Luis Dionisio de Lezama Leguizamón y Sagarminaga (1865–1933) was a Spanish entrepreneur, Vascologist and politician. As a businessman he kept developing the family-owned mining conglomerate, which controlled part of iron ore, carbon, fluorite, anhydrite and plaster exploitation in Vascongadas and Asturias. As a linguist he was a longtime executive of Sociedad de Estudios Vascos, owned one of the largest collections of Basque literature and contributed few scientific works himself. As a politician he supported the Traditionalist cause, first as a Carlist, in 1919–1931 as a breakaway Mellista, and then again as a Carlist; in the early 1930s he held the provincial party jefatura in Biscay.

Family and youth

The Lezama family is among the oldest in Vascongadas, traced back to the 12th century; one branch settled in Biscay.the Lezamas originated from Alava; one branch moved to Biscay in the Middle Ages, Juan José González, Bandera de la Anteiglesia de Lezama, Bilbao 2008, p. 8, available here Some of its representatives rose to high posts in Madrid;like alcalde de Madrid or members of Consejo de Castilla (both 17th century), Cesar Estornes, Los Lezama. Primera parte, [in:] Blog de Historia y Deportes 28.10.19, available here the Biscay branch, apart from having been among largest landholders in the region, specialized as merchants and were army suppliers.Estornes 2019 The great-grandfather of Luis, Juan Antonio de Lezama Jugo, was the first one to call himself Lezama Leguizamón; the surname incorporated the name of a related distinguished branch,the Leguizamón lineage was related to Etxebarri, currently a suburb of Bilbao, where they owned an iconic mansion, see Palacio Legizamon entry, [in:] Etxebarri municipal service, available here. The Leguizamons have been known especially for their role in conquest of America, see Cesar Estornes, Los Leguizamón el linaje más antiguo. Segunda parte, [in:] Blog de Historia y Deportes 30.09.19, available here which was about to extinguish.opinion of Guillermo Leguizamón Mayol at Esme, Mansiones de Getxo, [in:] Conoce Bilbao con Esme blog 17.07.15, available here The grandfather of Luis, Gregorio Lezama Leguizamón Eguia (1781–1857), was the one who transformed the family into business tycoons. Though one of the largest terratenientes in Biscay,Joseba Agirreazkuenaga, Vizcaya en el siglo XIX: las finanzas publicas de un estado emergente, Lejona 1989, , p. 34 he turned major protagonist of industrial revolution in the province. Initially owner of an ironworks mill,so-called Molino Zubiondo, located at the left bank of the Nervion in Etxebarri, the mill was originally the property of the Leguizamón family. It passed to the Lezamas when the families merged, some time prior to the mid-18th century, Molino Zubiondo entry, [in:] Etxebarri municipal service, available here he engaged in industrial-scale iron mining, made possible thanks to introduction of Bessemer converters and the richest vein of iron ore in Europe, located in Biscay. In the mid-19th century he obtained a number of mining concessions and in the 1850s formed an emergent new social class of industrial moguls.Agirreazkuenaga 1989, p. 308

The youngest son of Gregorio, Manuel Lezama Leguizamón Aldama (1817Antonio Castejón, Los Lezama, [in:] Euskalnet service, available here-1884La Correspondencia de España 19.05.84, available here), inherited part of the family business and developed it further on. He kept obtaining new mining concessions,the first note on Lezama Leguizamón Aldama obtaining new licenses comes from the 1860s, when he was concessioned to exploit the Nuestra Señora de Begoña mine, Sentencias del Tribunal supremo de justicia: año de 18, vol. 3, Madrid 1884, p. 346. The last note is from the early 1880s, when he got a concession to exploit the Acebal mine near Baracaldo, La Ilustración Cantábrica 08.08.92, available here counted among "destacados miembros de las élites bilbaína" and owned one of the most successful industrial conglomerates in Biscay. He married María Concepción Sagarminaga Zabala, descendant to a less affluent, but prestigious Basque family.she was daughter to the sister of Juan Mateo de Zabala Zabala, who in turn married Juan Manuel de Sagarminaga, Luis de Lazama Leguizamón, El Vascófilo Franciscano R. P. Fr. Juan Mateo de Zabala, [in:] Revista Internacional de los Estudios Vascos 15 (1924), p. 340 The couple had 2 sons,Manuel and Luis at times get confused in historiography, see e.g. José Luis de la Granja Sainz, Nacionalismo y II República en el País Vasco, Madrid 2009, , p. 428 Luis born as the younger one.Antonio Castejón, Los Lezama, [in:] Euskalnet service, available here Nothing is known about his early education; later he was prepared to take over the family business and at unspecified time, though most likely in the late 1880s, he studied engineering in Barcelona.Idoia Estornés Zubizarreta, La Sociedad de Estudios Vascos, San Sebastián 1983, , p. 68, Idoia Estornés Zubizarreta, La contrucción de una nacionalidad vasca. El Autonomismo de Eusko-Ikaskuntza (1918-1931) [extraordinary issue # 14 of Vasconia: Cuadernos de historia – geografía], San Sebastián 1990, p. 282 Following the death of their father, Manuel and Luis set up Hijos de Lezama Leguizamón company, which owned the family business;the company Hijos de Lezama Leguizamón was active at least since 1895, Juan Peris Torner, Ferrocaril minero de Ollargan a Echevarri, [in:] Ferrocariles de España service, 07.05.12, available here Luis inherited also 13 ha between Begoña and Etxebarri, plus 7 ha in Gipuzkoa.Luisa Utanda Moreno, Francisco Feo Parrondo, Propiedad rústica en Vizcaya, [in:] Lurralde 19 (1996), available here

In 1894, Luis married Felicia Zuazola Escuza (1875–1958),full name Felicia María Eloísa Rafaela Zuazola Escuza, Antonio Castejón, Los Lezama, [in:] Euskalnet service, available here descendant to a noble Gipuzkoan family.the Zuazolas were based in the county of from Azpeitia. Felisa was daughter to Pedro José Aniceto Zuazola Gazteluzar, Felisa Zuazola Escuza entry, [in:] Geneanet service, available here The couple settled at the Lezama estate in Etxebarri, but in the early 20th century Luis purchased from his cousin a residential building in Getxo, later re-modeled and to be known as Palacio Lezama Leguizamón. The couple had 7 children, born between 1898 and 1906; 4 sonsLuis (1901-1937), José Fernando (1902-?), José (1906-1936) and Manuel (1907-1987), Antonio Castejón, Los Lezama, [in:] Euskalnet service, available here and 3 daughters.Maria (1898-1901), Pilar (1905-?), Dolores (1910-?), Heraldo Alavés 13.11.01, available here, Antonio Castejón, Los Lezama, [in:] Euskalnet service, available here The oldest son, Luis Lezama Leguizamón Zuazola, was the provincial Carlist leader in the mid-1930s;Julio Aróstegui, Combatientes Requetés en la Guerra Civil española, 1936-1939, Madrid 2013, , p. 498 he died of typhusPablo Larraz Andía, Víctor Sierra-Sesumaga, Requetés: de las trincheras al olvido, Madrid 2011, , p. 917 when fighting as requeté during the Civil War.he was active in Carlist conspiracy of 1936, following the failed coup of July 1936 he went into hiding, made it to France, and crossed back to Spain to the Nationalist zone, Carlos María Olazabal Estecha, Negociaciones del PNV con Franco durante la Guerra Civil, San Sebastián 2014, , p. 92. Initially he was in command layer of Tercio de la Virgen Blanca, but then moved to Tercio Ortiz de Zárate, Aróstegui 2013, p. 443; since the summer of 1937 he served in Tercio de Nuestra Señora de Begoña, Aróstegui 2013, p. 498; he died as captain, Aróstegui 2013, p. 506 Another one, José, was killed as prisoner by the Republicans.he perished in September 1936, when incarcerated on the Altuna Mendi ship, anchored in Bilbao, Antonio Pérez Enbeita, El poder local en el primer franquismo. Análisis prosopográfico de los miembros del Ayuntamiento de Bilbao y su gestión político-administrativa (1937-1959) [PhD theis Universidad del País Vasco], Leioa 2019, p. 215. According to Silvia Baleztena, seven members of the Lezama Leguizamon Zuazola family were "asesinados por los rojos", referred after Larraz, Sierra-Sesumaga 2011, p. 917 Manuel also served as requetéManuel served in 8. Compañía de Requeté de Alava, Aróstegui 2013, p. 797 and in the Francoist Spain he emerged as head of the family business conglomerate;in the 1950s and 1960s the Lezama Leguizamon mines ranked 3rd among iron ore producers in Biscay, behind Orconera and Sociedad Franco-Belga; the annual output varied between 120,000 and 175,000 tons, Programa nacional de explotacion minera, Madrid 1971, p. 40 Fernando was involved in Carlism until the 1960s.mid-1950s Fernando was heading one group of Biscay Carlists tending towards collaboration with Franco, Mercedes Vázquez de Prada, El final de una ilusión. Auge y declive del tradicionalismo carlista (1957-1967), Madrid 2016, , pp. 50, 81. In 1961 he refused to offer to become the Biscay jefé senioral, Vázquez de Prada 2016, p. 129. In 1961 he presented a car to Don Carlos Hugo, the gift disguised as coming from the town of Durango, Vázquez de Prada 2016, p. 172. In 1962 Fernando hosted Don Carlos Hugo in his Neguri palace; the visit was intended to impress and enable Don Carlos Hugo to mix up with local high society, Javier Lavardín [José Antonio Parilla], Historia del ultimo pretendiente a la corona de España, Paris 1976, pp. 125-126. In 1966 Fernando was member of Consejo Asesor de la Jefatura Delegada, a grand 36-member body formed during a Huguista reform, Francisco Javier Caspistegui Gorasurreta, El naufragio de las ortodoxias : el carlismo, 1962-1977, Pamplona 1997, , p. 100. In 1967 the Huguista leader Zavala turned to him when in need of money, Vázquez de Prada 2016, p. 305 Most of Luis’ grandchildren landed corporate managerial positions, but did not grow to nationwide prominence;Lezama's grandchildren bore the surnames of Vargas Lezama-Leguizamón, Murua Lezama-Leguizamón, Lezama-Leguizamón Chalbaud, Lezama Leguizamón Dolagaray, Lezama Leguizamón Aranduy, Lezama Leguizamón Acha, Gil de Santibáñes de Lezama Leguizamón, Pérez de Lezama Leguizamón, Jaquotot de Lezama Leguizamón, and Malo de Molina de Lezama Leguizamón. the exceptions are Pedro Muruá Lezama-Leguizamón (field-hockey bronze Olympics medalist in 1960)Pedro Muruá Lezama-Leguizamón (1930-2019) was a regular member of the Spanish national field-hockey team in the early 1960s and Ramón Vargas Lezama-Leguizamón (a painter).Vargas Lezama-Leguizamón, Ramón de entry, [in:] Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia online, available here. See also his private web page, available here Among other Luis’ relatives, his older brother Manuel was deputy mayor of Bilbao in the 1890s,Joseba Agirreazkuenaga, Mikel Urquijo (eds.), Bilbao desde sus alcaldes, vol. 3, Bilbao 2002, , p. 594 provincial deputy in 1907-1911 and a Carlist senator in 1921–1923.Rafael Ruzafa Ortega, J. Antonio Pérez, Francisco Javier Montón Martínez, Santiago de la Hoz, Características y evolución de las elites en el País Vaco (1898-1923), [in:] Historia contemporánea 8 (1992), p. 134

Entrepreneur