# Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cáceres

The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Nueva Cáceres is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. It is a metropolitan see that comprises the Bicol Region, while directly overseeing the third, fourth, and fifth congressional districts of Camarines Sur, Naga City, Iriga City and the Municipality of Gainza. The archdiocese, having been founded in 1595 in Nueva Cáceres (now Naga City), is also considered one of the oldest dioceses in the Philippines with Cebu, Segovia and Manila, and once had jurisdiction that stretched from Samar in the south and Isabela Province in the north. The seat of the archdiocese is currently located in Naga City, also known as the Queen City of Bicol.
The Archdiocese of Nueva Caceres is also home to Our Lady of Peñafrancia, the patroness of the Bicol Region, and is considered to be one of the largest Marian pilgrimages in Asia.

## History

The Diocese of Cáceres was established as the suffragan of Manila on August 14, 1595. This was by virtue of the papal bull "Super specula militantis ecclesiae" issued by Pope Clement VIII. The diocese extended over the provinces of Camarines and Albay as far as and including the islands of Ticao, Masbate, Burias and Catanduanes; the province of Tayabas as far as and including Lucban; and, in the contracosta of Mauban to Binangonan, Polo, Baler and Casiguran. The official name given to the ecclesiastical jurisdiction is "Ecclesia Cacerensis in Indiis Orientalius". The name was taken from Nueva Cáceres (now Naga City), also indicated as the seat of the diocese.
Luís de Maldonado was appointed the first bishop of the Diocese of Cáceres.
It was elevated to the status of archdiocese on June 29, 1951 through the virtue of the papal bull "Quo in Philippine Republica" by Pope Pius XII. The papal bull also created its two suffragan sees—the Diocese of Legazpi and Sorsogon.
Leonardo Legaspi, who was also the first Filipino Rector Magnificus of the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, and the first vicar of the Dominican Province of the Philippines once served as archbishop of the archdiocese.
According to a Holy See Press Office Vatican Information Service (VIS) online news release on Saturday, September 8, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI had appointed Bishop Prelate of the Roman Catholic Territorial Prelature of Infanta Rolando J. Tria Tirona as Metropolitan Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cáceres to succeed the retiring Archbishop Legaspi.

## Coat of arms

A pallium divides the shield into three fields. The rose and the blue background represent Our Lady of Peñafrancia, the patroness of the Bicol region.
The silver eagle against the gold background represents John the apostle and evangelist, the titular of the cathedral at Naga. The open book represents the Gospel. The thunderbolt alludes to the nickname "Boanerges" given by Jesus to John and his brother James, meaning "sons of thunder".
The three mountains represent Mounts Mayon, Isarog, and Bulusan. Above the mountains are the insignia of the Franciscan Order and below the mountains is a green palm branch that alludes to Pedro Bautista, martyred in Japan, with others, among on February 5, 1597, who was erroneously considered first bishop-elect for the see of Nueva Caceres at the time of his martyrdom and hence is venerated as the secondary patron of the cathedral.

## Ordinaries
### Bishops of Cáceres

| Name | From | Until |
| Luis Maldonado, O.F.M. | August 30, 1595 | 1596 |
| Francisco Ortega, O.S.A. | September 13, 1599 | 1602 — died |
| Baltazar de Cobarrubias y Múñoz, O.S.A. | January 13, 1603 | June 6, 1605 — appointed, Bishop of Antequera, Oaxaca, México |
| Pedro de Godinez, O.F.M. | December 12, 1605 | 1611 — died |
| Pedro Matía, O.F.M. | September 17, 1612 | 1615 — died |
| Diego Guevara, O.S.A. | August 3, 1616 | 1623 — died |
| Luis de Cañizares, O.M. | July 1, 1624 | June 19, 1628 — appointed, Coadjutor Bishop of Comayagua, Honduras |
| Francisco de Zamudio y Avendaño, O.S.A. | July 10, 1628 | 1639 — died |
| Nicolás de Zaldívar y Zapata, O.S.A. | May 2, 1644 | 1646 — died |
| Antonio de San Gregorio, O.F.M. | November 17, 1659 | 1661 — died |
| Andrés González, O.P. | September 10, 1685 | February 14, 1709 — died |
| Domingo de Valencia | January 10, 1718 | June 21, 1719 — died |
| Felipe Molina y Figueroa | November 20, 1724 | May 1, 1738 |
| Isidro de Arevalo | August 29, 1740 | 1751 — died |
| Manuel de Matos, O.F.M. | February 11, 1754 | February 24, 1767 — died |
| Antonio de Luna, O.F.M. | December 19, 1768 | April 16, 1773 — died |
| Andrés de Echeandía, O. de M. | September 11, 1775 | |
| Francisco de Maceira, O.F.M. | December 15, 1777 | |
| Juan Antonio Gallego y Orbigo, O.F.M. | December 14, 1778 | December 15, 1788 — appointed, Archbishop of Manila |
| Domingo Collantes, O.P. | December 15, 1788 | July 23, 1808 — died |
| Bernardo de la Inmaculada Concepción García Hernández , O.F.M. (Fernandez Perdigon) | September 23, 1816 | October 9, 1829 — died |
| Juan Antonio Lillo, O.F.M. | February 28, 1831 | December 3 1840 — died |
| Vicente Barreiro y Pérez, O.S.A. | January 19, 1846 — appointed | April 14, 1848 — appointed, Bishop of Nueva Segovia |
| Manuel Grijalvo y Mínguez, O.S.A. | April 14, 1848 | November 13, 1861 — died |
| Francisco Gaínza y Escobás, O.P. | March 5, 1862 | July 31, 1879 — died |
| Casimiro Herrero y Pérez, O.S.A. | October 1, 1880 | November 12, 1886 — died |
| Arsenio del Campo y Monasterio, O.S.A. | November 25, 1887 | July 20, 1903 — resigned |
| Jorge Barlin y Imperial | December 14, 1905 | September 4, 1909 — died |
| John Bernard MacGinley | April 2, 1910 | March 24, 1924 — appointed, Bishop of Monterey-Fresno, California, U.S. |
| Francisco Sales Reyes y Alicante | June 20, 1925 | December 15, 1937 — died |
| Pedro Paulo Songco Santos | May 21, 1938 | June 29, 1951 — elevated Archbishop of Caceres |

### Metropolitan Archbishops of Cáceres

| No. | Name | From | Until |
| 1 | Pedro Paulo Songco Santos | June 29, 1951 | April 6, 1965 (died in office) |
| 2 | Teopisto Valderrama Alberto | April 6, 1965 (succeeded) | October 20, 1983 (resigned) |
| 3 | Leonardo Zamora Legaspi | January 18, 1984 | September 8, 2012 (retired) |
| 4 | Rolando Joven Tria Tirona | November 14, 2012 | February 22, 2024 (retired) |
| 5 | Rex Andrew Clement Alarcon | May 2, 2024 | present |

## Coadjutor Archbishop

* Teopisto V. Alberto (1959-1965)

## Auxiliary bishops

* Juan Antonio Lillo (1828-1831), appointed bishop here
* Jose Tomas Sanchez (1968-1971), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Lucena
* Concordio M. Sarte (1973-1977), appointed Bishop of Legazpi
* Sofio G. Balce Jr. (1980-1988), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Cabanatuan
* Jose R. Rojas Jr. (2005-2008), appointed Prelate of Libmanan

## Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

* Santiago Caragnan Sancho, appointed Bishop of Tuguegarao in 1917
* Casimiro Magbanua Lladoc, appointed Bishop of Bacolod in 1933
* Flaviano Barrechea Ariola, appointed Bishop of Legazpi in 1952
* Wilfredo Dasco Manlapaz, appointed auxiliary bishop of Maasin in 1980 & appointed 3rd Bishop of Tagum until his retirement in 2018
* Manolo Alarcon de los Santos, appointed Bishop of Virac in 1994
* Adolfo Tito Camacho Yllana, appointed nuncio and titular archbishop in 2001
* Gilbert Armea Garcera, appointed Bishop of Daet in 2007 and Archbishop of Lipa in 2017.
* Rex Andrew Clement Alarcon, appointed Bishop of Daet in 2019 and Archbishop of Caceres in 2024.
* Luisito Andal Occiano, appointed Bishop of Virac in 2024.

## Curia

* Vicar-General – Joseph Wilfred V. Almoneda
* Chancellor – Darius S. Romualdo
* Private Secretary to the Archbishop – Gerome N. Pelagio
* Oeconomus – Eugene A. Lubigan
* Judicial Vicar – Jhun Oliva

## Suffragan dioceses

* Daet (comprises the entire province of Camarines Norte)
* Legazpi (comprises the entire province of Albay)
* Libmanan (comprises the 1st and 2nd Districts of Camarines Sur)
* Masbate (comprises the entire province of Masbate)
* Sorsogon (comprises the entire province of Sorsogon)
* Virac (comprises the entire province of Catanduanes)

## Seminaries

* Holy Rosary Major Seminary
** Concepcion Pequeña, Naga City 4400
* Holy Rosary Minor Seminary
** Metropolitan Cathedral Complex
** Elias Angeles St., Naga City 4400
* Holy Rosary Preparatory Seminary
** San Jose, Camarines Sur, 4423