Editing Anastasio Somoza Debayle (section)

==Early life and education==
[[File:Anastasio Somoza en West Point.jpg|thumb|left|Somoza Debayle as a cadet at the [[United States Military Academy]], where he was a member of the Class of 1946]]
Somoza Debayle, nicknamed "Tachito" (Spanish: ''Little Tacho'') by his father, was born in 1925 as the third child of [[Anastasio Somoza García]] and [[Salvadora Debayle]]. At the age of seven, he was enrolled at the Instituto Pedagógico La Salle, run by the [[Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools|Christian Brothers]]. One of his classmates was [[Pedro Joaquín Chamorro Cardenal]],<ref>Diederich, Bernard. ''Somoza and the Legacy of U.S. Involvement in Central America.'' p. 14</ref> who later became a journalist and publisher of ''[[La Prensa (Managua)|La Prensa]]'' newspaper and one of the most prominent opponents of the Somoza dynasty.

From the age of ten, Tachito was educated in the United States. During this period, their father became president of Nicaragua, and served from 1937 to 1947, and again from 1950 into 1956. He and older brother [[Luis Somoza Debayle]] both attended [[St. Leo University|St. Leo College Prep]] (Florida) and [[La Salle Military Academy]] on Long Island.

Somoza attended La Salle with Lt. Andrew Edward Tuck III, uncle of American television host [[Stephen Colbert]], and would stay at the family home in [[Larchmont]] during the holidays instead of returning to Nicaragua. This led to Somoza going on several dates with Andrew Edward's sister and Colbert's mother, Lorna.<ref name=strikeforce>
*{{cite news |title=Stephen Colbert Tells Absolutely Wild Story About His Mom And A Dictator |url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/stephen-colbert-tells-absolutely-wild-104930107.html |access-date=16 September 2023 |work=[[Yahoo]] Entertainment |date=31 August 2023}}
*{{cite web |author1=strikeforcefive and stephenathome |title=Why Stephen Colbert has the pants of Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza |url=https://www.instagram.com/p/CwsvsKvJzAo/ |website=[[Instagram]] |access-date=16 September 2023}}
*{{cite web |last1=White |first1=Peter |title=Late-Night Hosts Discuss Strike; Kimmel Talks About Retirement & Colbert's Mom Dated Nicaraguan Dictator |url=https://deadline.com/2023/08/late-night-hosts-discuss-strike-kimmel-talks-about-retirement-colberts-mom-dated-nicaraguan-dictator-1235531762/ |website=[[Deadline Hollywood]] |access-date=16 September 2023 |date=30 August 2023}}
</ref>

Somoza Debayle passed the examination for West Point, entered the [[United States Military Academy]] on July 3, 1943, and graduated on June 6, 1946.<ref>Somoza, Anastasio and Jack Cox. ''Nicaragua Betrayed''. p. ix</ref>

After his return to Nicaragua, Somoza Debayle was appointed chief of staff of the [[National Guard (Nicaragua)|National Guard]] (Nicaragua's national army), by his father. The president had also appointed numerous family members and close personal friends to other important posts in his government. As commander of the Guard, the young Somoza was head of the nation's armed forces, effectively the second-most powerful man in Nicaragua.

Two years after his return from West Point, Somoza Debayle had an affair and fathered a daughter, Patricia. She was later sent to a series of schools abroad.<ref>Diederich, p. 42</ref>

On 10 December 1950, Somoza married [[Hope Portocarrero]], an American citizen and his first cousin. Their wedding was held at the Cathedral in Managua and officiated by Archbishop Jose Antonio Lezcano. Over 4,000 guests attended the ceremony. The reception was given by Somoza's father, President Anastasio Somoza García, in the luxurious and modern Palacio de Comunicaciones.

The couple had five children:
*[[Anastasio Somoza Portocarrero]]
*Julio Somoza Portocarrero
*Carolina Somoza Portocarrero, married to James Minskoff Sterling, son of New York real estate developer [[Henry H. Minskoff]]<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/16/style/miss-somoza-wed-to-dr-j-m-sterling.html "Miss Somoza Wed to Dr. J. M. Sterling"], ''New York Times,'' 16 October 1984</ref>
*Carla Somoza Portocarrero
*Roberto Somoza Portocarrero

Somoza and Hope attended the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/09/leaders-and-monarchs-from-around-world-to-attend-queens-state-funeral |title=1953: Leaders and monarchs from around world to attend Queen's state funeral
|date=2 June 1953|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=9 September 2022}}</ref>

Following their father's assassination on 21 September 1956, Somoza's elder brother, [[Luis Somoza Debayle|Luis]], took over the presidency. Anastasio also had a large hand in the government during this time; he helped ensure that the presidency was held by politicians loyal to his family from 1963 to 1967.