The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santo Domingo (Latin: Archidioecesis Sancti Dominici; Spanish: Arquidiócesis de Santo Domingo) is a Latin Metropolitan Archdiocese in the Dominican Republic. The see was erected 8 August 1511 as the Diocese of Santo Domingo and elevated to archdiocese on 12 February 1546.
In recognition of the fact that the see was the first established in the Western Hemisphere, the Archbishop of Santo Domingo can use the title of Primate of the Americas, according to the bull of Pope Pius VII Divinis praeceptis issued on 28 November 1816 and ratified by the Concordat between the Holy See and the Dominican Republic signed on 16 June 1954.
The archiepiscopal see is the Santa María la Menor cathedral, a World Heritage Site, dedicated to St. Mary of the Incarnation, which was designated a minor basilica by Pope Benedict XV in his apostolic letter Inter Americae on 14 June 1920.
As per 2014, it pastorally served 3,457,347 Catholics (95.0% of 3,639,313 total) on 4,032 km² in 214 parishes with 478 priests (190 diocesan, 288 religious), 159 deacons, 2,845 lay religious (610 brothers, 2,235 sisters) and 284 seminarians.
Its suffragan sees are :
Roman Catholic Diocese of BaníRoman Catholic Diocese of BarahonaRoman Catholic Diocese of Nuestra Señora de la Altagracia en HigüeyRoman Catholic Diocese of San Juan de la MaguanaRoman Catholic Diocese of San Pedro de Macorís.The Bull of Pope Alexander VI, dated 24 June 1493, designated the Franciscan Bernardo Buil (Boil) to accompany Christopher Columbus on his second voyage of discovery, with faculties as Apostolic delegate or vicar. He did not make the journey, and his Benedictine near-namesake did. On 30 August 1495, a band of Franciscans and other missioners did arrive in Hispaniola.The see was erected on 8 August 1511 by Pope Julius II by the Bull Pontifex Romanus, which also established the bishoprics of Concepción de la Vega and the San Juan of Porto Rico, on Antillian Spanish-colonial territory split off from the Archdiocese of Seville. Three prelates, who had been appointed to the sees comprising the ecclesiastical province created in 1504 by the same pope, united their petition to that of the Crown in requesting the Holy See to suppress them and to establish the three new dioceses as suffragans to the See of Seville. This alteration was effected before any of the prelates in question had taken possession of his diocese or been consecrated a bishop. - Father Francisco Garcia de Padilla, a Franciscan, who in 1504 had been designed to occupy the See of Diocese of Bayuna (Baynoa, Baiunensis), was chosen the first Bishop of Santo Domingo. He died before his consecration, after having named Rev. Carlos de Aragón his vicar-general and authorized him to take possession of the diocese. The first bishop to occupy the See of Santo Domingo was Alessandro Geraldini, who was appointed in 1516 and died in 1524. He was a native of Italy, and perhaps the only representative of the Americas to attend the Fifth Lateran Council.Lost territories on 1513.08.28 to establish the Diocese of Santa María la Antigua del Darién and on 1517.02.11 to establish the Diocese of BaracoaIn 1527 it gained territory from the suppressed Diocese of Concepción de la Vega, which was united, after the death of its first bishop, Pedro Suárez de Deza, to the See of Santo Domingo.Lost territories again : on 1531.06.21 to establish the Diocese of Coro (soon its suffragan), on 1534.01.10 to establish the Diocese of Santa Marta, on 1534.12.18 to establish the Diocese of Guatemala (soon its suffragan) and in 1539 to establish the Diocese of HondurasPope Paul III on 12 February 1546 elevated Santo Domingo to Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santa Domingo, and the incumbent of the see at the time, Bishop Alonso de Fuenmayor, became its first archbishop. As first the newly Metropolitan see of Santo Domingo had five Caribbean [suffragan]] sees: two Antillian -Diocese of Puerto Rico and Diocese of Santiago (de Cuba) on Cuba- and three continental : Diocese of Coro (its daughter) in Venezuela, Diocese of Santa Marta in Colombia and the Diocese of Guatemala (its daughter).In 1848 it was demoted as non-metropolitan Archdiocese of Santo Domingo / Sancti Dominici (Latin)Lost (Haitian) territories (French side of Hispaniola island) on 1861.10.03 to establish Metropolitan Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince, Diocese of Cap-Haïtien, Diocese of Les Cayes, Diocese of Les Gonaives and Diocese of Port-de-PaixPromoted back on 1953.09.25 as Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santo Domingo / Sancti Dominici (Latin), having lost more territories to establish Diocese of Santiago de los Caballeros (now Metropolita,), Diocese of La Vega and Territorial Prelature of San Juan de la Maguana (now Roman Catholic Diocese of San Juan de la Maguana)Lost territories thrice later : on 1959.04.01 to establish Diocese of Nuestra Señora de la Altagracia en Higüey, on 1986.11.08 to establish Diocese of Baní and on 1997.02.01 to establish Diocese of San Pedro de Macorís.It enjoyed Papal visits from Pope John Paul II (1979.01, 1984.10, 1992.10)(all Roman Rite)
Suffragan Bishops of Santo DomingoFrancisco Garcia de Padilla, Order of Friars Minor (O.F.M.) (Spaniard?) (1511.08.13 – death 1515.11.11), previously Bishop of Bayuna (Dominican Republic) (1504.11.15 – 1511.08.13)Alessandro Geraldini (as Alejandro) (Italian) (1516.11.23 – death 1524.03.08), previously Bishop of Montecorvino (1496 – 1516.11.23), Bishop of Vulturara (1496 – 1516.11.23)Father Luis de Figueroa, Hieronymites (O.S.H.) (1523 – death 1526), never consecratedSebastián Ramírez de Fuenleal (1528.12.23 – 1538.07.29) (born Spain), next Bishop of Tui(Spain) (1538.07.29 – 1539.10.29), Bishop of León (Spain) (1539.10.29 – 1542.06.02), Bishop of Cuenca (Spain) (1542.06.02 – death 1547.01.22)Auxiliary Bishop Alfonso de Talavera, O.S.H. (1531.09.06 – death 1540), no titular see of other prelatureAlfonso de Fuenmayor (born Spain) (1538.10.27 – 1546.02.11 see below),Metropolitan Archbishops of Santo DomingoAlfonso de Fuenmayor (see above 1546.02.11 – death 1554.03.01)Archbishop-elect Diego de Covarrubias y Leiva (born Spain) (1556–1560), next Archbishop-Bishop of Ciudad Rodrigo (Spain) (1560.01.26 – 1564.10.25), Archbishop-Bishop of Segovia (Spain) (1564.10.25 – 1577.09.06), Archbishop-Bishop of Cuenca (Spain) (1577.09.06 – death 1577.09.27)Juan Salcedo (bishop) (born Spain) (1562 – death 1566)BIOs to ELABORATE
Juan Alzóloras (Arzolaras), O.S.H. (1566–1568), Appointed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of Islas CanariasFrancisco Andrés de Carvajal, O.F.M. (1570–1577) DiedAlfonso López de Avila (1580–1591), Appointed, Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva GranadaNicolás de Ramos y Santos, O.F.M. (1592–1599) DiedAgustín Dávila Padilla, O.P. (1599–1604) DiedDomingo Valderrama y Centeno, O.P. (1606–1608), Appointed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of La Paz)Cristóbal Rodríguez Juárez, O.P. (1608–1613), Appointed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of ArequipaDiego de Contreras, O.S.A. (1612-1618) Died)Pedro de Solier y Vargas, O.S.A. (1619–1620) DiedPedro de Oviedo Falconi, O. Cist. (1621–1628), Confirmed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of QuitoFernando de Vera y Zuñiga, O.S.A. (1628–1629), Confirmed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of CuzcoBernardino de Almansa Carrión (1629–1631), Confirmed, Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva GranadaFacundo de la Torre, O.S.B. (1632–1640) DiedDiego de Guevara y Estrada (1640–1642) DiedMaestro Valderas, O. de M. (1647–1648) ResignedFrancisco Pio Guadalupe Téllez (1648-1660) Died)Francisco de la Cueva Maldonado (1662–1667) DiedJuan de Escalante Turcios y Mendoza (1673–1677) Confirmed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of YucatánDomingo Fernández Navarrete, O.P. (1682-1686)Fernando de Carvajal y Ribera, O. de M. (1687–1700) Resigned)Francisco del Rincón, O.M. (1705–1714), Appointed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of Caracas, Santiago de VenezuelaAntonio Claudio Alvarez de Quiñones (1717–1725), Appointed, Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva GranadaFrancisco Mendigaño Armendáriz (1726–1728) DiedJuan de Galavís, O. Praem. (1729–1738), Confirmed, Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva GranadaDomingo Pantaleón Álvarez de Abreu (1738–1743), Confirmed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of Tlaxcala (Puebla de los Angeles)Ignacio Padilla Estrada, O.S.A. (1743–1753), Confirmed, Archbishop (Personal Title) of YucatánJosé Moreno Curiel, O.SS.T. (1753-1755) DiedFelipe Ruiz Ausmendi (1757–1768) DiedIsidro Rodríguez Lorenzo, O.S.Bas. (1767-1788) RetiredFernando del Portillo y Torres, O.P. (1788–1798) Appointed, Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva GranadaPedro Valera y Jiménez (1814–1833) DiedBienvenudo Monzon y Martin (1862–1866) DiedFernando Antonio Arturo de Meriño y Ramírez (1885–1906) DiedAdolfo Alejandro Nouel y Bobadilla (1906–1935) ResignedRicardo Pittini, S.D.B. (1935–1961) DiedOctavio Antonio Beras Rojas (1961–1981) RetiredNicolás de Jesús López Rodríguez (1981–2016)Francisco Ozoria Acosta (2016 - ...)TO ELABORATE & WORK IN
Auxiliary Bishop: Bishop Francisco José Arnáiz Zarandona (1988.12.02 – 2002.07.31)Auxiliary Bishop: Archbishop Ramón Benito de La Rosa y Carpio (later Archbishop) (1988.12.02 – 1995.03.25)Auxiliary Bishop: Juan Félix Pepén y Soliman (1975.05.12 – 1995.02.11)Auxiliary Bishop: Príamo Pericles Tejeda Rosario (1975.05.10 – 1986.11.08)Auxiliary Bishop: Felipe Antonio Gallego Gorgojo, S.J. (1945.05.02 – 1951)Auxiliary bishop Pablo Cedano Cedano (1996–2013); emeritusAuxiliary bishop Amancio Escapa Aparici, O.C.D. (1996–2016)Auxiliary bishop Victor Emilio Masalles Pete (2010 – ...)
