# Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Marta

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Marta (Latin: Sanctae Marthae) is a diocese located in the city of Santa Marta in the ecclesiastical province of Barranquilla in Colombia.

## History

* January 10, 1534: Established as Diocese of Santa Marta from the Diocese of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic

## Bishops
### Ordinaries

* Alfonso de Tobes (Appointed 1534 - Did Not Take Effect)
* Juan Fernando Angulo (1536–1542 Died)
* Martín de Calatayud (1543–1548 Died)
* Juan de los Barrios (1552–1564 Appointed Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva Granada)
* Juan Méndez de Villafranca (1577–1577 Died)
* Sebastián Ocando (1579–1619 Died)
* Leonel de Cervantes y Caravajal (1621–1625 Appointed Bishop of Santiago de Cuba)
* Lucas García Miranda (1625–1629 Died)
* Antonio Corderiña Vega (1630–1640 Resigned)
* Juan de Espinoza y Orozco (1642–1651 Died)
* Francisco de la Cruz (1658–1660 Died)
* Francisco de la Trinidad Arrieta (1661–1663 Died)
* Melchor de Liñán y Cisneros (1664–1668 Appointed Bishop of Popayán)
* Lucas Fernández de Piedrahita (1668–1676 Appointed Bishop of Panamá)
* Diego de Baños y Sotomayor (1677–1683 Appointed Bishop of Caracas, Santiago de Venezuela)
* Gregorius Jacobus Pastrana (1684–1690 Died)
* Juan Víctores de Velasco (1694–1707 Appointed Bishop of Trujillo)
* Ludovicus de Gayoso (1713–1713 Died)
* Antonio Monroy y Meneses (1715–1738 Resigned)
* José Ignacio Mijares Solórzano y Tobar (1740–1742 Died)
* Juan Nieto Polo del Aguila (1743–1746 Confirmed Bishop of Quito)
* José Javier de Arauz y Rojas (1746–1753 Confirmed Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva Granada)
* Nicolás Gil Martínez y Malo (1755–1763 Died)
* Agustín Manuel Camacho y Rojas (1764–1771 Appointed Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva Granada)
* Francisco Javier Calvo (1771–1773 Died)
* Francisco Navarro (1775–1788 Died)
* Anselmo José de Fraga y Márquez (1790–1792 Died)
* José Alejandro de Egües y Villamar (1792–1796 Died)
* Diego Santamaría Cevallos (1798–1801 Died)
* Eugenio Sesé, C.R.S.A. (1801–1803 Died)
* Miguel Sánchez Cerrudo (1804–1810 Died)
* Manuel Redondo y Gómez (1811–1813 Died)
* Antonio Gómez Polanco (1817–1820 Died)
* José María Estévez (1827–1834 Died)
* José Luis Serrano (1836 Appointed – 12 May 1852 Died)
* Bernabé Rojas (1854–1858 Died)
* Vicente Arbeláez Gómez (1859–1864 Appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva Granada)
* José Romero (1864–1891 Died)
* Rafael Celedón (1891–1902 Died)
* Francisco Simón y Ródenas (1904–1912 Resigned)
* Francisco Cristóbal Toro (1913–1917 Appointed Bishop of Antioquía-Jericó)
* Joaquín Garcia Benitez (1917–1942 Appointed Archbishop of Medellín)
* Bernardo Botero Álvarez (1944–1956 Appointed Archbishop of Nueva Pamplona)
* Norberto Forero y García (1956–1971 Retired)
* Javier Naranjo Villegas (1971–1980 Resigned)
* Félix María Torres Parra (1980–1987 Appointed Archbishop of Barranquilla)
* Hugo Eugenio Puccini Banfi (1987–2014 Retired)
* Luis Adriano Piedrahíta Sandoval (2014–2021 Died)
* José Mario Bacci Trespalacios, C.I.M. (since 2021)

### Auxiliary bishops

* Pedro José Rivera Mejía (1951-1953), appointed Bishop of Socorro y San Gil
* Alfredo Rubio Diaz (1953-1956), appointed Bishop of Girardot

### Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

* Salvador Bermúdez y Becerra, appointed Bishop of Concepción in 1731
* Luis Gabriel Ramírez Díaz (priest here, 1993-2006), appointed Bishop of El Banco in 2014
* Miguel Fernando González Mariño, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Ibagué in 2016