Escobar was a Catholic and a conservative. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, he was a colonel of the Spanish Civil Guard in the city of Barcelona. He remained loyal to the republican government and on 19 July with his 800 men aided decisively to the defeat of the "coup" in Barcelona. Later he was promoted to General, and in January 1939, he led the Republican forces in the failed Valsequillo Offensive. On 16 February 1939, he was one of the officers who said to the Prime Minister Juan Negrin that further military resistance was impossible. In March 1939, he was the commander of the Extremadura Army, supported Casado's coup and crushed the Communist resistance in Ciudad Real.