Francisco Álvarez Martínez (14 July 1925 – 5 January 2022) was a Spanish prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who was archbishop of Toledo from 1995 to 2002. He was bishop of

Tarazona Tarazona is a town and municipality in the Tarazona y el Moncayo comarca, province of Zaragoza, in Aragon, Spain. It is the capital of the Tarazona y el Moncayo Aragonese comarca. It is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tarazona. ...

from 1973 to 1976, of Calahorra y La Calzada-Logroño from 1976 to 1989, and of Orihuela-Alicante from 1989 to 1995. He was created a cardinal in 2001.

Biography

Álvarez Martínez was born in the parish of Santa Eulalia de Ferroñes in

Llanera, Asturias Llanera is a municipality in the Autonomous Community of the Principality of Asturias, Spain. It is bordered on the north by Gijón and Corvera de Asturias, on the south by Oviedo, on the east by Gijón and Siero, and on the west by Illas and La ...

, on 14 July 1925. He studied at the seminary in Oviedo and was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Oviedo on 11 June 1950. He served as the archbishop's secretary from 1950 to 1956 and was chancellor of the archdiocese from 1957 to 1969. He studied canon law at the

Pontifical University of Salamanca The Pontifical University of Salamanca (in Spanish: ''Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca'') is a private Roman Catholic university based in Salamanca, Spain. History This Pontifical University has its origins in the unique University of ...

from 1955 to 1958 and then earned a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of Comillas in 1962. He was appointed bishop of Tarazona on 13 April 1973 by

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...

. He was consecrated by Luigi Dadaglio,

Apostolic Nuncio to Spain The Apostolic Nunciature to the Kingdom of Spain is an ecclesiastical office of the Catholic Church in Spain. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador. For much of ...

, assisted by Pedro Cantero Cuadrado, Archbishop of Zaragoza, and José Méndez Asensio, Archbishop of Pamplona. He was transferred to the see of Calahora y La Calzada-Logroño on 20 December 1976 and then to the see of Orihuela-Alicante on 12 May 1989. He was appointed Metropolitan Archbishop of Toledo on 23 June 1995. He was made

Cardinal Priest A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

Santa Maria Regina Pacis a Monte Verde Santa Maria Regina Pacis a Monte Verde is a 20th-century parochial church and titular church in Monteverde, central Rome. History The first church for the Monteverde area was built in 1915. The present church was begun in 1925 but construc ...

in the consistory of 21 February 2001 by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. Pope John Paul accepted his resignation as Archbishop of Toledo on 24 October 2002. Three months before his 80th birthday, Álvarez Martínez was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the 2005 papal conclave that elected

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

. Álvarez Martínez died in a Madrid hospital after a long illness on 5 January 2022, at the age of 96.

References

External links

*
Cardinal Álvarez Martínez

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alvarez Martinez, Francisco 1925 births 2022 deaths 21st-century Spanish cardinals Archbishops of Toledo Bishops of Tarazona Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II People from Llanera, Asturias