Bl. Frances d’Amboise

Duchess of Brittany, afterwards Carmelite nun, born 1427; died at Nantes, 4 Nov., 1485.

The daughter of Louis d’Amboise, Viscount de Thouars, she was betrothed when only four years old, to Peter, second son of John V, Duke of Brittany, the marriage being solemnized when she had reached the age of fifteen. The union was, however, not very happy owing to the morose disposition of the husband who occasionally ill-treated his wife; but her gentleness gradually changed his heart, he assisted her in her works of charity and did penance for his former dissolute life.Bl. Frances d'AmboiseAfter his succession to the dukedom in 1450 her wholesome influence made itself felt in wider circles; she also intervened, not always succeessfully, in the never-ending family feuds. The duke died, leaving no legitimate heir, in 1457 after having borne testimony in his last will to the devotedness of his wife.

Blessed Frances D'AmbroiseThe latter consecrated her life to God, but for several years she was unable to consummate the sacrifice by entering a convent. While being educated by her future mother-in-law she had early distinguished herself by almsdeeds and fervent devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. During her married life she devoted a large portion of her fortune to the foundation of a convent of Poor Clares at Nantes, which she would have joined had her strength allowed it; she also took part in the preliminaries of the canonization of St. Vincent Ferrer, became a benefactress of the Dominican convent at Nantes, and made the acquaintance of Blessed John Soreth, General of the Carmelites, who in 1452 had established the first community of Carmelite nuns. Some of these, coming from Liège, were received by Frances at Vannes (31 Oct., 1463) where they were entertained at the castle until the convent called “The Three Maries” was habitable. Having provided their dowries she entered the novitiate (25 March, 1468), making her profession the following year. After some time spent as infirmarian she was elected prioress for life (1473), and became by her splendid example the model of a true Carmelite nun, and, in a sense, the foundress of this branch of the order. The convent proving too small she obtained not without litigation, a larger one at Nantes.

 

Reliquary of Bl. Françoise d'Amboise at the Cathedrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul in Nantes, Photo by Selbymay.

Reliquary of Bl. Françoise d’Amboise at the Cathedral Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul in Nantes, Photo by Selbymay.

She died in a holy ecstasy, and miracles were wrought at her tomb. During the Huguenot wars and the French revolution her body had to be saved twice from profanation. Pius IX beatified her 16 July, 1863.

Benedict Zimmerman (Catholic Encyclopedia)

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St. Charles Borromeo

Painting of young Saint Charles Borromeo by Wolfgang Sauber

Painting of young Saint Charles Borromeo by Wolfgang Sauber

Archbishop of Milan, Cardinal-Priest of the Title of St. Prassede, Papal Secretary of State under Pius IV, and one of the chief factors in the Catholic Counter-Reformation , was born in the Castle of Arona, a town on the southern shore of the Lago Maggiore in northern Italy, 2 October, 1538; died at Milan, 3 November, 1584. His emblem is the word HUMILITAS crowned, which is a portion of the Borromeo shield. He is usually represented in art in his cardinal’s robes, barefoot, carrying the cross as archbishop; a rope round his neck, one hand raised in blessing, thus recalling his work during the plague. His feast is kept on 4 November. His father was Count Giberto Borromeo, who, about 1530, married Margherita de Medici. Her younger brother was Giovanni Angelo, Cardinal de’ Medici, who became pope in 1559 under the title of Pius IV. Charles was the second son, and the third of six children, of Giberto and Margherita. Charles’ mother died about the year 1547, and his father married again.

His early years were passed partly in the Castle of Arona, and partly in the Palazzo Borromeo at Milan. At the age of twelve his father allowed him to receive the tonsure, and, upon the resignation of his uncle, Julius Caesar Borromeo, he became titular Abbot of Sts. Gratinian and Felinus at Arona.

Painting of St. Charles Borromeo by Anthony Bays

Painting of St. Charles Borromeo by Anthony Bays

When he received the tonsure he was sent by his father to Milan, where he studied Latin under J.J. Merla. In October, 1552, he left Arona for the University of Pavia, where he had as his tutor Francesco Alciato, afterwards cardinal. His correspondence shows that he was allowed a small sum by his father, and that often he was in very straitened circumstances, which caused him considerable inconvenience. It was not only that he himself suffered, but that his retinue also were not suitably clothed. Charles evidently felt bitterly his humiliation, but he does not seem to have shown impatience. Leaving Pavia to meet his uncle, Cardinal de’ Medici, at Milan, he was, within a few weeks called upon to attend the funeral of his father, who died early in August, 1558, and was buried in the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan.

Fresh responsibilities at once came to Charles, for though he was not the elder son, yet, at the request of his family, including even his brother, he assumed charge of all the family business. The question of possession of the Castle of Arona was one of great difficulty, as it was claimed by both France and Spain. Charles conducted the negotiations with great energy and diplomatic skill, and as a consequence of the Peace of Cambrai (3 April, 1559) the castle was handed over to Count Francesco Borromeo, in the name of his nephew, Federigo Borromeo, to be held by him for the King of Spain. He also did much to restore to their ancient monastic discipline the religious of his Abbey of Sts. Gratinian and Felinus. Though his studies were so often interrupted, yet his seriousness and attention enabled him to complete them with success, and in 1559 he maintained his thesis for the doctorate of civil and canon law.

Painting by Giovanni Ambrogio Figino

Painting by Giovanni Ambrogio Figino

In the summer of 1559, Paul IV died, and the conclave for the election of his successor, which began on 9 September, was not concluded till 26 December, when Cardinal Giovanni Angelo de’ Medici was elected and took the name of Pius IV. On the 3rd of January, 1560, Charles received a message by a courier from the pope, asking him to proceed at once to Rome. He started immediately for the Eternal City, but though he travelled rapidly he was not in time for the pope’s coronation (6 January). On 22 January he wrote to Count Guido Borromeo that the pope had given him the charge of the administration of all the papal states. On 31 January he was created cardinal-deacon, together with Giovanni de’ Medici, son of the Duke of Florence, and Gianantonio Serbellone, cousin of the pope. Charles was given the title of Sts. Vitus and Modestus, which was in the August following changed to that of St. Martino-ai-Monti. He wished for no rejoicings at Milan; all the celebration was to be at Arona, where were to be said ten Masses de Spiritu Sancto. At this time Cardinal Ippolito d’Este, of Ferrara, resigned the Archbishopric of Milan, and on 8 February the pope named Charles as administrator of the vacant see. In succession he was named Legate of Bologna, Romagna, and the March of Ancona. He was named Protector of the Kingdom of Portugal, of Lower Germany, and the Catholic cantons of Switzerland. Under his protection were placed the orders of St. Francis, the Carmelites, the Humiliati, the Canons Regular of the Holy Cross of Coimbra, the Knights of Jerusalem (or Malta), and those of the Holy Cross of Christ in Portugal. By a motu proprio (22 January, 1561) Pius IV gave him an annual income of 1000 golden crowns from the episcopal mensa of Ferrara.

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St. Elizabeth

(God is an oath—Ex., vi, 23)

Visitation of Our Lady and St. Elizabeth by Bl. Fra Angelico

Visitation of Our Lady and St. Elizabeth by Bl. Fra Angelico

Zachary’s wife and John the Baptist’s mother, was “of the daughters of Aaron” (Luke, i, 5), and, at the same time, Mary’s kinswoman (Luke, i, 36), although what their actual relationship was, is unknown. St. Hippolytus (in Niceph. Call., Hist. Eccles., II, iii) explains that Sobe and Anna their mothers were sisters, and that Sobe had married a “son of Levi”. Whether this indication, probably gathered from some apocryphal writings, and later on adopted by the compilers of the Greek Menologium, is correct, cannot be ascertained. Elizabeth, like Zachary, was “just before God, walking in all the commandments and justifications of the Lord without blame” (Luke, i, 6).

The Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Elizabeth with Our Lord and St. John the Baptist.

The Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Elizabeth with Our Lord and St. John the Baptist.

She had been deprived, however, of the blessings of motherhood until, at an advanced age, a son was promised her by the Angel Gabriel (Luke, i, 8-20). When, five months later, Elizabeth was visited in her home by the Virgin Mary, not only was her son sanctified in her womb, but she herself was enlightened from on high to salute her cousin as “the mother of my Lord” (Luke, i, 43).

The Visitation; Cuzco, Peru 1700s.

According to some modern critics, we should even attribute to her the canticle “Magnificat”. After the birth and circumcision of John the Baptist, the Gospels do not mention Elizabeth any more. Her feast is celebrated on September 8 by the Greeks, and November 5 in the Latin Church.
CHARLES L. SOUVAY (Catholic Encyclopedia)

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New York, November 5, 1823

SIR,

I have received your charming letter which has truly afforded me the greatest pleasure in the world and I see well that you are a young man of word. Yes, my dear sir, I believe I am the happiest of all mortals when I receive letters from Madame la Comtesse de Basturd and I assure you indeed that I am quite proud to receive a letter from Mr. William Schuyler, for I think and am cerain that you have the feelings of a true nobleman, that is to say, d’un homme comme il faut [of a man as he should be].

Statue of Philip Schuyler*, major general in the American Revolution and United States Senator. Located outside Albany City Hall in Albany, New York. Photo by MattWade.

Thus, if you should ever marry, and I should have the happiness of receiving a letter from your lady I should consider her the Countess William Schuyler. All the young men at Mr. Bancel’s say a thousand things to you. Mr. and Mrs. Bancel do not forget you at all. Madame Binsse is doing ver well. I did you the favor of presenting your regards to those young ladies. They are very sensible to your pleasant remembrances. Miss Collins is leaving tomorrow for her home and Miss Marcathy is leaving for Saint Croix because of her health. . . . Mr. Cruger has just arrived, and I received a very long letter from the Countess that made me very happy.

Mrs. Philip Jeremiah Schuyler**.

I go to your mother’s** house every day. She is doing very well. Your cousins are always quite well. The young ladies hope to see you this winter at Mr. Bancel’s ball. Miss Meetz says thousand and thousands of things to you. Adieu, my good and dear Mr. William, take care of yourself and always be good and write to me some time when time is not pressing. I am respectfully your very obedient servant,

P. TOUSSAINT

 

* Grandson of Revolutionary War General Philip Schuyler.

** Mrs. Philip J. Schuyler [Mary Anna Sawyer]

Hannah Sawyer Lee, Memoir of Pierre Toussaint: Born a Slave in St. Domingo, 2nd rev. ed. (Sunbury, Penn.: Western Hemisphere Cultural Society, 1992), 87–88.

Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 878

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Blessed Margaret of Lorraine

Bl. Margaret of Lorraine, Duchess of Alençon.

Bl. Margaret of Lorraine, Duchess of Alençon.

Duchess d’Alencon, religious of the order of Poor Clares, born in 1463 at the castle of Vaudémont (Lorraine); died at Argentan (Brittany) 2 November, 1521.

The daughter of Ferri de Vaudimont and of Yolande d’Anjou, little Margaret became an orphan at an early age and was brought up at Aix-en-Provençe, by King of René of Anjou, her grandfather. The latter dying in 1480 she was sent back to Lorraine to her brother, René II, who gave her in marriage at Paris, in 1488, to the Duke d’Alençon. Left a widow in 1492 she busied herself in the administration of her duchy and the education of her children. When she was relieved of the duties imposed upon her by her position she decided to renounce the world and retired to Mortagne, to a monastery of religious women who followed the rule of Saint Elizabeth.Margaret of LorraineLater having brought with her to Argentan some of these nuns she founded there another monastery which she placed, with the authorization of the pope, under the rule of Saint Clare, modified by the Minor Observants. She herself took the religious habit in this house and made her vows on 11 October, 1520, but on 2 November, 1521, after having lived for a year in the most humble and austere manner, she died a most holy death in her modest cell at the age of sixty-two. Her body, preserved in the monastery of the Poor Clares, was transferred when that monastery was suppressed to the church of St. Germain d’Argentan, but in 1793 it was profaned and thrown into the common burying place.

The memory of Margaret of Lorraine is preserved in the “Martyrologium Franciscanum” and in the “Martyrologium gallicanum”. After an invitation made by the bishop of Séez, Jacques Camus de Pontcarri, Louis XIII begged Pope Urban VIII to order a canonical inquiry into the virtues and the miracles of the pious Duchess d’Alençon; unfortunately in the political agitation of the time the realization of this plan was lost sight of. At the initiative of the present Bishop of Séez an effort is being made to obtain recognition at the Court of Rome of her cultus. The process is well on its way.

LÉON CLUGNET (Catholic Encyclopedia)

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St. Leonard of Limousin

Saint LeonardNothing absolutely certain is known of his history, as his earliest “Life”, written in the eleventh century, has no historical value whatever. According to this extraordinary legend, Leonard belonged to a noble Frankish family of the time of King Clovis, and St. Remy of Reims was his godfather. After having secured from the king the release of a great number of prisoners, and refused episcopal honours which Clovis offered him, he entered a monastery at Micy near Orleans. Later he went to Aquitaine and there preached the Gospel. Having obtained, through prayer, a safe delivery for the Queen of the Franks in her confinement, he received as a gift from the king a domain at Noblac, near Limoges, where he founded a monastery. The veneration of this saint is as widely known as his history is obscure and uncertain.

St. Leonard of NoblacIt is true that there is no trace of it before the eleventh century, but from that time it spread everywhere, and little by little churches were dedicated to him, not only in France, but in all Western Europe, especially in England, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, more particularly in Bavaria, and also in Bohemia, Poland, and other countries. Pilgrims, among them kings, princes, and high dignitaries of the Church, flocked to Noblac (now St. Leonard). Numerous miracles are attributed to him, and in one small town alone, Inchenhofen, Bavaria, from the fourteenth to the eighteenth century, there are records of about 4,000 favours granted through his intercession. The saint wrought the delivery of captives, women in confinement, those possessed of an evil spirit, people and beasts afflicted with diseases. At the end of the eleventh century his name had already become renowned among the Crusaders captured by the Mussulmans. He is generally represented holding chains in his hands. His feast day is celebrated on 6 November.

PONCELET in Acta SS., November, III, 139-209; see also CHEVALIER, Bio-Bibl., s.v.

A. Poncelet (Catholic Encyclopedia)

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St. Wolfgang

Bishop of Ratisbon (972-994), born about 934; died at the village of Pupping in upper Austria, 31 October, 994. The name Wolfgang is of early German origin. St. Wolfgang was one of the three brilliant stars of the tenth century, St. Ulrich, St. Conrad, and St. Wolfgang, which illuminated the early medieval period of Germany with the undying splendour of their acts and services. St. Wolfgang sprang from a family of Swabian counts of Pfullingen (Mon. Germ. His.: Script., X, 53). When seven years old he had an ecclesiastic as tutor at home; later he attended the celebrated monastic school on the Reichenau. Here he formed a strong friendship with Henry, brother of Bishop Poppo of Würzburg, whom he followed to Würzburg in order to attend at the cathedral school there the lectures of the noted Italian grammarian, Stephen of Novara. After Henry was made Archbishop of Trier in 956, he called his friend to Trier, where Wolfgang became a teacher in the cathedral school, and also laboured for the reform of the archdiocese, notwithstanding the enmity with which his efforts were met. Wolfgang’s residence at Trier greatly influenced his monastic and ascetic tendencies, as here he came into connection with the great reformatory monastery of the tenth century, St. Maximin of Trier, where he made the acquaintance of Ramwold, the teacher of St. Adalbert of Prague. After the death (964) of Archbishop Henry of Trier, Wolfgang entered the Order of St. Benedict in the Abbey of Maria Einsiedeln, Switzerland, and was ordained priest by St. Ulrich in 968.

Statue of St. Wolfgang in the Bonnefanten Museum in Maastricht.

After their defeat in the battle of the Lechfeld (955), a victory gained with the aid of St. Ulrich, the heathen Magyars settled in ancient Pannonia. As long as they were not converted to Christianity they remained a constant menace to the empire. At the request of St. Ulrich, who clearly saw the danger, and at the desire of the Emperor Otto the Great, St. Wolfgang, according to the abbey annals, was “sent to Magyars” as the most suitable man to evangelize them. He was followed by other missionaries sent by Bishop Piligrim of Nassau, under whose jurisdiction the new missionary region came. After the death of Bishop Michael of Ratisbon (23 September, 972) Bishop Piligrim obtained from the emperor the appointment of Wolfgang as Bishop of Ratisbon (Christmas, 972). Wolfgang’s services in this new position were of the highest importance, not only for the diocese, but also for the cause of civilization. As Bishop of Ratisbon, Wolfgang became the tutor of Emperor St. Henry II, who learned from him the principles which governed his saintly and energetic life. Poppe, son of Margrave Luitpold, Archbishop of Trier (1016), and Tagino, Archbishop of Magdeburg (1004-1012), also had him as their teacher.

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Pius XII says in his allocution to Fiat workers on October 31, 1948:

Charlemagne, painted by Albrecht Dürer

“Human society always produces, of necessity, a whole scale of degrees and differences in physical and intellectual qualities…”

“The Church does not promise the absolute equality that others claim, for she knows that human society always produces, of necessity, a whole scale of degrees and differences in physical and intellectual qualities, in inner dispositions and tendencies, in occupations and responsibilities.

“Yet, at the same time she ensures complete equality in human dignity, as in the heart of Him who calls unto Himself all those who are weary and burdened.”

“…in inner dispositions and tendencies, in occupations and responsibilities.”

These books and more…Click picture and Order Today! Also available are several e-books!

Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, Nobility and Analogous Traditional Elites in the Allocutions of Pius XII: A Theme Illuminating American Social History (York, Penn.: The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family, and Property, 1993), Documents V, p. 485.

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St. Genesius (of Lyons)

(Or GENESTUS.) Thirty-seventh Archbishop of Lyons, d. 679. Feast, 1 November. He was a native of France, not of Arabia or Armenia as is sometimes stated and became a religious and abbot (not of Fontenelle, but) attached to the court and camp of Clovis II where he acted as chief almoner to the queen, St. Bathildis.

Chelles Abbey

He succeeded St. Chamond (Annemundus) in the See of Lyons, and was consecrated in 657 or 658. His name is found for the first time as bishop in a signature of 6 Sept., 664, attached to a charter drawn up by Bertefred, bishop of Amiens, for the Abbey of Corbie. On 26 June, 667, he subscribed another charter framed by Drauscius, Bishop of Soissons, for a convent of the Blessed Virgin founded by Ebroin, mayor of the palace, and his wife Leutrude. In the conflict between Ebroin and St.Leger (Leodegarius), Bishop of Autun, Genesius (675-76) took the part of the bishop and was in consequence attacked by an armed band sent by Ebroin to expel him from Lyons; but Genesius collected a force and successfully defended his city. In September, 677, he assisted at an assembly held at Maslay. He was succeeded at Lyons by Landebertus. His body remained in the church of St. Nicetius till the beginning of the fourteenth century, when it was transferred to Chelles Abbey.

FRANCIS MERSHMAN (Catholic Encyclopedia)

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Deborah the Prophetess

(also known as Debbora the Judge, Deborah the Matriarch)

Deborah the Prophetess

Deborah the Prophetess

Prophetess and judge: she was the wife of Lapidoth and was endowed by God with prophetic gifts which secured for her the veneration of the divided Israelitic tribes and gave her great authority over them. Her wisdom was first displayed in settling litigious matters submitted to her: “She sat under a palm-tree, which was called by her name, between Rama and Bethel, in Mount Ephraim, and the children of Israel came up to her for all judgment” (Judges, iv, 5). Debbora was thus a judge in the ordinary sense of the word. In the case of the other persons whose history is recorded in the book of Judges, the title seems to be given them as “deliverers and leaders” of the chosen people, no mention being made of ordinary judicial functions; but it was rather the confidence inspired by Debbora in the discharge of such functions which enabled her to bring about the deliverance of the nation, which was then suffering under the oppression of the Chanaanites.

Painting of Deborah by Charles Landelle - 1901

Painting of Deborah by Charles Landelle – 1901

The main army of the enemy was rendered particularly formidable by the fact that it possessed nine hundred iron chariots. It was commanded by Sisara, whose headquarters were at Haroseth, probably identical with the actual el Haritiyeh, between Haifa and Nazareth, on the banks of the Nahr Muquatt’a (Cison) in the plain of Esdraelon. Occupying this position in the centre of the country, the Chanaanites could harass the tribes to the north and south, and render it very difficult for them to unite in a common effort. For “twenty years” the enemy had “grievously oppressed” the children of Israel, when Debbora declared it was God’s will that His people should be freed. This will of God she first made known to Barac, who dwelt in Cedes of Nephthali, today Qedeis, one of the principal ruins of Northern Galilee. She charged him to gather and lead to Thabor, a mountain to the east of the plain of Esdraelon, an army of ten thousand men, promising him that God would deliver into his hand Sisara and the Chanaanite army.

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All Saints’ Day: Is Being Noble and Leading a Noble’s Life Incompatible with Sanctity?

by Plinio Correa de OliveiraThe current misunderstanding of nobility and the analogous traditional elites results largely from the adroit but biased propaganda spread against them by the French Revolution. According to the revolutionaries of 1789, the nobility was essentially constituted of pleasure seekers.

The current misunderstanding of nobility and the analogous traditional elites results largely from the adroit but biased propaganda spread against them by the French Revolution. Such propaganda, continuously disseminated throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries by ideological and political currents spawned by the French Revolution, has been challenged by serious historiography with growing efficacy. This propaganda, however, still clings to life in certain sectors of opinion. It is relevant, therefore, to say something about this.

St. Louis of France

According to the revolutionaries of 1789, the nobility was essentially constituted of pleasure seekers. Holding honorific and economic privileges, the nobles allegedly lived extravagantly off the merit and credit acquired by distant ancestors. This allowed them the luxury of enjoying earthly life, especially the delights of idleness and voluptuousness. This class of pleasure seekers was also highly burdensome to the nation and harmful to the poorer classes, which were hard-working, temperate, and beneficial to the common good. According to d’Argenson, “La Cour était le tombeau de la nation” (the Court was the nation’s tomb).

This led to the notion that the life of a noble, with the station and wealth that normally accompany it, induces a moral negligence that sharply contrasts with Christian asceticism. This perception contains some measure of truth. The first signs of the terrible moral crisis of our day were already visible among the nobility and the analogous elites of the late eighteenth century. It is necessary, however, to stress that this perception is much more false than true and is harmful to the good reputation of the noble class.

Saint Peter Julian Eymard has noted that “the Church annals show that a large number of saints, and the most illustrious ones, had a blazon, a name, an illustrious family; some were even of royal blood”

Many aspects of the Church’s history prove this, including the fact that she has raised a great number of nobles to the honors of the altar. She thus affirms that they followed the Commandments and the evangelical counsels to a heroic degree.
Saint Peter Julian Eymard has noted that “the Church annals show that a large number of saints, and the most illustrious ones, had a blazon, a name, an illustrious family; some were even of royal blood” (1). While several of these saints abandoned the world to more securely attain heroic virtue, others, such as the kings Saint Louis of France and Saint Ferdinand of Castile, remained amid the splendor of their lofty noble stations and therein attained heroic virtue.

St Ferdinand

To complete the refutation of this perception, which seeks to degrade the nobility, its customs and lifestyles, we thought it advisable to enquire about the proportion of nobles who were canonized by the Church.

A specific study on this subject could not be found. Some investigators have broached the subject without undertaking specific and exhaustive research. They based their calculations on registers that they themselves present as incomplete. University of Rouen professor André Vauchez published a study, La Sainteté en l’Occident aux Dernieres Siècles du Moyen Age (2), based on the processes of canonization and on medieval hagiographic documents, that merits particular attention. He analyzes the investigations de vita, miraculis et fama ordered by popes between 1198 and 1431. Of a total of 71 investigations, 35 concluded that the persons examined deserved to be elevated to the honors of the altar, which the Church did in the Middle Ages.(3)

The statistics furnished by Vauchez follow:

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It was St. Odilo of Cluny who first appointed one day every year to be set aside in a special manner for prayer for the faithful departed.

shipwreckIt happened that a certain religious belonging to France was returning home from Palestine, where he had gone to visit the places consecrated by the foot steps of Our Lord when He was on earth. A tempest arose when crossing the Mediterranean Sea, and he was cast upon a desert island. There dwelt on this island a holy hermit who lived in a cave, conversing continually with God, and leading a life of austerity and penance. He received the stranger thus cast upon his island home with great charity, and when he learned that he was from France he suddenly said to him: “Do you know a certain abbey in France which is governed by a venerable Abbot named Odilo?”

“Yes,” replied the stranger, “I know the Abbey of Cluny, and also the saintly Odilo; but how have you come to know him here in this solitary place?”

Hermit“There is,” replied the hermit, “not far from this cave a deep chasm from which issue terrible flames. In the midst of these flames I have seen millions of souls suffering most agonizing tortures for the faults they committed when on earth. Wicked spirits are there by permission of God to increase their punishment, tormenting them without ceasing, until their expiation is completed. In the midst of the frightful cries that arise from the abyss, I heard the evil spirits complain, in words of the deepest rage and hatred, that many of these souls were snatched from them long before the time fixed for the termination of their punishment, and were led to Heaven in triumph by the prayers and alms of the faithful, and in particular by the prayers and penances of Odilo, Abbot of Cluny, and his religious.”

St Odilio, Painting by Francesco Andreani

St Odilio, Painting by Francesco Andreani

“Wherefore I beg of you, in the name of God,” continued the hermit, “to relate faithfully on your return to France what I have now told you, and to ask these pious and saintly religious, and the venerable Abbot Odilo, to continue their holy prayers and alms and even to augment them, that the happiness of the blessed in Heaven may be increased, and that the evil spirits may be confounded more and more.”

Cluny

The Monastery of Cluny, France – Entrance to the Abbey

On his return to his native country, this religious went to Cluny, and in the presence of Odilo and his community related what the hermit had told him. Then Odilo, to commemorate the event, and to increase in the hearts of those under his charge a greater devotion to the holy souls in Purgatory, appointed November 2 as a day when special prayers and Masses should be offered up for the repose of the faithful departed. This soon spread over the whole Church, and is known by the name of “All Souls Day.”
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The Catechism In Examples Vol. V,  By the Rev. D. Chisholm Pg 145-146

Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 490

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Blessed John Bodey

Westgate in Winchester, dating from the 13th century and for many years it was used as a local prison.

Martyr, born at Wells, Somerset: 1549; died at Andover, Wilts., 2 November, 1583. He studied at Winchester and New College, Oxford, of which he became a Fellow in 1568. In June, 1576, he was deprived, with seven other Fellows, by the Visitor, Horne, Protestant Bishop of Winchester. Next year he went to Douay College to study civil law, returned to England in February, 1578, and probably married. Arrested in 1580, he was kept in iron shackles in Winchester gaol, and was condemned in April, 1583, together with John Slade, a schoolmaster, for maintaining the old religion and denying the Royal Supremacy. There was apparently a feeling that this sentence was unjust and illegal, and they were actually tried and condemned apin at Andover, 19 August, 1583, on the same indictment. Bodey had a controversy with Humphreys, Dean of Winchester, on the Nicene Council, and the martyr’s notes from Eusebius still exist. After his second trial, he wrote from prison to Dr. Humphrey Ely, “We consider that iron for this cause borne on earth shall surmount gold and, precious stones in Heaven. That is our mark, that is our desire. In the mean season we are threatened daily, and do look still when the hurdle shall be brought to the door. I beseech you, for God’s sake, that we want not the good prayers of you all for our strength, our joy, and our perseverance unto the end. . . . From our school of patience the 16th September, 1583.”

At his martyrdom, Bodey kissed the halter, saying, “O blessed chain, the sweetest chain and richest that ever came about any man’s neck”, and when told he died for treason, exclaimed, “You may make the hearing of a blessed Mass treason, or the saying of an Ave Maria treason . . . but I have committed no treason, although, indeed, I suffer the punishment due to treason”. He exhorted the people to obey Queen Elizabeth and died saying, “Jesu, Jesu, esto mihi Jesus”. His mother made a great feast upon the occasion of her son’s happy death, to which she invited her neighbours, rejoicing at his death as his marriage by which his soul was happily and eternally espoused to the Lamb.

Account of the trial and execution of John Slade, schoolmaster, and John Body, M.A., by R. B. (London, 1583); Challoner, Memoirs; Sanders, Anglican Schism, ed. Lewis (London, 1877); Pollen, Acts of English Martyrs (London, 1891); Wainewright, Two English Martyrs: Body and Munden (London, Cath. Truth Soc.); Knox, Douay Diaries (London, 1878); Allen, A true, sincere, and modest defence of English Catholiques (Reims, 1584).

Bede Camm (Catholic Encyclopedia)

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The Crusades – Part IX

October 31, 2024

I. Origin of the Crusades;

II. Foundation of Christian states in the East;

III. First destruction of the Christian states (1144-87);

IV. Attempts to restore the Christian states and the crusade against Saint-Jean d’Acre (1192-98);

V. The crusade against Constantinople (1204);

VI. The thirteenth-century crusades (1217-52);

VII. Final loss of the Christian colonies of the East (1254-91);

VIII. The fourteenth-century crusade and the Ottoman invasion;

IX. THE CRUSADE IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY

Charles VI of France

Charles VI of France

An unlooked-for event, the invasion by Timur and the Mongols, saved Constantinople for the time being. They annihilated Bajazet’s army at Ancyra, 20 July, 1402, and, dividing the Ottoman Empire among several princes, reduced it to a state of vassalage. The Western rulers, Henry III, King of Castile, and Charles VI, King of France, sent ambassadors to Timur (see the account by Ruy Gonçales de Clavijo, Madrid, 1779), but the circumstances were not favourable, as they had been in the thirteenth century. The national revolt of the Chinese that overthrew the Mongol dynasty in 1368 had resulted in the destruction of the Christian missions in Farther Asia; in Central Asia the Mongols had been converted to Mohammedanism, and Timur showed his hostility to the Christians by taking Smyrna from the Hospitallers. Marshal Boucicault took advantage of the dejection into which the Mongol invasion had thrown the Mohammedan powers to sack the ports of Syria, Tripoli, Beirut, and Sidon in 1403, but he was unable to retain his conquests; while Timur, on the other hand, thought only of obtaining possession of China and returned to Samarkand, where he died in 1405.

Sultan Bayezid prisoner of Timur

Bayezid I, held captive by Emir Timur, in the Battle of Ankara, on July 20, 1402 and the Ottoman army was defeated.

The civil wars that broke out among the Ottoman princes gave the Byzantine emperors a few years’ respite, but Murad II, having re-established the Turkish power, besieged Constantinople from June to September in 1422, and John VIII, Palæologus, was compelled to pay him tribute. In 1430 Murad took Thessalonica from the Venetians, forced the wall of the Hexamilion, which had been erected by Manuel to protect the Peloponnesus, and subdued Servia. The idea of the crusade was always popular in the West, and, on his death-bed, Henry V of England regretted that he had not taken Jerusalem. In her letters to Bedford, the regent, and to the Duke of Burgundy, Joan of Arc alluded to the union of Christendom against the Saracens, and the popular belief expressed in the poetry of Christine de Pisan was that, after having delivered France, the Maid of Orleans would lead Charles VII to the Holy Land. But this was only a dream, and the civil wars in France, the crusade against the Hussites, and the Council of Constance, prevented any action from being taken against the Turks.

Henry III of Castile

Henry III of Castile

However, in 1421 Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, sent Gilbert de Lannoy, and in 1432, Bertrand de la Brocquière, to the East as secret emissaries to gather information that might be of value for a future crusade. At the same time negotiations for the religious union which would facilitate the crusade were resumed between the Byzantine emperors and the popes. Emperor John VIII came in person to attend the council convoked by Pope Eugene IV at Ferrara, in 1438. Thanks to the good will of Bessarion and of Isidore of Kiev, the two Greek prelates whom the pope had elevated to the cardinalate, the council, which was transferred to Florence, established harmony on all points, and on 6 July, 1439, the reconciliation was solemnly proclaimed. The reunion was received in bad part by the Greeks and did not induce the Western princes to take the cross. Adventurers of all nationalities enrolled themselves under the command of Cardinal Giuliano Cesarini and went to Hungary to join the armies of János Hunyady, Waywode of Transylvania, who had just repulsed the Turks at Hermanstadt, of Wladislaus Jagello, King of Poland, and of George Brankovitch, Prince of Servia. Having defeated the Turks at Nish, 3 November, 1443, the allies were enabled to conquer Servia, owing to the defection of the Albanians under George Castriota (Scanderbeg), their national commander.

Battle of Varna, November 10, 1444. Painting by Stanislaw Chlebowski

Battle of Varna, November 10, 1444. Painting by Stanislaw Chlebowski

Murad signed a ten years’ truce and abdicated the throne, 15 July, 1444, but Giuliano Cesarini, the papal legate, did not favour peace and wished to push forward to Constantinople. At his instigation the crusaders broke the truce and invaded Bulgaria, whereupon Murad again took command, crossed the Bosporus on Genoese galleys, and destroyed the Christian army at Varna, 10 November, 1444. This defeat left Constantinople defenceless. In 1446 Murad succeeded in conquering Morea, and when, two years later, János Hunyady tried to go to the assistance of Constantinople he was beaten at Kosovo. Scanderbeg alone managed to maintain his independence in Epirus and, in 1449, repelled a Turkish invasion. Mohammed II, who succeeded Murad in 1451, was preparing to besiege Constantinople when, 12 December, 1452, Emperor Constantine XII decided to proclaim the union of the Churches in the presence of the papal legates.

Mehmed II at the siege of Constantinople, ordering that the ships be transported overland.

Mehmed II at the siege of Constantinople, ordering that the ships be transported overland.

The expected crusade, however, did not take place; and when, in March, 1453, the armed forces of Mohammed II, numbering 160,000, completely surrounded Constantinople, the Greeks had only 5000 soldiers and 2000 Western knights, commanded by Giustiniani of Genoa. Notwithstanding this serious disadvantage, the city held out against the enemy for two months, but on the night of 28 May, 1453, Mohammed II ordered a general assault, and after a desperate conflict, in which Emperor Constantine XII perished, the Turks entered the city from all sides and perpetrated a frightful slaughter. Mohammed II rode over heaps of corpses to the church of St. Sophia, entered it on horseback, and turned it into a mosque.

Mehmed II, Entering to Constantinople. Painting by Fausto Zonaro

Mehmed II, Entering to Constantinople. Painting by Fausto Zonaro

The capture of “New Rome” was the most appalling calamity sustained by Christendom since the taking of Saint-Jean d’Acre. However, the agitation which the news of this event caused in Europe was more apparent than genuine. Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, gave an allegorical entertainment at Lille in which solicited the help of knights who pronounced the most extravagant vows before God and a pheasant (sur le faisan). Æneas Sylvius, Bishop of Siena, and St. John Capistran, the Franciscan, preached the crusade in Germany and Hungary; the Diets of Ratisbon and Frankfort promised assistance, and a league was formed between Venice, Florence, and the Duke of Milan, but nothing came of it. Pope Callistus III succeeded in collecting a fleet of sixteen galleys, which, under the command of the Patriarch of Aquileia, guarded the Archipelago. However, the defeat of the Turks before Belgrade in 1457, due to the bravery of János Hunyady, and the bloody conquest of the Peloponnesus in 1460 seemed finally to revive Christendom from its torpor. Æneas Sylvius, now pope under the name of Pius II, multiplied his exhortations, declaring that he himself would conduct the crusade, and towards the close of 1463 bands of crusaders began to assemble at Ancona. The Doge of Venice had yielded to the pope’s entreaties, whereas the Duke of Burgundy was satisfied with sending 2,000 men. But when, in June, 1464, the pope went to Ancona to assume command of the expedition, he fell sick and died, whereupon most of the crusaders, being unarmed, destitute of ammunition, and threatened with starvation, returned to their own countries. The Venetians were the only ones who invaded the Peloponnesus and sacked Athens, but they looked upon the crusade merely as a means of advancing their commercial interests.

On July 28, 1480, an Ottoman fleet arrived at Otranto. The garrison and citizens of Otranto retreated to the Castle of Otranto. On August 11, after a 15-day siege, Gedik Ahmed ordered the final assault. When the walls were breached the Ottomans began fighting their way through the town to the cathedral and citadel. Upon reaching the cathedral, "they found Archbishop Stefano Agricolo, fully vested and crucifix in hand" awaiting them with Count Francesco Largo, the garrison commander and Bishop Stefano Pendinelli. The Archbishop was beheaded before the altar, Count Largo was sawed in half, Bishop Pendinelli was skewered and hacked to pieces by scimitars and their accompanying priests were all murdered." After desecrating the Cathedral, they gathered the women and older children to be sold into Albanian slavery. Boys over fifteen year’s old, small children, and infants, were slain. A total of 12,000 were killed and 5,000 enslaved, including victims from the territories of the Salentine peninsula around the city. Following the city's capture, the Ottomans rounded up all the remaining male citizens. Up to 800 men were told to convert to Islam or be slain. A tailor named Antonio Primaldi is said to have proclaimed "Now it is time for us to fight to save our souls for the Lord. And since he died on the cross for us, it is fitting that we should die for him." To which the captives with him gave a loud cheer. After refusing to convert, they all were led to the Hill of Minerva on August 14 (later renamed the Hill of Martyrs) were they were executed one-by-one. Primaldi was said to have been the first to be beheaded. The Martyrs of Otranto were collectively canonized as Saints on May 12, 2013. Their remains are displayed in the three glass reliquaries in the Otranto Cathedral and in the church of Santa Caterina a Formiello in Naples.

On July 28, 1480, an Ottoman fleet arrived at Otranto. The garrison and citizens of Otranto retreated to the Castle of Otranto. On August 11, after a 15-day siege, Gedik Ahmed ordered the final assault. When the walls were breached the Ottomans began fighting their way through the town to the cathedral and citadel. Upon reaching the cathedral, “they found Archbishop Stefano Agricolo, fully vested and crucifix in hand” awaiting them with Count Francesco Largo, the garrison commander and Bishop Stefano Pendinelli. The Archbishop was beheaded before the altar, Count Largo was sawed in half, Bishop Pendinelli was skewered and hacked to pieces by scimitars and their accompanying priests were all murdered.” After desecrating the Cathedral, they gathered the women and older children to be sold into Albanian slavery. Boys over fifteen year’s old, small children, and infants, were slain. A total of 12,000 were killed and 5,000 enslaved, including victims from the territories of the Salentine peninsula around the city. Following the city’s capture, the Ottomans rounded up all the remaining male citizens. Up to 800 men were told to convert to Islam or be slain. A tailor named Antonio Primaldi is said to have proclaimed “Now it is time for us to fight to save our souls for the Lord. And since he died on the cross for us, it is fitting that we should die for him.” To which the captives with him gave a loud cheer. After refusing to convert, they all were led to the Hill of Minerva on August 14 (later renamed the Hill of Martyrs) were they were executed one-by-one. Primaldi was said to have been the first to be beheaded. The Martyrs of Otranto were collectively canonized as Saints on May 12, 2013. Their remains are displayed in the three glass reliquaries in the Otranto Cathedral and in the church of Santa Caterina a Formiello in Naples.

Under Sixtus IV they had the presumption to utilize the papal fleet for the seizure of merchandise stored at Smyrna and Adalia; they likewise purchased the claims of Catherine Cornaro to the Kingdom of Cyprus. Finally, in 1480, Mohammed II directed a triple attack against Europe. In Hungary Matthias Corvinus withstood the Turkish invasion, and the Knights of Rhodes, conducted by Pierre d’Aubusson, defended themselves victoriously, but the Turks succeeded in gaining possession of Otranto and threatened Italy with conquest. At an assembly held at Rome and presided over by Sixtus IV, ambassadors from the Christian princes again promised help; but the condition of Christendom would have been critical indeed had not the death of Mohammed II occasioned the evacuation of Otranto, while the power of the Turks was impaired for several years by civil wars among Mohammed’s sons. At the time of Charles VIII’s expedition into Italy (1492) there was again talk of a crusade; according to the plans of the King of France, the conquest of Naples was to be followed by that of Constantinople and the East. For this reason Pope Alexander VI delivered to him Prince Djem, son of Mahommed II and pretender to the throne, who had taken refuge with the Hospitallers.

Prince Djem welcomed by the Grand Master Pierre D'Aubusson

Prince Djem welcomed by the Grand Master Pierre D’Aubusson

When Alexander VI joined Venice and Maximilian in a league against Charles VIII, the official object of the alliance was the crusade, but it had become impossible to take such projects as seriously meant. The leagues for the crusade were no longer anything but political combinations, and the preaching of the Holy War seemed to the people nothing but a means of raising money. Before his death, Emperor Maximilian took the cross at Metz with due solemnity, but these demonstrations could lead to no satisfactory results. The new conditions that now controlled Christendom rendered a crusade impossible.

LOUIS BRÉHIER (Catholic Encyclopedia)

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Saint Alfred the Great

Statue of St. Alfred the Great in Winchester, England.

In this incomparable prince were united the saint, the soldier, and the statesman in a most eminent degree. Sir Henry Spelman (Conc. Brit.) gives us his character in a rapture. “O, Alfred,” says he, “the wonder and astonishment of all ages! If we reflect on his piety and religion, it would seem that he had always lived in a cloister; if on his warlike exploits, that he had never been out of camps; if on his learning and writings, that he had spent his whole life in a college; if on his wholesome laws and wise administration, that these had been his whole study and employment.”

It may be doubted whether ever any king showed greater abilities on a throne; but in this circumstance he was perfectly happy,—that all his wonderful achievements and great qualifications were directed and made perfect by the purest motives of piety and religion, and a uniform heroic sanctity. Alfred was the fourth and youngest son of Ethelwolph, the pious king of the West-Saxons, and second monarch of all England.

St. Albert’s father, Ethelwulf of Wessex.

He was born at Wantage, in Berkshire, in 849. His wit, beauty, and towardly disposition endeared him from his infancy to the whole kingdom, especially to his father, who sent him to Rome when he was only five years old, that he might receive the pope’s blessing. Leo IV who then sat in St. Peter’s chair, adopted him for his son, and, as Malmesbury says, by a happy presage of his future dignity, anointed him king. Leland rather thinks this unction was the sacrament of confirmation; but this, according to the discipline of the English, Spanish, and several other churches, was given to infants as soon as it could be done after they were baptized. Montfaucon and other French historians observe, that Pepin in France was the first Christian king who (in imitation of the Jewish kings by God’s appointment) was anointed at his coronation; and Alfred was the first among our English princes who received that rite. Whether the pope thought it due to so promising a son of a great king, or whether he looked upon it that some sovereignty in England would fall to his lot, is uncertain. Ethelwolph soon after, making himself a pilgrimage to Rome, carried Alfred thither a second time.

Through the confusion of the times, amidst the Danish invasions, this prince was twelve years old before he learned to read. He had a happy memory and an excellent genius, and we have a proof of his eagerness and application in the following instance. His mother one day showed him and his brothers a fine book in Saxon verse, promising to give it to him who should first read and understand it. Alfred was only beginning to learn to read; but, running straight to his master, did not rest till he not only read it but got it by heart. He naturally loved poetry, and in his childhood got several poems by heart. He excelled more in all other arts and sciences than in grammar, that study being then at a low ebb in this country, says Bishop Tanner, from an ancient chronicle.

Æthelbald, King of England & the oldest brother of St. Albert

His elder brothers, Ethelbald, Ethelbert, and Ethelred, successively filled the throne; Alfred, though very young, appeared often at the head of their armies. The death of Ethelred, which happened on the 22nd of April, set the crown upon his head in the year 871, the twenty-second of his age.

Ethelbert, King of Kent & second brother of St. Albert

The Danes at that time poured upon this island like a tempest, landing in several parts at once; they had lately martyred St. Edmund, were possessed of the three kingdoms of the East-Angles, Northumbrians, and Mercians, and with several armies were in the very heart of that of the West-Saxons, which then comprised all the rest. The English having fought eight or nine great battles within the compass of the preceding year, were exhausted and dispirited, and seeing new armies rise up against them on every side, were at a loss whither to betake themselves.

The young king had scarcely solemnized his brothers’ funerals, when, in a month’s time, he was obliged, with an inconsiderable army, to engage the whole power of the Danes near Wilton. By his courage and valour they were at first forced to fly; but, finding the number of the pursuers to be small, they rallied, and became masters of the field. Twice they were compelled to leave West-Sex, and to promise never to return; but new armies immediately renewed their depredations. Contrary to their oaths and obligations, in the beginning of the year 878, they entered West-Sex with a great power, took Chippenham, the royal palace in Wiltshire, and laid waste the whole country.

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By Jeremias Wells

colonel-john-ripley

An American Knight

When a society no longer respects and honors the fighting men willing to shed their blood for its principles, the fault lies not with the fighting men but with society itself. Ingratitude is a subtle vice, but a vice nevertheless. Saint Thomas Aquinas says that a debt of gratitude is a moral debt required by virtue. In recent decades, the American view of moral justice has been sadly lacking.

Civil society has not always been so callous. Ever since the rise of Christian culture, Christendom has held its warrior-knights in high esteem. Not only that, they were a basic, creative force that molded Western civilization, as a study of the Crusades will attest. A knight of the Middle Ages went to war in a spirit of self-immolation for the glorification of the Church or the common good of temporal society.

Through the centuries, the admiration and appreciation for the fighting man survived a series of revolutionary and philosophical setbacks that severely affected Christendom; that is, until the arrival of communism. As the latter evil gained in influence, a commensurate decline in the will to fight followed. Time and again, the communists won victories because sufficient support from the printed page and the movie and television screens had effectively disarmed the American and Western fighting spirit. Yet the Pattons and MacArthurs of the world continue to step forward, ready to face death rather than betray the ancient ideals of the warrior. The following story represents our part in honoring that crusading spirit.

“Bud” Ripley (r) and his three sons, (l to r) John, Michael and George.

Background

During the early 1960s, the communists moved against South Vietnam, which was divided between the communist North and the anticommunist South. By March 1969, the United States had a troop strength in South Vietnam of 541,500. At no time did the American forces make any determined effort to destroy the enemy’s capacity for making war. When Richard Nixon entered the White House in January of 1969, he was principally concerned with withdrawing American troops and getting North Vietnam to the peace table. North Vietnam was principally concerned with crushing its enemy.

In studying the peace negotiations of this period, one could easily be lulled into accepting the sophism that to save lives was worth a compromise with the communists. That may seem reasonable only when we forget the famous and oft-quoted warning of Pius XI: “We cannot contemplate without sorrow the heedlessness of those who seem to make light of these imminent dangers, and with solid indifference allow the propagation far and wide of those doctrines that seek by violence and bloodshed the destruction of all society.” The enemies of Christendom never stop; they continue to forge ahead peacefully or otherwise. During the Easter Offensive in 1972, Colonel (at the time Captain) John Ripley and the Third Vietnamese Marine Battalion decided to step into the process and bar the way.

The Attack
Col. Ripley

By the Spring of 1972, the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) had completed its buildup and was ready to mount a largescale attack on South Vietnam. As part of the assault, two infantry divisions, 30,000 soldiers with tanks and artillery support, began to cross the boundary between the two countries and attack south along Highway 1, the main north-south artery. They would first have to seize a highway bridge over the major water obstacle, the Cua Viet River just north of the town Dong Ha. Only the Third South Vietnamese Marine Battalion was in a position to block the critical avenue of attack and buy some valuable time. To the 700-man battalion was entrusted the awesome task of stopping, or at least hindering, 30,000 North Vietnamese.

The small number of remaining Americans now in ground combat were assigned to South Vietnamese units as advisers. Few men were better qualified to provide assistance in this nearly impossible assignment than Captain John Ripley of Radford, Virginia. A graduate of the Naval Academy at Annapolis, he led a rifle company through a year of intense combat in 1967. Ripley then served an exchange tour with the British Royal Marines. After returning to U.S. forces, he graduated from both the Army’s Airborne and Ranger schools and trained with the Navy’s frog men in underwater demolition teams.

Having trained in four elite units, Ripley now joined one of the finest units in the Vietnamese Marine Corps, itself an elite division. Major Le Ba Binh commanded the Third Battalion and had a record every bit as impressive as his American adviser. Wounded on a dozen occasions and decorated many times, he was noted for leading his men from the front as would be expected from a member of the aristocratic warrior class.

The Third Battalion was composed of four rifle companies. Two of them and Captain Ripley spent the night before Easter Sunday at an abandoned combat base just west of Dong Ha. The NVA knew they were there, for they pounded the compound all night long with heavy artillery fire. The rounds came screaming in four or five a minute. The Vietnamese got little sleep; Ripley none.

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Blessed Edward Waterson

Born at London; martyred at Newcastle-on-Tyne, 7 January 1594 (1593 old style). A romantic episode marks this martyr’s early career, for as a young man he travelled to Turkey with some English merchants, and attracted the attention of a wealthy Turk, who offered him his daughter in marriage if he would embrace Moslemism. Rejecting the offer with horror, Edward Waterson returned westward through Italy and, coming to Rome, was there reconciled to the Catholic Church by Richard Smith, afterwards Bishop of Chalcedon. The Pilgrim-book of the English College records his stay there, 29 November-11 December, 1588. He then went to Reims to study for the priesthood, arriving there 24 January, 1589. He received the tonsure and minor orders on 18 August, 1590, subdiaconate on 21 September, 1591, diaconate on 24 February, 1592, and the priesthood 11 March following.

This is an illustration, said to be from about 1680, of the permanent gallows at Tyburn, which once stood where Marble Arch now stands. There was a three-mile cart ride in public from Newgate prison to the gallows, with large spectator stands lined along the way, so many people could see the hangings (for a fee). Huge crowds collected on the way and followed the accused to Tyburn.

On 24 June he returned to England, with such zeal for the missions that he declared to his companions that if he might have the Kingdom of France to stay there till the next midsummer he would rather choose to go to England. Though he was not learned, his humility, sprit of penance, and other virtues caused him to be reagarded as a patern. Captured at midsummer, 1593, he was cruelly treated in prison till his execution. Incidents occurred at the martyrdom of a miraculous nature. The horses were unable to drag the hurdle to the scaffold and the ladder was mysteriously agitated by invisible means, till the martyr signed it with the cross.

CHALLONER, Missionary Priests (London, 1781-2); POLLEN, English Martyrs 1584-1603 in C.R.S., V (London, 1908); FOLEY, Diary and Pilgrim Book of English College, Rome (London, 1880); Douay Diaries (London, 1878); HOLTBY, Account of Three Martyrs in MORRIS, Troubles of our Catholic Forefathers, series III (London, 1877).

Edwin Burton (Catholic Encyclopedia)

[Nobility.org note: He was beatified in 1929.]

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The birthday of the emperor Maximian Herculeus was celebrated in the year 298, with extraordinary feasting and solemnity. Pompous sacrifices to the Roman gods made a considerable part of this solemnity.

Marcellus, a Christian centurion or captain of the legion of Trajan, then posted in Spain, not to defile himself with taking part in those impious abominations, cast away his military belt at the head of his company, declaring aloud that he was a soldier of Jesus Christ, the eternal King. He also threw down his arms and the vine-branch, which was the mark of his post of centurion; for the Roman officers were forbid to strike a soldier with any instrument except a vine-branch, which the centurions usually carried in their hands. The soldiers informed Anastasius Fortunatus, prefect of the legion, by whose order Marcellus was committed to prison. When the festival was over, this judge ordered Marcellus to be brought before him, and asked him what he meant by his late proceedings. Marcellus said, “When you celebrated the emperor’s festival on the 12th before the calends of August, (the day on which Maximian had been declared Cæsar,) I said aloud that I was a Christian, and could serve no other than Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Fortunatus told him that it was not in his power to connive at his rashness, and that he was obliged to lay his case before the emperor Maximian and Constantius Cæsar. Spain was immediately subject to Constantius, who was at that time Cæsar, and most favourable to the Christians. But Marcellus was sent under a strong guard to Aurelian Agricolaus, vicar to the prefect of the prætorium, who was then at Tangier, in Africa. Agricolaus asked him whether he had really done as the judge’s letter set forth: and upon his confessing the fact, the vicar passed sentence of death upon him for desertion and impiety, as he called his action. St. Marcellus was forthwith led to execution and beheaded, on the 30th of October. His relics were afterwards translated from Tangier to Leon in Spain, and are kept in a rich shrine in the chief parish church in that city, of which he is the titular saint.

Altar with statue and reliquary of Marcellus in the church of San Marcelo in León.

Altar with statue and reliquary of Marcellus in the church of San Marcelo in León.

Cassian, the secretary or notary of the court, refused to write the sentence which the vicar pronounced against the martyr, and threw his pencil and table-book on the ground. Agricolaus, rising in a rage from his seat, asked him why he behaved in that manner? “Because,” said Cassian, “the sentence which you have dictated is unjust.” He was immediately hurried to prison, and examined again about a month after. The firmness with which he defended his former answer procured him the crown of martyrdom. He was beheaded on the 3rd of December. These two martyrs are mentioned in the Roman Martyrology on their respective days.

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(From the authentic acts of his martyrdom in Baronius and Surius, and most correctly in Ruinart, who has published with them the short acts of St. Cassian, p. 312, Tillem. t. 4, p. 575.)

The Lives of the Saints, by Rev. Alban Butler, 1866.  Volume X: October.

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Mary Elizabeth a Court Repington, Lady Herbert of Lea

Mary Elizabeth a Court Repington, Lady Herbert of Lea

Mary Elizabeth Ashe à Court-Repington was born in Richmond, Surrey, on July 21, 1822. She was the only daughter of Lieutenant-General Charles Ashe à Court-Repington, member of Parliament, and the niece of William à Court, 1st Baron Heytesbury, British Ambassador to the Russian Imperial Court at St. Petersburg.

In August 1846, at the age of 24, she married The Honorable Sidney Herbert, second son of the 11th Earl of Pembroke.

During the Crimean War (1853-1856), her husband was made Secretary of War, and in 1862, 1st Baron Herbert of Lea and a peer of the realm, but died within months, leaving Lady Herbert a widow at 39 years of age, with four young sons and three tender daughters.

Sidney Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Lea, husband of Mary Elizabeth Ashe à Court-Repington.

Sidney Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Lea, husband of Mary Elizabeth Ashe à Court-Repington.

Her eldest son George inherited the barony, and in the following year, he succeeded his uncle as the 13th Earl of Pembroke and 10th Earl of Montgomery.

For many years, Lady Herbert had felt drawn to the Catholic Church, but hesitated greatly in converting, for fear that her young children would be taken from her. Prior to his own conversion to the Catholic faith in 1851, the future Cardinal Manning had been an intimate friend and even spiritual director to her and her husband. But not wanting to create political difficulties for his noble friends, the learned convert had discontinued all contact.

Cardinal Henry Edward Manning, Archbishop of Westminster.

Cardinal Henry Edward Manning, Archbishop of Westminster.

One day, Lady Herbert could resist no longer and dropped in for a visit. Kneeling before him, she asked for his blessing, which he gave in silence.
More and more attracted to the faith, she opened her heart and disclosed her fears to the future Cardinal. He asked her if she had heard of St. Jane Francis de Chantal. When this saint told her children that she was resolved to enter the religious life, a son lied down across the threshold of the door to prevent her leaving. But undaunted, the saint had stepped over him. The example helped Lady Herbert find the moral strength to convert. She abjured Anglicanism and entered the Catholic Church in 1866, five years after her husband’s death.*

She became an “ardent ultramontane,” meaning a strong defender of the Papacy and its rights, and her great spiritual friend, now Archbishop of Westminster, turned out to be the great English champion for the proclaiming of the dogma of papal infallibility in 1870, during the First Vatican Council.

Mary Elizabeth Ashe à Court-RepingtonHer children were taken from her and made wards in Chancery, being raised in the Church of England. Only her eldest daughter, Mary, followed her into the Catholic faith.

Lady Herbert continued to have much influence in Britain’s high society. She wrote and translated extensively, bringing into English from its original French, Father Augustine Berthe’s acclaimed Garcia Moreno. After her conversion to the Catholicism, she traveled to Rome on pilgrimage on an almost annual basis.

Baroness Herbert of Lea died at Herbert House in London, on October 30, 1911.

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* Cf. How I entered the fold by Lady Herbert of Lea

Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 400

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By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira

Our Lady slaying Satan from the pulpit of Adam and Eve, carved by Hendrik Frans Verbruggen, in St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral. Photo taken by Asaf Braverman.

Our Lady slaying Satan from the pulpit of Adam and Eve, carved by Hendrik Frans Verbruggen, in St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral. Photo taken by Asaf Braverman.

It is to have the resolution of soul to wage any battle, at any cost, in any way, facing every sacrifice, to attain the victory of Our Lady over the devil. Now, we cannot say that this spirit is as pure and unstained in us as what I am describing, correct? Then we must confide in Her: That She will grant us this spirit.

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(Excerpt from a Chá of Monday, October 30, 1989.)

(Nobility.org translation.)

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How Saint Anthony Mary Claret Engaged the Culture of His Times

October 24, 2024

by Plinio Maria Solimeo October 23, 2024 How Saint Anthony Mary Claret Engaged the Culture of His Times The history of nineteenth-century Spain cannot be understood without studying the life of this great Catholic missionary.  Saint Anthony Mary Claret was one of the great pillars of the Holy Catholic Church in the nineteenth century. When […]

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October 24 – Confessor to the Queen

October 24, 2024

St. Antonio María Claret y Clará Spanish prelate and missionary, born at Sallent, near Barcelona, 23 Dec., 1807; died at Fontfroide, Narbonne, France, on 24 Oct., 1870. Son of a small woollen manufacturer, he received an elementary education in his native village, and at the age of twelve became a weaver. A little later he […]

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Maria Feodorovna, Tsarina of all the Russias, Patron of the Impoverished Nobility

October 24, 2024

Maria Feodorovna, Tsarina of all the Russias, was born princess of Württemberg on October 25, 1758. She was the second wife of Tsar Paul I, who fought against Napoleon Bonaparte, when the latter began to expand the egalitarian tenets of the French Revolution militarily to the rest of Europe. Among her numerous accomplishments, Tsarina Maria […]

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October 25 – St. Cuthbert Mayne

October 24, 2024

St. Cuthbert Mayne Martyr, born at Yorkston, near Barnstaple, Devonshire (baptized 20 March, 1543-4); died at Launceston, Cornwall, 29 Nov., 1577. He was the son of William Mayne; his uncle was a schismatical priest, who had him educated at Barnstaple Grammar School, and he was ordained a Protestant minister at the age of eighteen or […]

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The Hummingbird

October 24, 2024

by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira  October 26, 1980 Once as I was sitting in the small porch of a farmhouse, a hummingbird suddenly stopped in the air and began sucking nectar from the flowers of climbing ivy. He ‘kissed’ each flower in turn. The hummingbird’s flight was similar to an arrow’s trajectory — so inflexible […]

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The Necessary Spirit of the Crusader

October 24, 2024

In general, medieval men understood the role of fortitude in maintaining their Christian culture. They had no illusions about their own weaknesses and vices. They understood the need to confront the disorders and evils that will always plague this vale of tears. Calling upon God, the faithful in varying degrees summoned from themselves the strength […]

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Bl. Celina Chludzińska v. Borzęcka

October 24, 2024

 (1833-1913) Foundress of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Resurrection Celine Chludzinska Borzecka was born on 29 October 1833 in Antowil, Orsza (formerly Polish territory, today Belarus), to Ignatius and Petronella Chludzinski, whose families were wealthy landowners. One of three children, she grew up in an environment of sound Catholic and patriotic traditions, and […]

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October 27 – Apostle of Africa

October 24, 2024

Sts. Edesius and Frumentius Tyrian Greeks of the fourth century, probably brothers, who introduced Christianity into Abyssinia; the latter a saint and first Bishop of Axum, styled the Apostle of Abyssinia, d. about 383. When still mere boys they accompanied their uncle Metropius on a voyage to Abyssinia. When their ship stopped at one of […]

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The Tale of Saint Ursula

October 21, 2024

Once upon a time, there was once a just and most Christian King of Britain, called Maurus. To him and to his wife Daria was born a little girl, the fairest creature that this earth ever saw. She came into the world wrapped in a hairy mantle, and all men wondered greatly what this might […]

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Blessed Karl, Emperor of Austria

October 21, 2024

(Also known as Carlo d’Austria, Charles of Austria) Born August 17, 1887, in the Castle of Persenbeug in the region of Lower Austria, his parents were the Archduke Otto and Princess Maria Josephine of Saxony, daughter of the last King of Saxony. Emperor Francis Joseph I was Charles’ Great Uncle. Charles was given an expressly […]

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Hammer of Muslim invaders

October 21, 2024

Charles Martel Born about 688; died at Quierzy on the Oise, 21 October, 741. He was the natural son of Pepin of Herstal and a woman named Alpaïde or Chalpaïde. Pepin, who died in 714, had outlived his two legitimate sons, Drogon and Grimoald, and to Theodoald, a son of the latter and then only […]

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October 22 – St. Wendelin of Trier

October 21, 2024

St. Wendelin of Trier Born about 554; died probably in 617. His earliest biographies, two in Latin and two in German, did not appear until after 1417. Their narrative is the following: Wendelin was the son of a Scottish king; after a piously spent youth he secretly left his home on a pilgrimage to Rome. […]

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Abbé Edgeworth: King Louis’ Irish Confessor

October 21, 2024

by Rev. George W. Rutler Among the singularities of the French monarchy was the tradition of having Scottish bodyguards. Scottish history has not been riddled with pacifism, and the Scots along with the fiery Castilians, were used as mercenaries as early as Charlemagne. An “Auld Alliance” between Scotland and France was sealed in 1295, and in […]

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October 23 – Made eunuch because he was prince

October 21, 2024

St. Ignatius of Constantinople Born about 799; died 23 October, 877; son of Emperor Michael I and Procopia. His name, originally Nicetas, was changed at the age of fourteen to Ignatius. Leo the Armenian having deposed the Emperor Michael (813), made Ignatius a eunuch and incarcerated him in a monastery, that he might not become […]

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Knight, Lawyer, Governor, Ambassador, Friar, Prisoner, Reformer, Crusader General, Renaissance Saint

October 21, 2024

St. John of Capistrano Born at Capistrano, in the Diocese of Sulmona, Italy, 1385; died 23 October, 1456. His father had come to Naples in the train of Louis of Anjou, hence is supposed to have been of French blood, though some say he was of German origin. His father dying early, John owed his […]

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Australia does not want to become republic under King Charles, poll suggests

October 17, 2024

Source: Reuters Australia does not want to become a republic under the King, a new poll has suggested. The survey found that one in four respondents had a more favourable view of the monarch now than they did before he was crowned in 2023. Of the 1,049 Australians who responded to the survey by NewsCorp’s […]

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The Battle of Cholet

October 17, 2024

The Battle of Cholet was fought on 17 October 1793 during the French Revolutionary Wars, between French Republican forces under General Léchelle and French Royalist Forces under Louis d’Elbée. The battle was fought in the town of Cholet in the Maine-et-Loire department of France, and resulted in a Republican victory. D’Elbée was wounded and captured; […]

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Be Faithful to Your Duty and Fight, But Never Surrender the City

October 17, 2024

The victory of the Carizmians delivered up the greater part of Palestine to the most redoubtable enemies of the Christian colonies. The Egyptians took possession of Jerusalem, Tiberias, and the cities ceded to the Franks by the prince of Damascus. The hordes of Carismia ravaged all the banks of the Jordan, with the territories of […]

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A Lesson From A French Revolution Martyrdom: Combating Evil Is an Obligation of Every True Catholic

October 17, 2024

September (aka September Massacres; On October 17, 1926, Pope Pius XI beatified 191 of them.) By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira … This is also the feast of the 191 priests martyred on this day in 1792 by the French revolutionaries for refusing to swear the so-called Civil Constitution of the Clergy. The Civil Constitution of […]

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Colonel José de Escandón is ennobled for establishing settlers in South Texas

October 17, 2024

[D]on José [de Escandón] lost little time in acting but did not sacrifice effectiveness to haste. Working with his lieutenants to conduct a publicity campaign along the frontier, he and his officers had little difficulty recruiting potential settlers….Among those recruited as settlers in the new province were ranchers who already owned large herds of livestock […]

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Amidst the Revolution, the women of Paris acclaim Marie Antoinette as their Queen

October 17, 2024

The Queen had sent for me on the morning of the 6th of October, to leave me and my father-in-law in charge of her most valuable property. She took away only her casket of diamonds. Comte Gouvernet de la Tour-du-Pin, to whom the military government of Versailles was entrusted “pro tempore,” came and gave orders […]

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The day that sparked the Crusades

October 17, 2024

Destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre On October 18, 1009, under Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, orders for the complete destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also called the Church of the Resurrection, were carried out. The measures against the church were part of a more general campaign against Christian places […]

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October 19 – Founding Fathers

October 17, 2024

St. Isaac Jogues French missionary, born at Orléans, France, 10 January, 1607; martyred at Ossernenon, in the present State of New York, 18 October, 1646. He was the first Catholic priest who ever came to Manhattan Island (New York). He entered the Society of Jesus in 1624 and, after having been professor of literature at […]

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October 19 – Prayer was his crime

October 17, 2024

Saint Philip Howard Martyr, Earl of Arundel; born at Arundel House, London, 28 June 1557, died in the Tower of London, 19 October, 1595. He was the grandson of Henry, Earl of Surrey, the poet, executed by Henry VIII in 1547, and son of Thomas, Duke of Norfolk executed by Elizabeth 1572. Philip II of […]

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Emperor Marcian

October 17, 2024

Marcian (Marcianus, Μαρκιᾶνος), Roman Emperor at Constantinople, born in Thrace about 390; died January, 457. He became a soldier; during his early life he was poor, and it is said that he arrived at Constantinople with only two hundred pieces of gold, which he had borrowed. He served in the army under Ardaburius the Alan […]

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Grand Duchy of Luxembourg begins transition

October 14, 2024

royalwatcherblog Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg was appointed the ‘Lieutenant Répresentant’ of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg on October 8th… The title of Lieutenant Répresentant has a unique place in Luxembourg’s royal tradition. The role allows the heir apparent to the crown to temporarily take over the duties of the reigning monarch without requiring […]

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October 14 – Barber Family

October 14, 2024

Daniel Barber Daniel Barber, soldier of the Revolution, Episcopalian minister and convert, b. at Simsbury, Connecticut, U.S.A., 2 October, 1756; d. at Saint Inigoes, Maryland, 1834. The conversion of the Barber family, despite the prejudices of a Puritan education and environment, was one of the most notable and far-reaching in its results of any recorded […]

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After almost five centuries, St. Teresa of Avila’s body is still incorrupt

October 14, 2024

According to Catholic News Agency: “Today the tomb of St. Teresa was opened and we have verified that it is in the same condition as when it was last opened in 1914,” said the postulator general of the Discalced Carmelite Order, Father Marco Chiesa of the Carmelite Monastery of Alba de Tormes, where the remains […]

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Interior Castle

October 14, 2024

St. Teresa of Avila Teresa Sanchez Cepeda Davila y Ahumada, born at Avila, Old Castile, 28 March, 1515; died at Alba de Tormes, 4 Oct., 1582. The third child of Don Alonso Sanchez de Cepeda by his second wife, Doña Beatriz Davila y Ahumada, who died when the saint was in her fourteenth year, Teresa […]

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October 15 – Second Apostle of the Prussians

October 14, 2024

St. Bruno of Querfurt (Also called BRUN and BONIFACE). Second Apostle of the Prussians and martyr, born about 970; died 14 February, 1009. He is generally represented with a hand cut off, and is commemorated on 15 October. Bruno was a member of the noble family of Querfurt and is commonly said to have been […]

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On this day, 31 years ago…

October 14, 2024

Book Launching, Milan, October 15, 1993 Nobility and Analogous Traditional Elites in the Allocutions of Pius XII to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility  Pius XII: Great Goals and Immense Means to Bring About the Restoration of the Christian Social Order Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira One of the most important results of the First World War, […]

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October 16 – St. Bercharius

October 14, 2024

St. Bercharius (BERERUS). Abbot of Hautvillers in Champagne, b. 636; d. 28 March, 696. Descended from a distinguished Aquitanian family, he received his instruction from St. Nivard (Nivo), Archbishop of Reims, under whose charge he advaneed rapidly in virtue and learning. Believing himself called to the sacred ministry, he entered the monastery of Luxeuil under […]

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October 16 – Apostle of the Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

October 14, 2024

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque Religious of the Visitation Order. Apostle of the Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, born at Lhautecour, France, 22 July, 1647; died at Paray-le-Monial, 17 October, 1690. Her parents, Claude Alacoque and Philiberte Lamyn, were distinguished less for temporal possessions than for their virtue, which gave them an honourable position. […]

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October 16 – Marie Antoinette

October 14, 2024

Queen of France. Born at Vienna, 2 November, 1755; executed in Paris, 16 October, 1793. She was the youngest daughter of Francis I, German Emperor, and of Maria Theresa. The marriage of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette was one of the last acts of Choiseul’s policy; but the Dauphiness from the first shared the unpopularity […]

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Marie Antoinette, Archduchess of Austria, Queen of France and Capetian Widow

October 14, 2024

(A lecture by Plinio Correa de Oliveira) Most Reverend Monsignor Director of this Academy, Gentlemen Academicians: A simple listing of the titles with which she was known during her short life as Marie Antoinette of Hapsburg, and later Marie Antoinette of Bourbon, brings to memory the series of extraordinary and unforeseen events that together make […]

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Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee statue unveiled

October 10, 2024

Source: BBC The first of two life-size bronze sculptures of Queen Elizabeth II has been unveiled. The statue in Riverside Park in Andover, Hampshire, was commissioned by Test Valley Borough Council to mark the Platinum Jubilee in 2022. Its “sister” statue is due to be placed in Romsey next year. The sculpture depicts the monarch […]

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The Crusades – Part VIII

October 10, 2024

VIII. THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY CRUSADE AND THE OTTOMAN INVASION The loss of Saint-Jean d’Acre did not lead the princes of Europe to organize a new crusade. Men’s minds were indeed, as usual, directed towards the East, but in the first years of the fourteenth century the idea of a crusade inspired principally the works of […]

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How General Lee shared his meager rations with his prisoners

October 10, 2024

That General Lee was a “square” fighter was evidenced time and again during the great conflict for the Union. When his army invaded the North in the campaign that culminated at Gettysburg he gave strict orders that no harm should be done to private property, and General Lee was once seen to get down from […]

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How to overcome bad ancestry

October 10, 2024

St. Francis Borgia (also known as Francisco de Borja y Aragon), born 28 October, 1510, was the son of Juan Borgia, third Duke of Gandia, and of Juana of Aragon; died 30 September, 1572. The future saint was unhappy in his ancestry. His grandfather, Juan Borgia, the second son of Alexander VI, was assassinated in Rome […]

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October 11 – Model Archduke, both spiritual and temporal

October 10, 2024

St. Bruno the Great, Archbishop of Cologne Bruno the Great (or Bruno I) (925–965) was Archbishop of Cologne, Germany, from 953 until his death, and Duke of Lotharingia from 954. He was the brother of Otto I, king of Germany and later Holy Roman Emperor. Bruno was the youngest son of Henry the Fowler and […]

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