Anastasio Somoza Debayle
1925 – 1980 Nicaraguan National Guard commander, president, dictator
The last of the Somoza dynasty that ran Nicaragua as a family estate until the 1979 Sandinista revolution.
- Religion
- Roman Catholic
- Affiliations
- Somoza family dynasty; Nicaraguan National Guard; US-trained at West Point
Anastasio Somoza Debayle was the third member of the Somoza family to rule Nicaragua, a US-backed dynasty founded on control of the National Guard. His corrupt and repressive government, and the diversion of earthquake relief aid, fueled the Sandinista revolution that overthrew him in 1979. He was assassinated in exile in Paraguay in 1980.
In the timeline
- 1979 The Sandinistas overthrow Somoza in Nicaragua mentioned