Nicaragua (1896–1956) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Anastasio Somoza García (1 February 1896 – 29 September 1956) was the leader of Nicaragua from 1936 until his assassination in 1956. He was officially the 21st President of Nicaragua from 1 January 1937 to 1 May 1947 and from 21 May 1950 until his assassination on 29 September 1956, ruling for the rest of the time as an unelected military dictator.[1] He was the patriarch of the Somoza family, which ruled Nicaragua as a family dictatorship for 42 years.
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (March 2011) |
Anastasio Somoza Garcia | |
---|---|
President of Nicaragua | |
In office 21 May 1950 – 29 September 1956 | |
Vice President | Vacant |
Preceded by | Manuel Fernando Zurita |
Succeeded by | Luis Somoza Debayle |
In office 1 January 1937 – 1 May 1947 | |
Vice President | Francisco Navarro Alvarado |
Preceded by | Carlos Alberto Brenes |
Succeeded by | Leonardo Argüello Barreto |
Personal details | |
Born | (1896-02-01)1 February 1896 San Marcos, Carazo, Nicaragua |
Died | 29 September 1956(1956-09-29) (aged 60) Ancón, Panama Canal Zone, Panama |
Political party | Nationalist Liberal Party |
Spouse | |
Children | Lillian Somoza Debayle Luis Somoza Debayle Anastasio Somoza Debayle |
Profession | Politician, Army General |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Nicaragua |
Branch/service | National Guard |
Years of service | ?–1956 |
Rank | Brigadier General |
The son of a wealthy coffee planter, Somoza was educated in the United States. After his return to Nicaragua, he helped oust President Adolfo Díaz. He became the foreign secretary and took the title of "General". With the help of the US Marine Corps, which occupied Nicaragua at the time, Somoza became the head of the National Guard. This gave him the power base to remove his wife's uncle, Juan Bautista Sacasa, from the presidency, and make himself president in 1937. In 1947, an ally nominally succeeded him, but he retained power.
A month after his successor had been inaugurated, Somoza used the military to carry out a coup. The president was declared 'incapacitated' by Congress and Somoza served in his stead. Returning to power in his own name in 1950, he maintained an iron grip on his own Liberal Party while making a deal with the Conservatives; thus, he faced no opposition. This left him free to amass a huge personal fortune. On 21 September 1956, he was shot by poet Rigoberto López Pérez. Mortally wounded, he was flown to the Panama Canal Zone where he died a week later. His eldest son Luis Somoza Debayle, who was Speaker of the House at the time of Somoza Garcia's death, took over as acting president and was elected in his own right in 1957. He served as president until 1963, and as the power behind puppet presidents until his death in 1967. His younger brother, Anastasio Somoza Debayle was elected to serve until 1972, then served as the real power behind a nominally bipartisan junta until being reelected in 1974. Somoza Debayle was forced to resign in 1979 and was assassinated in exile in Paraguay the following year.