Alejandro Utrilla Belbel (1889–1963) was a Spanish cavalry officer. In the early Francoist period and with the rank of general he held posts of military governor in the provinces of Mallorca, La Coruña and Valladolid; his career climaxed in the early 1950s, when he briefly headed the VII Military Region. He is best known for his instrumental role in anti-Republican conspiracy of early 1936 in Navarre, when as the local requeté commander he co-engineered swift takeover of the region and contributed to rebel advances in Gipuzkoa and Aragón. Politically he supported the Carlist cause. Apart from leading the Navarrese militia, in the mid-1940s he briefly served in the national party executive. Later he abandoned the mainstream Javierista current and sided with the dissenting Traditionalist faction, known as Regencia de Estella.
Family and youth
The family of Utrilla was initially related to Northern Spain; in the Middle Ages its representatives were related to Villaviciosa in Asturias and to the mountainous area North of Burgos.Pacomartín, En la revista del Cristo de la Salud, [in:] Casas de Cabildo blog service, 03.09.20 [page blocked by Wikipedia, try "pacomartinrosales" blogspot with "en la-revista-del-cristo-de-la-salud-mi.html entry] One branch moved south during the Reconquista and as hidalgos settled in the town of Guadix, in the then Reino de Granada. Its first descendant known by name, a Miguel de Utrilla, in the late 16th century took residence in Alcalá la Real, a town built around an ancient fortress in what would become a province of Jaén, in Eastern Andalusia. He commenced a line of its prestigious citizens, which included local jurados, regidores and other officials. In the modern era the family grew to wealth, owned some 500 hathe total area attributed to the family at one point reached 652 fanegas, equivalent to slightly below 500 ha, Pacomartín 2020 in the neighboring county and later built numerous houses in Alcalá.in Alcalá the family owned houses at calle de la Monjas ad at calle Utrilla; in the neighboring county they owned estate near Fuente de la Lancha, Moraleja, Chaparral de Nubes, Llano de los Muchachos, Cantera Blanca, Rábita and elsewhere, Pacomartín 2020
Over time the family got branched; some of its less affluent descendants took state jobs, also in the uniformed services. This was the case of Alejandro's father, Juan Utrilla y Utrilla, owner of a modest house in Alcalá;see the GoogleMaps service, available here nothing closer is known about him, except that in the early 20th century he served as head of postal services in Jaén.La Correspondencia de España 17.06.12, available here. At the time postal service formed part of the Ministry of Interior At unspecified time though probably prior to the early 1880sFrancisca was born in 1860; the oldest child of the couple, Juana, was born in 1885, Francisca de Paula Belbel Tapía entry, [in:] Geneanet service, available here he married Francisca Belbel Tapia (born 1860),Ideál 05.08.1989, p. 12 a girl from another well-known local family.Anuario Militár de España 1911, available here It is not clear how many children the couple had; some authors claim that Alejandro had one brother and two sisters.Juana, Rita and Francisco, Francisca de Paula Belbel Tapía entry, [in:] Geneanet service, available here; see also La Voz 06.09.24, excerpts available at Biblioteca Municipál “Lope de Vega” de Fuente Obejuna, available here He frequented local schoolsIdeál 05.08.1989, p. 12 and at one point, perhaps influenced by military traditions of the family,a Fernando Utrilla Utrilla, born 1861 and originating from eastern Andalusia, entered military service in 1878; in the 1920s he rose to coronel. His later fate is not known, see e.g. Anuario Militar de España 1921, available here. The brother of Alejandro, Francisco Utrilla Belbel, also joined the army and served in its medical branch; the last information on him comes from the mid-1920s, when he served with the rank of a captain he opted for career in the army. In 1907 he was admitted to Academía Militar de Avila, an intendancy and administration school;La Correspondencia Militar 20.05.07, available here however, already in 1908 he was listed as a first-year-student at Academía de Caballería in Valladolid.Anuario Militar de España 1908, available here His cavalry education progressed according to schedule;Anuario Militar de España 1909, available here Utrilla graduated as segundo teniente in 1910.Heraldo Militar 18.07.10
At unspecified time and most likely in the late 1910sUtrilla's wife was born in 1895; their child was born in 1920 Utrilla married Consuelo León Brezosa (1895-1984); born and raised in Madrid, she was daughter to a physician from Andalusia.her father, Rafael León Avilés (born 1870), originated from Cordoba and served as a doctor; her mother, Dolores Brezosa Tablares, was a schoolteacher and originated from Valladolid, Manolo Rodriguez Burgos, Genealogia de la Familia Burgos service, available here They had 5 children,Alejandro Utrilla Belbel entry, [in:] Geneanet service, available here born between the early 1920s and the 1930s: Consuelo, Mercedes, Matilde, Alejandro and Jaime Utrilla LeónABC 13.02..63, available here None of them became a public figure, though Alejandro was loosely active in Carlism and in the 1970s he was related to a late- and post-Francoist think-tank ANEPA.Mediterráneo 27.05.76, available here Among the grandchildren the best known are members of the Utrilla Palombi family, as Partido Popular activists holding various posts in self-governmental bodies related to Madrid;for Alejandro de Utrilla Palombi see e.g. Quien es quien en la Operación Púnica, [in:] RTVE service 02.09.19, available here, Elena de Utrilla Palombi was concejal de obras in the Madrid ayuntamiento, see El País 21.12.04, available here, and deputy to Asamblea de Madrid, see Asamblea de Madrid service, available here. For Mario de Utrilla Palombi, the alcalde of Sevilla la Nueva, see El Mundo 11.05.16, available here, for his role in Asamblea de Madrid see El Mundo 11.05.16, available here Elena de Utrilla Palombi was councilor of the Madrid town hall and deputy to the regional chamber, Asamblea de Madrid. Antonio Lizaur Utrilla grew to army colonel,BOE 31.01.02, available here while others landed jobs in medicineJosé Acebal Utrilla tried his hand also as author, see his El libro de paciente (1989). For Alejandro Lizaur Utrilla see e.g. Universitas Miguel Hernández service, available here or business.for Leopoldo Lizaur Utrilla, a lawyer and businessman, see e.g. Abogados de Madrid service, available here
Junior officer
In 1910 Utrilla obtained his first service assignment, namely to Regimento de Caballería Dragones de Santiago,La Correspondencia Militar 21.07.10, available here at the time stationed in Barcelona.Fernando Mogaburo López, Historia orgánica de las grandes unidades (1475-2018), Madrid 2017, p. 42 The garrison duty did not last longer than a year; in 1911 he was posted to Cazadores de Taxdirt,Annuario Militar de España 1911, available here a combat unit deployed in Morocco. At the time the Spanish troops were involved in operations against Berber tribes around the outpost of Melilla. The fighting soon escalated into a so-called Kert Campaign, fought along the Melilla perimeter; during the crossing of the Kert river Utrilla commanded a machine-gun section.La Correspondencia de España 08.11.11, available here In 1912 he was promoted from sub-lieutenant to lieutenant (teniente primero)La Correspondencia Militar 28.07.12, available here and with this rank in early 1913 he was transferred to the Cazadores de Alcántara regiment.Diario Oficial del Ministerio de la Guerra 29.01.13, available here The same year he was moved from the line to the rear and assumed duties at Cuadro Eventual de Larache,El Globo 18.07.13, available here a replenishment centre of the unit.
In 1915 Utrilla was transferred to the Cazadores de Lusitania regimentAnnuario Militar de España 1915, available here and he resumed service in frontline combat units. The same year he took part in the battle of Tauima; while commander of the unit was hit, Utrilla personally led the charge against enemy lines, which earned him notice in the newspapers.Juan Delapuerta Cano, Estructura orgánica y desarrollo histórico del Regimiento de Caballería Lustiania (1709-2010) [PhD thesis Universidad Cardenal Herrera-CEU], Valencia 2015, p. 87 In 1916 he was again posted to head the Cuadro Eventual de Ceuta.Annuario Militar de España 1916, available here In 1919 and already as capitán he moved to 4. Establecimiento de Remonta,Annuario Militar de España 1919, available here and in 1920 to Deposito de Recria y Doma in 2. Zona Pecuaria.Annuario Militar de España 1920, available here In 1921 he returned to line when transferred to the Cazadores de Tetuán regiment.Annuario Militar de España 1921, available here Since 1922 he moved to units formed from the local Moroccan volunteers,Annuario Militar de España 1922, available here and until 1923 he served in Fuerzas Regulares Indígenas de Larache.Annuario Militar de España 1923, available here At the time he formed part of an informal group of officers known as Grupo de Larache; the camaraderie included later known personalities like Enrique Varela and Manuel Goded.e.g. in May 1923 the africanistas from Grupo de Larache discussed mutual support in terms of their promotions, Antonio Atienza Peñarrocha, ‘Africanistas’ y ‘junteros’: el ejército espanól en Africa y el oficial José Enrique Varela Iglesias [PhD thesis Universidad Cardenal Herrera-CEU], Valencia 2012, p. 458
In September 1923 the coup of Primo de Rivera terminated the period of liberal democracy in Spain; the dictator intended to replace the perceived rotten and corrupted system with a new, efficient regime. Part of the plan was to dispatch military inspectors (delegados gubernativos) to reform local government and instill patriotism in the population;Richard Gow, Patria and Citizenship: Miguel Primo de Rivera, Caciques and Military Delegados, 1923–1924, [in:] Susana Bayó Belenguer, Nicola Brady (eds.), Pulling Together or Pulling Apart? Perspectives on Nationhood, Identity, and Belonging in Europe, Oxford 2019, , pp. 147-176 they were expected to root out the patronage networks of caciques and catalyze the emergence of new, prototypical Spanish citizen through cultural and propagandistic means. In December 1923 Utrilla was nominated to such a roleUtrilla officially remained “Disp. y Del. Gub. de Aoiz”, Annuario Militar de España 1924, available here and assigned to the Navarrese district of Aoiz.El Sol 08.12.23, available here Nothing is known of his endeavors at the Pyrenean foothills. However, the concept of delegados gubernativos attracted increasing criticism; some claimed that it backfired by alienating local population and generating animosity towards the army. Since mid-1924 Primo started to withdraw his delegados;their number was being reduced between late 1924 and 1927 from the peak of 523 to merely 79, Gow 2019, p. 176 in December 1924 Utrilla was recalled from NavarreDiario Oficial del Ministerio de la Guerra 13.12.24, available here and in early 1925 he returned to Morocco.La Libertad 30.01.25, available here
Senior officer