Sebastián Pozas Perea
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Sebastián Pozas Perea (Zaragoza, 1876 - 1946) was a Spanish military officer and civil servant. Trained in the cavalry, Pozas offered a long service in Spanish Morocco, fighting in the Rif Wars and attaining the rank of general in 1926, by order of the Miguel Primo de Rivera government.
In the 1930s, Pozas served the Republic as Director General of the Guardia Civil. When the Nationalists rose against the government on July 18, 1936, leading to the Spanish Civil War, Pozas remained loyal and rallied a great number of police and paramilitary units to the Republic. In the opening days of war he reorganized the Guardia Civil into the Guardia National.
Pozas briefly served as Minister of the Interior before being put in command of the Army of the Center. He was an active strategist and took part in the battles of Jarama, Guadalajara, Belchite, and Teruel. During the war he also joined the Communist Party of Spain. In 1939, with the Republic defeated, Pozas journeyed in exile to Mexico, where he died in 1946.
