María Cecilia Arboleda de Holguín (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Arboleda Mosquera; 21 January 1859 - 3 February 1924), was a French born Colombian socialite who served as

First Lady of Colombia First Lady of Colombia (First Lady of the Nation) is the title held by the hostess of the Casa de Nariño, generally the wife of the president of Colombia, coinciding with the president's tenure. The role of the first lady has never been codifie ...

from 1921 to 1922 as the wife of President

Jorge Holguín Jorge Marcelo Holguín Mallarino (30 October 1848 – 2 March 1928) was a Colombian politician and military officer, two time Acting President of Colombia: June–August 1909 as interim president, and from November 1921 to August 1922. He al ...

. Cecilia was born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France in 1859 to

Julio Arboleda Pombo Julio Arboleda Pombo (9 July 1817, Barbacoas, Nariño, Barbacoas, Viceroyalty of New Granada – 1862) was a Colombian poet, journalist, and politician. He was also a prominent Slavery in Colombia, slave owner and led a Colombian Civil War of ...

and Sofía Mosquera de Arboleda (née Mosquea Hurtado). She married Jorge Holguín in 1977 with whom she had 11 children. Cecilia is the aunt of the Minister of Foreign Affairs,

María Ángela Holguín María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar (born 13 November 1963) is a Colombian politician and diplomat who has been serving as United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres’ Personal Envoy on Cyprus since 2024. Holguín served as the Minister ...

, and the Minister of the Interior and Justice,

Carlos Holguín Sardi Carlos Holguín Sardi (born 16 December 1940) was the List of Governors of the Department of Valle del Cauca, 64th and 54th Governor of Valle del Cauca. A Colombian Conservative Party, Conservative party politician, he served as the 3rd Minister ...

Biography

María Cecilia Arboleda Mosquera was born in

, France on January 21, 1859 to

and Sofía Mosquera Hurtado. Her birth coincided with a brief stay with his family in Paris. On 9 August 1877, she married the conservative politician from Cauca

, who would later become the 10th

President of Colombia The president of Colombia (President of the Republic) is the head of state and head of government of Colombia. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of Colombia, national government and is the commander-in-chief of the Mil ...

First Lady of Colombia

On 11 November 1921, the resignation of the 9th President of Colombia,

Marco Fidel Suárez Marco Fidel Suárez (April 23, 1855 – April 3, 1927) was a Colombian political figure. He served as president of Colombia from 1918 to 1921. He was born on April 23, 1855, in the town of Hatoviejo, Antioquia. His parents were Rosalía Suárez a ...

, was officially presented, which made

the 10th president of Colombia, being the next in line and one of the men of maximum confidence of Marco Fidel Suárez, making Cecilia the new first lady of Colombia, a position she held until 7 August 1922.

References

1859 births 1924 deaths First ladies of Colombia People from Cauca Department People from Paris French people of Colombian descent Arboleda family Holguín family Colombian expatriates in France {{poli-bio-stub