Famous Spanish Leaders

Francisco Pizarro was a Spanish conquistador best remembered for his expeditions that eventually paved the way for the Spanish conquest of Peru. Along with Vasco Núñez de Balboa, Pizarro became the first European to reach the Pacific Ocean after crossing the Isthmus of Panama. After two failed expeditions to Peru, Pizarro led a third and successful campaign to conquer Peru.

Former Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy is a qualified lawyer and had stepped into politics at the tender age of 26. Under his leadership, the People’s Party shifted from being staunchly right to center-right. He was eventually ousted by a vote of no-confidence after the Catalan independence crisis.

Born to a baker, Spanish journalist Carles Puigdemont had humble beginnings. He was drawn to politics while attending meetings with his uncle as a teenager and later joined the Catalan pro-independence movement, becoming the president of Catalonia. He went into exile in Belgium to evade arrest for misuse of funds.

Spanish business magnate and civil engineer Florentino Pérez leads Grupo ACS as its CEO. He is also famous as the president of the football club Real Madrid and has the reputation of hiring and firing managers at his will. A self-made billionaire, he brought in the Galácticos era in football.

Frankish military-leader Roland, a foremost member of Charlemagne’s court, became a central-figure in Matter of France literary cycle. Charlemagne’s Paladins, led by Roland, first featured in chanson de geste cycle of Matter of France. It includes Chanson de Roland that narrates heroic death of Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass and is considered first major work in French language. 

Francisco Franco overthrew the Second Spanish Republic by leading the Nationalist forces as their general during the Spanish Civil War. Subsequently, Franco ruled over Spain as a dictator from 1939 to 1975. He had such an impact as a dictator that the period between the Nationalist victory and Franco's death is known as Francoist Spain in the history of Spain.

Antonio José de Sucre was a Venezuelan political leader who served as the President of Peru from 23 June to 17 July 1823. He also served as the second president of Bolivia from 29 December 1825 to 18 April 1828. Antonio José de Sucre also played an influential role as an independence leader through his work alongside Simón Bolívar.

While Belgian politician Léon Degrelle initially wished to study law, he stepped into politics after failing his law exams repeatedly. He later went on to establish the Rexist Party of Belgium. A Nazi supporter, he fought for the German army during Germany’s occupation of Belgium during World War II.

Remembered as the founder of St. Augustine in Florida, USA, Spanish admiral and explorer Pedro Menéndez de Avilés has also been credited with planning the first regular trans-Atlantic convoys. Ruthlessly loyal to the Spanish king, he massacred the entire population of a nearby French post and established a string of forts along the Atlantic coast to protect Spanish interests.

Spanish lawyer and PSOE politician Felipe González has been the longest-serving freely elected prime minister of Spain. Born to a livestock farmer in Seville, he had initially aspired to be a civil engineer but later switched to law. At 40, he was the youngest European head of government.

Antipope Benedict XIII, or Pope Luna, initially served as a university professor of canon law and later became a cardinal. He was made the pope after Clement VII’s death, on the grounds that he would resign to end the Western Schism later, but he didn’t and was thus deposed.

Javier Solana is a Spanish physicist and politician. He is best known for his service as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Spain from 16 June 1992 to 18 December 1995. Over the course of his career, Javier Solana has been honored with many prestigious awards, such as the Charlemagne Prize, Vision for Europe Award, and Charles V European Award.

Spanish nobleman, politician and writer Francisco Gómez de Quevedo y Santibáñez Villegas, KOS of the Baroque era is counted among the most prominent writers of Spain's Golden Age. Quevedo adhered to the conceptismo style compared to his lifelong rival, Luis de Góngora’s culteranismo style. His notable works include the picaresque novel El Buscón and the satirical prose Los Sueños.

John of Austria was an illegitimate son of Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor who reigned from 1519 to 1556. John served as a military leader under his half-brother, King Philip II of Spain. John of Austria is best remembered for his role at the Battle of Lepanto, where he served as the admiral of the Holy Alliance fleet.

Spanish conquistador Pedro de Valdivia served the Spanish army under Charles I. He led an expedition into Chile where he founded the cities of Santiago, Concepción and Valdivia, the latter was named after him. He extended Spanish rule south to the Biobío River and served as 1st Royal Governor of Chile. He also held-office as 2nd Adelantado of Terra Australis.

Military-leader and statesman Almanzor held significant administrative positions during reign of Al-Hakam II, the second Umayyad Caliph of Córdoba in Al-Andalus. After Al-Hakam II died, his minor son Hisham II became the Caliph and eventually Almanzor, who became the chancellor of the Caliphate and hajib (chamberlain), emerged as de facto ruler of the Caliphate and exercised power until his death.

Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba had become part of the Castilian court at age 13. He earned the nickname El Gran Capitán for his successful military exploits, especially the Conquest of Granada and the Italian Wars. He also negotiated the final surrender of Granada and served as the viceroy of Naples.

Son of a tax collector, Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros spent 6 years in prison only because he wouldn’t give up on his claim to a rightful benefice. Part of the Spanish Inquisition, he opted for forced conversions of Muslims to Christianity, which caused the Moorish revolt of Moriscos.

Emilio Mola was a Spanish military leader best remembered for leading the 1936 Nationalist Coup that started the Spanish Civil War. The coup d'etat, which was also led by Sanjurjo and Franco, is considered an important event in the history of Spain. Emilio Mola was honored with the prestigious Military Medal during his service in Spain's colonial war in Morocco.

Juan Negrín was a Spanish physician and politician. He is best remembered for his service as the Prime Minister of Spain from 17 May 1937 to 31 March 1939. An important political leader, Juan Negrín also served as the Minister of the Treasury and as the Minister of National Defence from 5 April 1938 to 31 March 1939.