CARTAGENA, ARCHDIOCESE of. - In the Republic of Colombia, department of Bolivar. Erected as a diocese by Clement VII on 24 Apr. 1534, raised to a metropolitan see by Leo XIII on 20 June 1900. Its suffragans are Barranquilla and Marta.
The archdiocese has a territorial extent of 55,000 sq. km., with 800,000 inhabitants, almost all Catholics, and 255 churches. In 1948 it was divided into 74 parishes, with 28 diocesan priests and 38 regular clergy.
Among the religious buildings of C. deserving mention are: the Cathedral, a grandiose church, with a marble pulpit, mosaics, and a rich monstrance; the church of S. Juan de Dios; the church of S. Pietro Claver, a modern construction, in which the body of the “Apostle of the Negroes” is venerated: Leo XIII presented this church with a large organ; the ancient convent of the Candelaria and the convent of S. Clara, with paintings by fine masters.
The saints Pietro Claver and Luigi Beltrán lived in C.