# List of directors general of the Civil Guard (Spain)

This article lists the directors general of the Civil Guard, the national gendarmerie and a law enforcement agency of Spain.
The Director General is the official of the Ministry of the Interior who commands the Civil Guard, and heads the Directorate-General of the Civil Guard.

## List

| Name | Appointed | Dismissed | Notes |
| Francisco Javier Girón | 2 September 1844 | 10 July 1854 | 1st term. |
| Antonio María Alós | 18 July 1854 | 1 August 1854 | |
| Facundo Infante Chaves | 1 August 1854 | 19 July 1856 | |
| José MacCrohon y Blake | 1 September 1856 | 12 October 1856 | |
| Francisco Javier Girón | 12 October 1856 | 1 July 1858 | 2nd term. |
| Isidoro de Hoyos y Rubín de Celis | 2 July 1858 | 21 November 1863 | 1st term. |
| Ángel García-Loygorri y García de Tejada | 29 September 1864 | 25 June 1865 | |
| Isidoro de Hoyos y Rubín de Celis | 25 June 1865 | 28 December 1865 | 2nd term. |
| Francisco Serrano Bedoya | 28 December 1865 | 11 July 1866 | 1st term. |
| Rafael Acedo Rico y Amat | 11 July 1866 | 11 March 1867 | |
| José Antonio Turón y Prats | 11 March 1867 | 16 September 1868 | 1st term. |
| Anselmo Blaser y San Martín | 16 September 1868 | 26 September 1868 | Glorious Revolution. |
| Juan Antonio de Zaratiegui y Zeliqueta | 26 September 1868 | 25 October 1868 | |
| Francisco Serrano Bedoya | 25 October 1868 | 18 June 1872 | 2nd term. |
| Cándido Pieltain y Jove-Huergo | 19 June 1872 | 26 March 1873 | Proclamation of the First Spanish Republic (11 February 1873). |
| Mariano Socías del Fangar y Lledó | 5 July 1873 | 19 September 1873 | |
| Juan Acosta Muñoz | 19 September 1873 | 10 October 1873 | |
| Segundo de la Portilla Gutiérrez | 10 October 1873 | 18 January 1874 | |
| José Antonio Turón y Prats | 18 January 1874 | 28 September 1874 | 2nd term. |
| Fernando Cotoner y Chacón | 28 September 1874 | 21 January 1882 | Restoration of the monarchy (29 December 1874). |
| Tomás García-Cervino y López de Sigüenza | 23 January 1882 | 5 November 1883 | 1st term. |
| Agustín de Burgos y Llamas | 5 November 1883 | 26 April 1884 | |
| Ramón Fajardo Izquierdo | 26 April 1884 | 4 August 1884 | |
| Remigio Moltó y Díaz-Berrio | 6 August 1884 | 9 December 1885 | |
| Tomás García-Cervino y López-Sigüenza | 9 December 1885 | 3 December 1887 | 2nd term. |
| José Chinchilla y Díez de Oñate | 13 January 1888 | 11 December 1888 | 1st term. |
| Thomás O'Ryan y Vázquez | 11 December 1888 | 13 November 1890 | |
| Luis Dabán y Ramírez de Arellano | 14 November 1890 | 22 January 1892 | |
| Romualdo Palacio González | 30 January 1892 | 8 February 1899 | |
| José Chinchilla y Díez de Oñate | 8 February 1899 | 2 March 1899 | 2nd term. |
| Antonio Dabán y Ramírez de Arellano | 16 March 1899 | 27 July 1901 | |
| Federico Ochando | 27 July 1901 | 30 August 1902 | |
| Luis de Pando y Sánchez | 30 August 1902 | 13 July 1903 | |
| Camilo García de Polavieja | 13 July 1903 | 23 November 1903 | |
| Arsenio Linares y Pombo | 23 November 1903 | 6 December 1903 | |
| Vicente Martitegui | 7 December 1903 | 28 January 1905 | 1st term. |
| Joaquín Sánchez Gómez | 28 January 1905 | 25 August 1910 | |
| Vicente Martitegui | 25 August 1910 | 25 January 1912 | 2nd term. |
| Ángel Aznar y Butigieg | 31 January 1912 | 3 March 1913 | |
| Ramón Echagüe y Méndez Vigo | 3 March 1913 | 30 October 1913 | |
| Agustín de Luque y Coca | 30 October 1913 | 10 December 1915 | 1st term. |
| Enrique de Orozco | 10 December 1915 | 23 July 1916 | |
| Antonio Tovar y Marcoleta | 23 July 1916 | 20 April 1917 | |
| Agustín de Luque y Coca | 20 April 1917 | 26 June 1917 | 2nd term |
| Salvador Arizón y Sánchez Fano | 26 June 1917 | 6 December 1918 | |
| Juan Zubia y Bassecourt | 6 December 1918 | 26 March 1925 | |
| Ricardo Burguete Lana | 27 March 1925 | 3 November 1928 | |
| José Sanjurjo | 3 November 1928 | 3 February 1932 | Proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic (14 April 1931). |
| Miguel Cabanellas | 3 February 1932 | 15 August 1932 | 1st term. |
| Cecilio Bedia de la Cavallería | 15 August 1932 | 15 February 1935 | Asturian miners' strike of 1934. |
| Miguel Cabanellas | 15 February 1935 | 7 January 1936 | 2nd term. |
| Sebastián Pozas Perea | 7 January 1936 | 24 July 1936 | Remained loyal to the Republic following the Spanish coup of July 1936. |
| Spanish Civil War ||||
| Eliseo Álvarez-Arenas Romero | 6 September 1939 | 13 April 1942 | Integration of the Carabineros into the Civil Guard (1940). |
| Enrique Cánovas Lacruz | 13 April 1942 | 1 July 1943 | |
| Camilo Alonso Vega | 24 July 1943 | 30 May 1955 | Longest-serving Director General of the Civil Guard. |
| Pablo Martín Alonso | 30 June 1955 | 8 February 1957 | |
| Eduardo Sáenz de Buruaga | 8 February 1957 | 23 April 1959 | |
| Antonio Alcubilla Pérez | 23 April 1959 | 7 December 1962 | Creation of the Traffic Grouping [es] (1959). |
| Luis Zanón Aldalur | 10 December 1962 | 31 December 1965 | |
| Ángel Ramírez de Cartagena y Marcaida | 14 January 1966 | 21 September 1967 | |
| Antonio Cores Fernández de Cañete | 6 October 1967 | 22 January 1969 | |
| Luis Díez-Alegría | 7 March 1969 | 13 January 1972 | |
| Carlos Iniesta Cano | 21 January 1972 | 13 May 1974 | Assassination of Luis Carrero Blanco (20 December 1973). |
| José Miguel Vega Rodríguez | 17 May 1974 | 10 October 1975 | |
| Ángel Campano López | 10 October 1975 | 23 December 1976 | Death of Caudillo Francisco Franco (20 November 1975) and the Montejurra massacre (9 May 1976). |
| Antonio Ibáñez Freire | 23 December 1976 | 2 May 1978 | 1977 Atocha massacre. |
| Carlos Oliete Sánchez | 2 May 1978 | 2 July 1979 | |
| Pedro Fontenla Fernández | 2 July 1979 | 19 April 1980 | |
| José Luis Aramburu Topete | 24 April 1980 | 26 October 1983 | 1981 coup attempt (23F), led by Lt. Col. Antonio Tejero of the Civil Guard. |
| José Antonio Sáenz de Santa María | 2 November 1983 | 3 October 1986 | |
| Luis Roldán | 31 October 1986 | 3 December 1993 | |
| Ferrán Cardenal de Alemany | 3 December 1993 | 7 May 1996 | |
| Santiago López Valdivielso | 7 May 1996 | 30 April 2004 | 2004 Madrid train bombings. |
| Carlos Gómez Arruche | 30 April 2004 | 28 April 2006 | |
| Joan Mesquida Ferrando | 28 April 2006 | 21 April 2008 | Unified command of the National Police Corps and the Civil Guard. Simultaneously served as the Director General of the Police. |
| Francisco Javier Velázquez | 21 April 2008 | 31 December 2011 | Unified command of the National Police Corps and the Civil Guard. Simultaneously served as the Director General of the Police. |
| Arsenio Fernández de Mesa | 3 January 2012 | 18 November 2016 | |
| José Manuel Holgado Merino | 18 November 2016 | 29 June 2018 | 2017 Barcelona attacks and the 2017–2018 constitutional crisis. |
| Félix Vicente Azón Vilas | 29 June 2018 | 18 January 2020 | |
| María Gámez Gámez | 18 January 2020 | 28 March 2023 | First woman to hold this office. |
| Mercedes González Fernández | 28 March 2023 | Incumbent | |