Diego De León, 1st Count Of Belascoáin
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Don Diego de León y Navarrete (March 30, 1807 in
Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cord ...
– October 15, 1841 in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
) was a Spanish military figure. He was the son of Diego Antonio de León and Maria Teresa Navarrete y Valdivia. As a young man he joined the
Spanish army The Spanish Army () is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest Standing army, active armies – dating back to the late 15th century. The Spanish Army has existed ...
as a
cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...
man, and was promoted to the rank of captain at the age of 17. He fought in the southern front during the
First Carlist War The First Carlist War was a civil war in Spain from 1833 to 1840, the first of three Carlist Wars. It was fought between two factions over the succession to the throne and the nature of the Monarchy of Spain, Spanish monarchy: the conservative a ...
on the side of the Liberals (Christinos), and made himself famous for marching at the head of his
lancers A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as and subsequently by India, Egypt, China, Persia, Greece, and Rome. The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the M ...
and riding at the spot where the enemy was most numerous. At
Arcos de la Frontera Arcos de la Frontera () is a town and municipality in the Sierra de Cádiz comarca, province of Cádiz (province), Cádiz, in Andalusia, Spain. Location Arcos de la Frontera is 64 km N-E of Cádiz and 35 km E-N-E of Jerez de la Front ...
, in charge of a squadron of 72 horsemen, he managed to detain a Carlist column until Liberal reinforcements arrived. He was awarded the Cross of Saint Ferdinand as a result (''Cruz Laureada de San Fernando''). On the northern front, he fought at the Battle of Mendigorría and later captured
Belascoáin Belascoain () is a town and municipality located in the province and autonomous community of Navarre, northern Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North A ...
from the
Carlists Carlism (; ; ; ) is a Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty, one descended from Don Carlos, Count of Molina (1788–1855), on the Spanish throne. The ...
in 1838, thereby earning his noble title. In 1840, he was named Captain-General of New Castile. He was a member of the Moderate Party (''Partido Moderado''), and with the fall of the regent María Cristina de Borbón during the reign of
Isabel II Isabella II (, María Isabel Luisa de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904) was Queen of Spain from 1833 until her deposition in 1868. She is the only queen regnant in the history of unified Spain. Isabella wa ...
, he went into exile in France. In 1841 he joined O'Donnell's revolt against
Baldomero Espartero Baldomero Fernández-Espartero y Álvarez de Toro (27 February 17938 January 1879) was a Spanish marshal and statesman. He served as the Regent of the Realm, three times as Prime Minister and briefly as President of the Congress of Deputies ...
. Diego de León was arrested and later executed by firing squad.


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{{DEFAULTSORT:Leon y Navarrete, Diego de 1807 births 1841 deaths People from Córdoba, Spain Military personnel of the First Carlist War Executed Spanish nobility 19th-century Spanish nobility People executed by Spain by firing squad Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand