Pasionaria León, Civil War survivor, dies aged 96

The mother of ten children survived the 'Desbandá when 1000s of people fled Malaga as Franco's troops entered the city in February 1937

María Albarral

Marbella

Friday, 2 May 2025, 17:55

Pasionaria León Díaz, survivor of 'La Desbandá', when thousands of people fled Malaga along the Almeria road as Franco's troops entered the city in February 1937 during Spain's Civil War, died on Thursday 1 May in San Pedro Alcántara at the age of 96.

The mother of ten children has been discussed in recent days in Marbella when the Popular Party (PP) and Vox rejected a motion presented by the PSOE requesting "a space dedicated to the historical memory in San Pedro Alcántara and Marbella, named after Pasionaria León Díaz, in recognition and memory of the people who suffered Franco's repression in our town" at a council meeting on Friday 25 April.

In February 1937, at the age of eight, Pasionaria, her siblings and her pregnant mother fled Malaga hoping to reach Almeria. Her mother gave birth to a boy during the exodus. It is estimated that between 200,000 and 300,000 people were forced to leave along the N-340 road, which was under constant siege by the rebel troops.

Later Pasionaria had to change her name to Isabel due to a Francoist order that prohibited, among others, her original name. More than forty years ago, León Díaz settled in San Pedro Alcántara after living in different places during the Franco regime.

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