Is it a resignation or an abdication? – CNN

February 14, 2013

According to CNN: When Pope Benedict XVI announced Monday that he would step down at the end of the month, an interesting debate sprang up: Do popes resign or abdicate? This is a rare situation; the last pope to resign was Gregory XII in 1415. To read the entire article on CNN, please click here. […]

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Royal couple pay anniversary visit to Luxembourg Air Rescue – News

February 14, 2013

According to the Luxemburger Wort: Luxembourg’s Crown Prince and his new wife got to grips with the work of emergency workers at Luxembourg’s Air Rescue (LAR) during a special visit last week. For LAR, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, the important year began well when Luxembourg’s Prince Guillaume and Princess Stéphanie called in […]

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New coin commemorates Luxembourg Royal wedding – News

February 14, 2013

According to the Luxemburger Wort; Royalty fans will be able to carry around a permanent keepsake from the Luxembourg Crown Prince’s wedding thanks to the launch of a new coin. The commemorative two-euro royal wedding coin features portraits of Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume, his bride, Princess Stéphanie, and father, Grand Duke Henri. It is stamped […]

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The portress who forgave the revolutionary murderer of her only son

February 14, 2013

When the Chouans first took up arms, there lived as portress in the chateau of Thuré a poor widow woman named Madame Huneau. She was known to all the country round for her works of mercy. Having acquired some practical knowledge of medicine, she was a constant attendant upon the sick-beds of the poor; and […]

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If we are of the Church Militant then we should cherish our fight

February 14, 2013

(based on a talk by Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira)   Every man is born a soldier, although not every soldier will use his arms. Yes, all men are born soldiers because, as the Scripture states, Militia est vita hominis super terram [The life of man upon earth is a warfare] (Job 7:1). Our life […]

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February 14 – Renounced Earthly Nobility To Obtain Heavenly Nobility

February 14, 2013

Sts. Cyril and Methodius These brothers, the Apostles of the Slavs, were born in Thessalonica, in 827 and 826 respectively. Though belonging to a senatorial family they renounced secular honors and became priests. They were living in a monastery on the Bosphorus, when the Khazars sent to Constantinople for a Christian teacher. Cyril was selected […]

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February 15 – St. Claude de la Colombière

February 14, 2013

St. Claude de la Colombière Missionary and ascetical writer, born of noble parentage at Saint-Symphorien-d’Ozon, between Lyons and Vienne, in 1641; died at Paray-le-Monial, 15 Feb., 1682. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1659. After fifteen years of religious life he made a vow, as a means of attaining the utmost possible perfection, to […]

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February 17 – Marvelous Apparition of Our Lady To Seven Young Nobles

February 14, 2013

St. Alexis Falconieri Born in Florence, 1200; died 17 February, 1310, at Mount Senario, near Florence. He was the son of Bernard Falconieri, a merchant prince of Florence, and one of the leaders of the Republic. His family belonged to the Guelph party, and opposed the Imperialists whenever they could consistently with their political principles. […]

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When Royalty Promote Revolution…

February 11, 2013

 As the world grapples with the homosexual revolution’s efforts to subvert public morality regarding homosexual acts–urging people to reject the perennial teachings of the Catholic Church and natural moral law that homosexual acts are “intrinsically disordered” and “grave sins,” and striving to have such acts accepted by all as perfectly normal–it pains us to see […]

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Serbia State Funeral and Reburial of King Petar – Royal Blog

February 11, 2013

According to the Royal Blog: Serbia will hold a State Funeral for King Petar II, the last reigning monarch of Yugoslavia on Sunday May 26, Crown Prince Aleksandar II announced on Thursday. The king will be laid to rest in the Royal Family’s Mausoleum in St George’s Church in Oplenac. Crown Prince Aleksandar, godson of […]

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Marie Antoinette comforts the Dauphin

February 11, 2013

The rioting mob forced the French royal family to leave Versailles and settle in the Tuilleries but that Parisian palace caused a doleful impression in everyone as it had been unoccupied for some years. The six-year old Dauphin exclaimed: —“But everything is so ugly here, Mamma!” Filled with sadness, the Queen tried to comfort him, […]

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Pius XII: Allocution of January 14, 1952

February 11, 2013

Faithful to your ancient tradition, beloved Sons and Daughters, you have again come this year to present the visible Head of the Church with a testimonial of your devotion and your fond wishes for the New Year. We welcome them with keen and affectionate gratitude, and offer you in return Our warmest regards. We include […]

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February 11 – Elected pope while on Crusade in Palestine

February 11, 2013

Blessed Pope Gregory X Born 1210; died 10 January, 1276. Pope Gregory X was declared Blessed on July 8, 1713 by Pope Clement XI. The death of Pope Clement IV (29 November, 1268) left the Holy See vacant for almost three years. The cardinals assembled at Viterbo were divided into two camps, the one French […]

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February 13 – St. Catherine de Ricci

February 11, 2013

St. Catherine de Ricci, Virgin (AD 1522 – 1589) The Ricci are an ancient family, which still subsists in a flourishing condition in Tuscany. Peter de Ricci, the father of our saint, was married to Catherine Bonza, a lady of suitable birth. The saint was born at Florence in 1522, and called at her baptism […]

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The remains of Richard III of England should receive Catholic burial

February 7, 2013

The remains of Richard III, King of England, have been discovered more than 600 years after the battle of Bosworth in which he died at 32 years of age. Matching DNA, evidence of battle wounds, a scoliosis-curved spine, and the location of his grave where the Grayfriars in Leicester used to be all attest that […]

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Jordan’s Queen Visits Elderly Home-Care Center

February 7, 2013

From The Royal Forums: Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah paid a visit to the elderly home care center at Al Asirra Al Bayda’a Society. During the visit, Queen Rania met with volunteers from the Jordan Volunteers group who provide psychological, social and medical services to the elderly. For the full news item in The […]

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Patton on leading from the front

February 7, 2013

“In war every man is expendable. That includes me! Any man who thinks he is indispensable already is not worth his weight in anything. I will get a transfer for such an officer immediately. Every man must be willing to give his life to accomplish the mission, but do not lose your life without making […]

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Pius XII: Allocution of January 12, 1950

February 7, 2013

If, dear Sons and Daughters, following the example of Our Predecessors, We are accustomed to welcoming you at the start of the New Year to receive and exchange our good wishes, it is because Our heart, far from obeying worldly considerations or preferences, is moved by feelings of honor and loyalty.  In you We hail […]

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February 7 – From Liberal to Anti-liberal

February 7, 2013

Pope Blessed Pius IX (GIOVANNI MARIA MASTAI-FERRETTI). Pope from 1846-78; born at Sinigaglia, 13 May, 1792; died in Rome, 7 February, 1878. BEFORE HIS PAPACY His early years. After receiving his classical education at the Piarist College in Volterra from 1802-09 he went to Rome to study philosophy and theology, but left there in 1810 […]

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February 7 – This Saintly King Is Father To Three More Saints

February 7, 2013

St. Richard, King and Confessor This saint was an English prince, in the kingdom of the West-Saxons, and was perhaps deprived of his inheritance by some revolution in the state: or he renounced it to be more at liberty to dedicate himself to the pursuit of Christian perfection. His three children, Winebald, Willibald, and Warburga, […]

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February 8 – Saint John of Matha, a strong and mighty Angel

February 7, 2013

Saint John of Matha Founder of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity. He was born into Provencal nobility in 1154 at Faucon-de-Barcelonnette, France. As a youth, he was educated at Aix-en-Provence, and later studied theology at the University of Paris. While in Paris, he was urged by a vision during his first Mass to […]

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February 8 – Mary Queen of Scots

February 7, 2013

Mary Queen of Scots Mary Stuart, born at Linlithgow, 8 December, 1542; died at Fotheringay, 8 February, 1587. She was the only legitimate child of James V of Scotland. His death (14 December) followed immediately after her birth, and she became queen when only six days old. The Tudors endeavored by war to force on […]

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February 9 – Banished From the Court

February 7, 2013

St. Ansbert Archbishop of Rouen in 695, Confessor He had been chancelor to King Clotair III in which station he had united the mortification and recollection of a monk with the duties of wedlock, and of a statesman. Quitting the court, he put on the monastic habit at Fontenelle under St. Wandregisile, and when that […]

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February 10 – He fought socialism in both its Nazi and Soviet form, and paid for it with his life

February 7, 2013

BL. ALOJZIJE STEPINAC was born into a large Catholic family on 8 May 1898 in Krasic. After graduation from high school in 1916, he completed military service during World War I. In 1924 he decided to study for the priesthood and was sent to Rome, where he attended the Pontifical Germanicum-Hungaricum College. He earned doctorates […]

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Priest rebukes King publicly during Holy Week ceremony

February 4, 2013

Jesuit Father Gouthier preached to the Court at Saint-Gervais during the Holy Week ceremonies, but became upset with the ladies’ behavior, seeing them giggling and sending frequent signals to the king so as to provoke him to laughter as well. Indignant, he raised his voice from the pulpit and said: —    “Your Majesty, when will […]

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Grand Duchess a patroness of new Notre Dame bell – Luxemburger Wort

February 4, 2013

According to the Luxemburger Wort: [Luxembourg] Grand Duchess Maria Teresa will act as patroness at the consecration of Notre Dame Cathedral’s new bells in Paris on Saturday. Nine new bells will be blessed by [the] Archbishop of Paris, at the French capital’s cathedral to mark its 850th anniversary, with Luxembourg’s Grand Duchess assisting the blessing […]

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Cornish town remembers its little princess – Western Morning News

February 4, 2013

According to the Western Morning News: An intriguing chapter linking the last emperor of a 3,000-year-old African dynasty and a West Cornwall town has come to a close with the death of Ethiopian princess, Aida Desta. Aida Desta was the… direct descendant of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba…. His granddaughter, who died in […]

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Pius XII: Allocution of January 11, 1951

February 4, 2013

With all Our heart We extend Our paternal greeting to the members of the Roman Patriciate and Nobility who, true to an ancient tradition, have gathered around Us at the dawn of the New Year to offer Us their fervent best wishes, as expressed with filial devotion by their illustrious and eloquent representative. One after […]

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February 4 – St. Jeanne de Valois

February 4, 2013

St. Jeanne de Valois Queen and foundress of the Order of the Annonciades, b. 1464; d. at Bourges, 4 Feb., 1505. Daughter of one king and wife of another, there are perhaps few saints in the calendar who suffered greater or more bitter humiliations than did Madame Jeanne de France, the heroic woman usually known […]

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February 4 – Portuguese noble and favorite of the king, he strove to convert the nobility of India – and paid for it with his life

February 4, 2013

St. John de Brito Martyr, born in Lisbon, 1 March, 1647, and was brought up at Court, martyred in India 11 February, 1693. Entering the Society of Jesus at fifteen, he obtained as his mission-field Madura in southern India. In September, 1673, he reached Goa. Before taking up his work he spent thirty days in […]

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February 5 – St. Agatha

February 4, 2013

St. Agatha One of the most highly venerated virgin martyrs of Christian antiquity, put to death for her steadfast profession of faith in Catania, Sicily. Although it is uncertain in which persecution this took place, we may accept, as probably based on ancient tradition, the evidence of her legendary life, composed at a later date, […]

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February 5 – St. Adelaide of Cologne

February 4, 2013

St. Adelaide (of Cologne) Abbess, born in the tenth century; died at Cologne, 5 February, 1015. She was daughter of Megingoz, Count of Guelders, and when still very young entered the convent of St. Ursula in Cologne, where the Rule of St. Jerome was followed. When her parents founded the convent of Villich, opposite the […]

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February 5 – He put the Bible to verse and prose

February 4, 2013

St. Avitus (Alcimus Ecdicius). A distinguished bishop of Vienne, in Gaul, from 490 to about 518, though his death is place by some as late as 525 or 526. He was born of a prominent Gallo-Roman family closely related to the Emperor Avitus and other illustrious persons, and in which episcopal honors were hereditary. In […]

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Plans unveiled for anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, trip to Rome – ITV

January 31, 2013

According to ITV: The 60th anniversary of the Queen’s coronation is to be marked by a service of celebration at Westminster Abbey. The service is expected to be one of the major highlights of this year’s coronation celebrations along with a four-day festival in Buckingham Palace Gardens in July. Buckingham Palace said the service will […]

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Queen Beatrix to abdicate Dutch throne – National Post

January 31, 2013

According to the National Post: Dutch Queen Beatrix announced Monday that she will abdicate on April 30 after 33 years as head of state, clearing the way for her eldest son, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, to become the nation’s first king in more than a century. “Responsibility for our country must now lie in the hands […]

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General of the Army Douglas MacArthur: “the symbol of the conscience of the American people”

January 31, 2013

[President Roosevelt] sent for me frequently and often asked my comments on his social programs, but almost never again on military affairs. One evening, during dinner, curiosity and perhaps some measure of pique prompted me to ask him, “Why is it, Mr. President, that you frequently inquire my opinion regarding social reforms under consideration, matters […]

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Pius XII: Allocution of January 9, 1958

January 31, 2013

With great satisfaction We welcome you, beloved Sons and Daughters, into Our house, which is still pervaded by the holy fragrances of the Christmas holiday. You have come to reconfirm your devout fidelity to this Apostolic See, and with the heart of a father anxious to surround himself with his children’s affections, We comply most […]

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January 31 – St. John Bosco Meets His First Noble Patroness

January 31, 2013

Juliette Colbert, a native of Vendée, had married Marquis Tancredi Falletti of Barolo, and of her it could be said, even as we read of Tabitha in the Acts of the Apostles: “This woman had devoted herself to good works and acts of charity.” Indeed, she used her abundant wealth to help the working classes […]

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January 31 – The Glory of the Ladies

January 31, 2013

St. Marcella (325–410)  She was a Christian ascetic in ancient Rome. Growing up in Rome, she was influenced by her pious mother, Albina, an educated woman of wealth and benevolence. Childhood memories centered around piety, and one in particular related to Athanasius, who lodged in her home during one of his many exiles. He may […]

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February 3 – The Stuff of Which Saints Are Made

January 31, 2013

St. Anschar (Or Saint Ansgar, Anskar or Oscar.) Called the Apostle of the North, was born to the French nobility in Picardy, 8 September, 801; died 5 February, 865. He became a Benedictine of Corbie, whence he passed into Westphalia. With Harold, the newly baptized King of Denmark who had been expelled from his kingdom […]

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February 3 – Half Fierce Pagan Princess, Half Gentle Christian Princess

January 31, 2013

St. Werburgh of Chester (WEREBURGA, WEREBURG, VERBOURG). Benedictine, patroness of Chester, Abbess of Weedon, Trentham, Hanbury, Minster in Sheppy, and Ely, born in Staffordshire early in the seventh century; died at Trentham, 3 February, 699 or 700. Her mother was St. Ermenilda, daughter of Ercombert, King of Kent, and St. Sexburga, and her father, Wulfhere, […]

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Our Lord Jesus Christ Willed to Be Born a Noble; He Himself Loved the Aristocracy

January 28, 2013

From the allocution of Pius IX to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on December 29, 1872: Jesus Christ Himself loved aristocracy; and if I am not mistaken, I expounded upon this idea on another occasion. He too chose to be of noble birth, of the House of David; and His Gospel shows us His family […]

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RIP Princess Aida Desta of Ethiopia

January 28, 2013

Princess Aida Desta died on January 15, 2013 in northern Virginia. She was the daughter of Ras Desta Damtew and Princess Tenagnework, granddaughter of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. She was the wife of Leul Ras Mangasha Seyum, Prince of Tigray, son of Seyum Mangasha, and great-grandson of Emperor Yohannes IV.     The young […]

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Larochejacquelein is killed by the men whose lives he spared

January 28, 2013

While Turreau was thus devastating La Vendée, where were Larochejacquelein, Stofflet, and Charette? Had they forgotten their country and its cause—were they deaf to her cries of distress? Charette still fought in the depths of the Marais; Stofflet in the recesses of the Bocage; but Larochejacquelein, the young, the brave, the chivalrous, the peasants’ idol […]

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January 28 – Great in War and in Peace

January 28, 2013

Charlemagne (French for Charles the Great, Carolus Magnus, or Carlus Magnus; German Karl der Grosse). The name given by later generations to Charles, King of the Franks, first sovereign of the Christian Empire of the West; born 2 April, 742; died at Aachen, 28 January, 814. At the time of Charles’ birth, his father, Pepin […]

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January 28 – Angelic Doctor, Italian Count

January 28, 2013

St. Thomas Aquinas Philosopher, theologian, doctor of the Church (Angelicus Doctor), patron of Catholic universities, colleges, and schools. Born at Rocca Secca in the Kingdom of Naples, 1225 or 1227; died at Fossa Nuova, 7 March, 1274. I. LIFE The great outlines and all the important events of his life are known, but biographers differ […]

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Princess Sophie has twin boys!

January 24, 2013

The official website of the House of Hohenzollern announced that Princess Sophie, wife of the head of the Prussian Royal Family, Prince Georg Friedrich, gave birth to twin boys on Sunday, 20 January, 2013, in Bremen, Germany: “With great joy and gratitude the head of the house announced the birth of his sons Louis and […]

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BBC News – Royal succession: Rules from ‘bygone era’, says Clegg

January 24, 2013

According to BBC News: Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg told MPs: “The current rules of succession belong to a bygone era. They reflect old prejudices and old fears. Under current laws, dating back to the 1701 Act of Settlement, women are superseded by their brothers in succession even if they are the first born. The […]

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July 16 – Catholic Spain’s fate in the balance at the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa

January 24, 2013

The following year was a memorable one for all Spain. King Alfonso of Castile, in face of the Almohade danger, had launched an alert to Christendom; answering it, the Christian princes had assembled not only from Spain but also from other countries. Pope Innocent III proclaimed a Crusade against the Moors of Spain and bestowed […]

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The Church Loves All the Classes and the Harmonious Inequality Among Them

January 24, 2013

Leo XIII teaches in his allocution to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on January 24, 1903: The Roman Pontiffs have always taken care to equally protect and ameliorate the lot of the humble, and to support and augment the honor of the upper classes. For they carry on the mission of Jesus Christ, not only […]

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January 24 – Ironmonger Was His Alias

January 24, 2013

Blessed William Ireland (Alias Ironmonger.) Jesuit martyr, born in Lincolnshire, 1636; executed at Tyburn, 24 Jan. (not 3 Feb.), 1679; eldest son of William Ireland of Crofton Hall, Yorkshire, by Barbara, a daughter of Ralph Eure, of Washingborough, Lincolnshire (who is to be distinguished from the last Lord Eure) by his first wife. He was […]

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January 24 – Saintly and Aristocrat

January 24, 2013

St. Francis de Sales Bishop of Geneva, Doctor of the Universal Church; born at Thorens, in the Duchy of Savoy, 21 August, 1567; died at Lyons, 28 December, 1622. His father, François de Sales de Boisy, and his mother, Françoise de Sionnaz, belonged to old Savoyard aristocratic families. The future saint was the eldest of […]

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January 25 – St. Poppo

January 24, 2013

St. Poppo Abbot, born 977; died at Marchiennes, 25 January, 1048. He belonged to a noble family of Flanders; his parents were Tizekinus and Adalwif. About the year 1000 he made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land with two others of his countrymen. Soon after this he also went on a pilgrimage to Rome. He […]

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January 25 – Blessed Teresa Grillo Michel

January 24, 2013

BL. TERESA GRILLO MICHEL was born in Spinetta Marengo (Alessandria), Italy, on 25 September 1855. She was the fifth and last child of Giuseppe, the head physician at the Civil Hospital of Alessandria, and of Maria Antonietta Parvopassau, a descendent of an illustrious family of Alessandria. At Baptism she was given the name of Maddalena. […]

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January 26 – She was from one of the first families of Rome

January 24, 2013

St. Paula Born in Rome, 347; died at Bethlehem, 404. She belonged to one of the first families of Rome. Left a widow in 379 at the age of 32 she became, through the influence of St. Marcella and her group, the model of Christian widows. In 382 took place her decisive meeting with St. […]

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220 years ago today, this king was put to death – just for being a king

January 21, 2013

His Last Will and Testament The last Will and Testament of Louis XVI, King of France and Navarre, given on Christmas day, 1792. In the name of the Very holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Ghost. To-day, the 25th day of December, 1792, I, Louis XVI King of France, being for more than four months […]

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New royal succession law despite MP’s Kaiser warning – BBC News

January 21, 2013

According to BBC News: [T]he MP for Louth and Horncastle Sir Peter Tapsell has warned of the dangers of breaking with centuries of tradition. Speaking in the Commons, the Father of the House said: “But for our law of male primogeniture, the German Kaiser would have become King of England…” A quick check on the […]

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Bahrain police disperse anti-regime protest

January 21, 2013

According to AFP: Bahrain police on Friday fired tear gas to disperse Shiite protesters who took to the streets of the capital Manama chanting anti-regime slogans, witnesses said. The demonstration coincided with the final football game in the Gulf Cup of Nations being hosted in the Sunni-ruled kingdom. “Down (King) Hamad,” yelled protesters who attempted […]

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René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle, claims the Mississippi, its affluents, and the Great West for Louis XIV and France

January 21, 2013

And now they neared their journey’s end. On the sixth of April [1682] the river divided itself into three broad channels. La Salle followed that of the west, and Dautray that of the east, while Tonty took the middle passage. As he drifted down the turbid current, between the low and marshy shores, the brackish […]

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Pius XII: Allocution of January 14, 1948, to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility

January 21, 2013

Although the present difficult circumstances have advised Us this year to give your traditional audience an external form different from the custom, neither the reception of your homages and vows nor the expression of Our best wishes for you and your families has lost any of their intimate value and profound significance. Just as the […]

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