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The Somoza family () is a political family which ruled Nicaragua under a dictatorship over a period of forty-three years, from 1936 to 1979. Founder, Anastasio Somoza García – who served as the President of Nicaragua from 1937 until 1956 – was succeeded by his two sons; the eldest, Luis Somoza Debayle from 1957 to 1963, and youngest, Anastasio Somoza Debayle, serving for two presidential terms between 1967–1972 and 1974–1979. Although the Somozas did not hold the presidency for the full forty-three years, their political influence was continuously exacted via the installation of Puppet state and ongoing control of the National Guard.
While the Somoza family moved towards modernizing Nicaragua, their rule featured repression and inequality. Over four decades, the Somoza family accumulated wealth through corporate bribes, land-grabbing and foreign aid siphoning. The family received support from the government of the United States, and the leadership styles of each Somoza president was different from one another.
Ultimately, the Somoza family was overthrown by the socialist Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) during the Nicaraguan Revolution of 1961–1990. Widespread discontent with the Somoza regime emerged following the Managua earthquake of 1972. Anastasio Somoza Debayle declared himself the Head of the National Emergency Committee and used his power to participate in looting and in the mismanagement of international-aid funding. Discomfort increased in the light of the rise of the Sandinista National Liberation Front and in response to the Somoza government's human-rights violations. Various opposition groups emerged, and two key approaches to overthrow the dictatorship became clear. While the Broad Opposition Front (, FAO) attempted to reach a solution via negotiation, the FSLN pushed insurrection. When negotiations failed, the insurrection movement, with military support from the Soviet Union through Cuba, launched a successful offensive into the cities, with human rights violations committed by the National Guard resulting in the Somoza government's international, political and military isolation. On 17 July 1979, Anastasio Somoza Debayle resigned as President of Nicaragua, marking the end of the Somoza-family dictatorship.
The family accumulated wealth through corporate bribes, industrial monopolies, land grabbing, and foreign aid siphoning. By the 1970s, the family owned around 23 percent of the land in Nicaragua. The Somoza's wealth is speculated to have reached approximately $533 million, which amounted to half of Nicaragua's debt and 33 percent of the country's 1979 GDP.
Other members of the Somoza family include:
After returning to Nicaragua, Anastasio Somoza García joined the Liberal revolt in 1926. He worked as an interpreter during peace talks between the United States and the Nicaraguan factions, improving his reputation among United States officials. When José María Moncada assumed the presidency in 1929, Somoza served as the governor of León, the Consul to Costa Rica, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Moncada's personal aide. When the United States Marines organized the Nicaraguan National Guard, Somoza became an officer and later an assistant to the Commander. Following the departure of the U.S. Marines in 1933, Somoza became the Head of the National Guard.
In 1936, Anastasio Somoza García executed a military coup. Leveraging his control of the National Guard, he overthrew President Juan Bautista Sacasa and replaced him with his own candidate for Acting President, Carlos Brenes Jarquín. Somoza was nominated for the presidency a week later at a Liberal Party convention on 16 June 1936 and was inaugurated into office on 1 January 1937.
Anastasio Somoza García was the President of Nicaragua for the next nineteen years. He occupied the presidency directly for most of this period, only occasionally ruling through puppets. To maintain support from the National Guard, he put family members and close friends in positions of power. He fostered the support of the United States, with his regime backing U.S. foreign policy. He pursued economic developmentalism and sought to modernize Nicaragua. Somoza's policies focused on growing exports, as well as creating economic infrastructure and public agencies. These policies did little for the common citizen, but benefited Somoza's fortune significantly.
Anastasio Somoza García was assassinated in 1956. He was shot by poet Rigoberto López Pérez and died several days later on 29 September 1956.Federal Research Division, Library of Congress (1995). 9780844408316, Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. ISBN 9780844408316
Luis Somoza Debayle's presidential term made attempts at modernisation and political liberalisation. In 1959, he restored the constitutional ban on immediate re-election and presidential succession by relatives. This prevented his younger brother, Anastasio Somoza Debayle, from running in the 1963 presidential election. In 1960, Nicaragua established the Central American Common Market alongside El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. This improved Nicaragua's Central American relations and led to rapid growth of the Nicaraguan economy. Luis maintained his father's favourability to the United States. Luis' government condemned the Cuban Revolution and played a leading role in the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961. He put in place numerous socio-economic reforms in public housing, education, social security and agrarian reform, closely coinciding with the United States’ Alliance for Progress initiative. While these policies created jobs, they further enriched the privileged and had limited benefit for impoverished Nicaraguans.
Luis Somoza Debayle's presidential term ended in 1963. Between 1963 and 1967, he ruled through puppet presidents. René Schick won the 1963 presidential election and ruled until his death in 1966. He was succeeded by Lorenzo Guerrero. Luis Somoza Debayle died of a heart attack in 1967.
While his first term was meant to expire in 1971, Anastasio Somoza Debayle amended the re-election ban in the constitution, allowing him to serve as president for an additional year. Somoza ruled through puppets in the period between his first and second presidential terms. He organised a pact with Fernando Agüero, the leader of the Conservative party, whereby he would transfer power to a triumvirate. Under the arrangement, the triumvirate would rule temporarily while an election was held, and a new constitution was written. When the transfer took place in 1972, Somoza returned to his role as the Head of the National Guard. He was later re-elected as president in 1974.
The downfall of the Somoza dictatorship coincided with Anastasio Somoza Debayle's second presidential term. He resigned as president in July 1979 and was assassinated in September 1980.
It was at this point that open expressions of discontent with the Somoza regime began to surface. In particular, the Somoza government began to lose the support from Nicaragua's economic elite. As a result, the business community began financially supporting the FSLN, an opposition group.
On 27 December 1974, a group of FSLN guerrillas seized the home of former government official, José Maria Castillo, and held a group of leading Nicaraguan officials hostage, many of whom were Somoza relatives. The FSLN made their demands known and an agreement was made between the Somoza government and the guerrillas on 30 December 1974. As a result, the guerrillas received a US$1 million ransom and had a FSLN declaration read over the radio and printed in La Prensa. Furthermore, the guerrillas negotiated the release and transportation of fourteen FSLN prisoners to Cuba along with themselves. The success of the operation saw the FSLN's prestige soar and damaged perceptions of the Somoza regime.
In 1977, the Jimmy Carter administration made United States military assistance conditional on improvements to human rights. This, accompanied by condemnation, led Somoza to lift the state of siege and reinstated freedom of the press in September 1977. While his predecessors had condoned or at least ignored Somoza's brutality, Carter told the dictator that he must relax political controls and allow a transition to democracy. With the intention of staving off a possible "second Cuba," the Carter administration pushed for reform in Managua. (2025). 9780674064270, Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674064270 Carter had hoped to restrain Somoza by encouraging reform and democracy. However, the US Government found this policy difficult to implement. With little support from Washington, the Sandinistas made progress in their overthrow of the Somoza family. In the end the Sandinistas quicky established themselves as the real winners of the Nicaraguan Revolution, despite the desperate maneuverings of the Carter administration. A new provisional government quickly yielded power to the Government of National Reconstruction (JGRN) composed of many anti-Somoza members.
The FSLN attacked National Guard outposts across the country and gained support from Los Doce, an opposition group composed of Nicaragua's elite calling for the inclusion of the FSLN in any post-Somoza government.
On 10 January 1978, Pedro Joaquín Chamorro, the owner of La Prensa and founder of the Democratic Liberation Union opposition group, was assassinated. Somoza's son and the National Guard were held responsible, provoking mass demonstrations against the Somoza government.
In August 1978, the FSLN took over the National Palace, holding government officials and members of congress hostage. Somoza had no choice but to meet their demands, further tarnishing the Somoza image and undermining the regime's power. By late 1978, FAO's failure to obtain a negotiated solution led to the increasing strength of the insurrection movement. Los Doce withdrew from FAO in October and many FAO members resigned. The mediation effort officially collapsed in January 1979, when Somoza refused to hold a national plebiscite and insisted on remaining in power until 1981. As a result, the insurrection movement gained momentum and fighting increased.
In February 1979, the FSLN seized the opportunity afforded by the collapse of negotiations to broaden its support base and form the National Patriotic Front which included Los Doce, the Independent Liberal Party and Popular Social Christian Party. Heavy fighting broke out all over Nicaragua and the FSLN's final offensive was launched in May 1979. These efforts saw the National Guard lose control over many areas of the country. By the end of June, most of Nicaragua was under FSLN control.
The Somoza regime's political, international and military isolation forced Anastasio Somoza Debayle to consider resignation. A provisional Nicaraguan government in exile was organised in Costa Rica on 18 June 1979. The five-member junta promised a mixed economy, a nonaligned foreign policy and political pluralism.
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