Christmas in French salons – Video

December 25, 2023

 Since no door in the town of Bethlehem was opened to the Holy Family, the Infant Jesus was born in a poor stable manger heated only with an ox and ass. In reparation for such lack of hospitality, every year at Christmas, French noble houses open their doors to the Christ Child, his holy […]

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The Story of the Christmas Tree and Why Catholics Decorate Them

December 25, 2023

In the seventh century a monk from Crediton, Devonshire, went to Germany to teach the word of God. His name was Saint Boniface. He did many good works there and spent much time in Thuringia, a region later to become the center of the Christmas decoration industry. Tradition has it that Saint Boniface used the […]

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Marie Antoinette helps the poor

December 21, 2023

Distressed at the plight of the poor resulting from the Winter’s severity, Queen Marie Antoinette saved three hundred thousand francs from her personal budget and turned this sum over to her ladies-in-waiting, the parish priests of Paris, and charitable organizations for distribution among the needy. She also encouraged her daughter to do the same, and […]

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Doctor of the Church & Second Apostle of Germany

December 21, 2023

St. Peter Canisius Born at Nimwegen in the Netherlands, 8 May, 1521; died in Fribourg, 21 November, 1597. His father was the wealthy burgomaster, Jacob Canisius; his mother, Ægidia van Houweningen, died shortly after Peter’s birth. In 1536 Peter was sent to Cologne, where he studied arts, civil law, and theology at the university; he […]

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December 22 – “I swear by St. Eimhin’s bell…”

December 21, 2023

St. Eimhin Abbot and Bishop of Ros-mic-Truin (Ireland), probably in the sixth century. He came of the royal race of Munster, and was brother of two other saints, Culain and Dairmid. Of the early part of his religious life little is known. When he became abbot of the monastery of Ros-mic-Truin, in succession to its […]

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The Knights of Aviz and Their Cistercian Founder – December 23

December 21, 2023

Saint John of Cirita Benedictine monk, also known as John Ziritu. Hermit in Galacia. Monk at Toronca, Portugal, which he helped turn into a Cistercian house. Wrote the Rule of the Knights of Aviz (Portuguese: Ordem Militar de Avis).  Died, c. 1164. The Military Order of St. Benedict of Aviz A military body of Portuguese […]

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He Always Held His Soul in His Hands – December 23

December 21, 2023

Saint Antônio de Sant’Anna Galvão Born 1739, in the village of Santo Antonio da Vila de Guaratinguetá, Brazil; died 23 December, 1822, at the Convent of Light, São Paulo, Brazil. His father, also named Anthony, belonged to an illustrious Portuguese family and was well educated, as evidenced by his writings. He excelled in business, the […]

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Princess Louise de France, Daughter of Louis XV, Carmelite

December 21, 2023

By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira She fought the Revolution when she lived in the Court and later in the Carmel. She died poisoned by the revolutionaries, but her example continues to bear fruit to this day Ed.: The author makes comments throughout the reading of the text on Princess Louise Marie of France. The English […]

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Henri I De Lorraine – Duke of Guise

December 21, 2023

Henry I of Lorraine, Prince de Joinville, and in 1563 third Duke of Guise, born 31 Dec. 1550, the son of François de Guise and Anne d’Este; died at Blois, 23 Dec., 1588. The rumours which attributed to Coligny a share in the murder of François de Guise hailed in the young Henri de Guise, […]

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December 24 – Vasco da Gama

December 21, 2023

Vasco da Gama The discover of the sea route to East Indies; born at Sines, Province of Alemtejo, Portugal, about 1469; died at Cochin, India, 24 December, 1524. His father, Estevão da Gama, was Alcaide Mor of Sines, and Commendador of Cercal, and held an important office at court under Alfonso V. After the return […]

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Our First Parents – Adam and Eve – December 24

December 21, 2023

Adam The first man and the father of the human race. ETYMOLOGY AND USE OF WORD There is not a little divergence of opinion among Semitic scholars when they attempt to explain the etymological signification of the Hebrew word adam (which in all probability was originally used as a common rather than a proper name), […]

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December 18 – St. Flannan

December 18, 2023

St. Flannan mac Toirrdelbaig, was the son of Turlough, the King of Thomond in Ireland. He became a monk at the monastery of Killaloe, and at a certain point made a pilgrimage to Rome where Pope John IV consecrated him bishop. He was the first bishop of Killaloe, the diocese becoming one of twenty-four established […]

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December 19 – Pope St. Anastasius I

December 18, 2023

Pope St. Anastasius I A pontiff who is remembered chiefly for his condemnation of Origenism. A Roman by birth, he became pope in 399, and died within a little less than four years. Among his friends were Augustine, and Jerome, and Paulinus, Jerome speaks of him as a man or great holiness who was rich […]

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December 20 – John Dubois

December 18, 2023

John Dubois Third Bishop of New York, educator and missionary, b. in Paris, 24 August, 1764; d. in New York, 20 December, 1842. His early education was received at home until he was prepared to enter the Collége Louis­le­Grand, where he had for fellow-students Robespierre and Desmoulins. Ordained priest at the Oratorian Seminary of St-Magloire, […]

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December 20 – Her church ranks third in Rome

December 18, 2023

St. Anastasia This martyr enjoys the distinction, unique in the Roman liturgy, of having a special commemoration in the second Mass on Christmas day. This Mass was originally celebrated not in honour of the birth of Christ, but in commemoration of this martyr, and towards the end of the fifth century her name was also […]

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December 20 – Jacob

December 18, 2023

Jacob The son of Isaac and Rebecca, third great patriarch of the chosen people, and the immediate ancestor of the twelve tribes of Israel. The incidents of his life are given in parts of Gen., xxv, 21-1, 13, wherein the documents (J, E, P) are distinguished by modern scholars (see ABRAHAM, I, 52). His name— […]

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December 20 – Isaac

December 18, 2023

Isaac The son of Abraham and Sara. The incidents of his life are told in Genesis 15-35, in a narrative the principal parts of which are traced back by many scholars to three several documents (J, E, P) utilized in the composition of the Book of Genesis (see ABRAHAM). According to Genesis 17:17; 18:12; 21:6, […]

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December 20 – Abraham

December 18, 2023

Abraham The original form of the name, Abram, is apparently the Assyrian Abu-ramu. It is doubtful if the usual meaning attached to that word “lofty father”, is correct. The meaning given to Abraham in Genesis 17:5 is popular word play, and the real meaning is unknown. The Assyriologist, Hommel suggests that in the Minnean dialect, […]

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Christmas Gifts From St. Louis IX of France

December 14, 2023

Louis IX occupied himself constantly in carrying his design into execution, and neglected no mean of winning to his purpose all the nobility of his kingdom; his piety did not disdain to employ, for what he considered a sacred cause, all the empire that kings generally possess over their courtiers. . . . After an […]

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A society of ideals versus miserabilism and a society of consumerism

December 14, 2023

There exist in Europe museums of popular traditional art. They display interesting, picturesque, and magnificent works of craftsmanship which the people have thought up and afterwards retained as a tradition and used for centuries, because in what they have produced the people have found the very expression of their soul. In German, this tendency is […]

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Inside the Kitchens at Buckingham Palace:

December 14, 2023

 Christmas Ginger Bread Biscuits According to the British Royal Household: ‘Its always best to let the dough rest, so it’s great if you can make the dough the night before,’ reveals one Royal Pastry Chefs. ‘You can also roll out the dough, cut the shapes and put them in a freezer for an hour. This […]

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Son of a disinherited noble – December 14

December 14, 2023

St. John of the Cross Founder (with St. Teresa) of the Discalced Carmelites, doctor of mystic theology, born at Hontoveros, Old Castile, 24 June, 1542; died at Ubeda, Andalusia, 14 Dec., 1591. John de Yepes, youngest child of Gonzalo de Yepes and Catherine Alvarez, poor silk weavers of Toledo, knew from his earliest years the […]

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St. Drostan – December 15

December 14, 2023

St. Drostan (DRUSTAN, DUSTAN, THROSTAN) A Scottish abbot who flourished about a.d. 600. All that is known of him is found in the “Breviarium Aberdonense” and in the “Book of Deir”, a ninth-century MS. now in the University Library of Cambridge, but these two accounts do not agree in every particular. He appears to have […]

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The Most Important Woman of Her Century

December 14, 2023

December 16 – St. Adelaide, Empress (931 or 932 – 16 December 999), also called Adelaide of Burgundy, was the second consort to Otto the Great, Holy Roman Emperor and perhaps the most prominent European woman of the 10th century; she was regent of the Holy Roman Empire as the guardian of her grandson in […]

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St. Sturmius and the diocese of Fulda

December 14, 2023

To systematize the work of evangelizing Germany, St. Boniface organized a hierarchy on the usual ecclesiastical basis; in Bavaria the Dioceses of Salzburg, Freising, Ratisbon, and Passau; in Franconia and Thuringia, Würzburg, Eichstätt, Buraburg near Fritzlar, and Erfurt. To facilitate missionary work farther north, especially among the Saxons, he sought a suitable spot for the […]

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Christmas Ideas

December 11, 2023

Looking for some great Christmas Gifts? Click on the picture above to see the many items offered!

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Pope Falsely Accused of Adultery – December 11

December 11, 2023

Pope St. Damasus I Born about 304; died 11 December, 384. His father, Antonius, was probably a Spaniard; the name of his mother, Laurentia, was not known until quite recently. Damasus seems to have been born at Rome; it is certain that he grew up there in the service of the church of the martyr […]

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December 12 – Guadalupe: She Who Smashes the Serpent

December 11, 2023

by Cesar Franco Pope Pius XII gave Our Lady of Guadalupe the title of “Empress of the Americas” in 1945. Since December 12 is the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, this is a propitious moment to recall how She reigns over our nation from Heaven, protecting and guiding us with Motherly solicitude and tenderness. […]

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December 12 – First Catholic Premier of Canada

December 11, 2023

Right Honourable Sir John Sparrow David Thompson Jurist and first Catholic Premier of Canada, b. at Halifax, Nova Scotia, 10 Nov., 1844; d. at Windsor Castle, England, 12 Dec., 1894. He was the son of John Sparrow Thompson, queen’s printer in Nova Scotia, superintendent of the money order system, and native of Waterford, and of […]

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Saint Lucy candle ceremony video and recipes

December 11, 2023

Saint Lucy Day and Saint Lucy Buns Sadly, Scandinavia joined the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century and thus lost that link with the Papacy forged in 960 with the baptism of Harald “Bluetooth” Gormsson, king of Denmark and Norway. Read More

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December 13 – Venerated From Time Immemorial

December 11, 2023

St. Lucy A virgin and martyr of Syracuse in Sicily, whose feast is celebrated by Latins and Greeks alike on 13 Dec. According to the traditional story, she was born of rich and noble parents about the year 283. Her father was of Roman origin, but his early death left her dependent upon her mother, […]

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December 13 – The Grandmother of the Marquise de Sévigné

December 11, 2023

St. Jane Frances de Chantal Born at Dijon, France, 28 January, 1572; died at the Visitation Convent Moulins, 13 December, 1641. Her father was president of the Parliament of Burgundy, and leader of the royalist party during the League that brought about the triumph of the cause of Henry IV. In 1592 she married Baron […]

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Christmas Gift Ideas

December 7, 2023

Looking for some great Christmas Gifts? Click on the picture above to see the many items offered!  

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Almsgiving of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette

December 7, 2023

Louis XVI often visited the poor in their homes and villages, distributing alms from his own purse. During the difficult winter of 1776, the King oversaw the distribution of firewood among the peasants. Louis was responsible for many humanitarian reforms. He went incognito to hospitals, prisons, and factories so as to gain first-hand knowledge of […]

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The foundation is on top…

December 7, 2023

If we want a splendorous and magnificent order in the Reign of Mary, we must come to know the ultimate things there are to know about the order of the Universe. Paraphrasing Camoes, as the Revolution has taken disorder unto caverns never before visited, caverns so deep, it is necessary that order enter into these […]

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Noble Made Bishop by Acclamation

December 7, 2023

St. Ambrose – December 7 Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397; born probably 340, at Trier, Arles, or Lyons; died 4 April, 397. He was one of the most illustrious Fathers and Doctors of the Church, and fitly chosen, together with St. Augustine, St. John Chrysostom, and St. Athanasius, to uphold the venerable Chair […]

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The Immaculate Conception: The Celebration of Privilege

December 7, 2023

Wherefore, in humility and fasting, we unceasingly offered our private prayers as well as the public prayers of the Church to God the Father through his Son, that he would deign to direct and strengthen our mind by the power of the Holy Spirit. In like manner did we implore the help of the entire […]

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The Immaculate Conception: A Marvelous Theme

December 7, 2023

By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira In 2004, the Church celebrated the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception which affirmed that Mary was conceived without Original Sin. (Ed. American TFP) For centuries, the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady was defended by saints, theologians and laymen. However, it took centuries of […]

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The Immaculate Conception: A Marvelous Theme – Continued

December 7, 2023

Previous Taking a Vow In the sixteenth and especially the seventeenth century, the topic became such a burning issue that “in Spain it became impossible to sustain from the pulpit a contrary opinion [to the Immaculate Conception] since the people would react against such preachers with murmurs, clamor and even violence.” (“A cura di Stefano […]

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St. Peter Fourier

December 7, 2023

December 9 – The Banker Who Could Recite the Summa Known as LE BON PÈRE DE MATTAINCOURT (Good Father of Mattaincourt), born at Mirecourt, Lorraine, 30 Nov., 1565 died at Gray, Haute-Saône, 9 Dec., 1640. At fifteen he was sent to the University of Pont-à-Mousson. His piety and learning led many noble families to ask […]

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Pope St. Gregory III – December 10

December 7, 2023

To protest the emperor, he paid special honor images and relics Pope St. Gregory III (Reigned 731-741.) Pope St. Gregory III was the son of a Syrian named John. The date of his birth is not known. His reputation for learning and virtue was so great that the Romans elected him pope by acclamation, when […]

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St. John Damascene – December 4

December 4, 2023

From a Muslim court, he opposed the Christian Emperor, and won St. John Damascene Born at Damascus, about 676; died some time between 754 and 787. The only extant life of the saint is that by John, Patriarch of Jerusalem, which dates from the tenth century (P.G. XCIV, 429-90). This life is the single source […]

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Noble matron faithful unto death

December 4, 2023

December 5 St. Crispina, A martyr of Africa who suffered during the Diocletian persecution; born at Thagara in the Province of Africa; died by beheading at Thebeste in Numidia, 5 December, 304. Crispina belonged to a distinguished family and was a wealthy matron with children. At the time of the persecution she was brought before […]

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Martyr of the Muslims – St. Peter Paschal

December 4, 2023

St. Peter Paschal, Bishop and Martyr This saint was born in Valencia, Spain, in 1227, and descended of the ancient family of the Paschals, which had edified the Church by the triumphs of five glorious martyrs, which it produced under the Moors. Peter’s parents were virtuous and exceedingly charitable; and St. Peter Nolasco often lodged […]

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Golden Legend – Life of Saint Nicholas

December 4, 2023

December 6 – Good St. Nicholas Here beginneth the Life of Saint Nicholas the Bishop. Nicholas is said of Nichos, which is to say victory, and of laos, people, so Nicholas is as much as to say as victory of people, that is, victory of sins, which be foul people. Or else he is said, […]

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How did St. Nicholas evolve into Santa Claus and why?

December 4, 2023

Four artists, working with stories handed down, are responsible for the Santa Claus that we know today as the “spirit of generosity and love.” The other reason we have Santa Claus and not St. Nicholas is due to Protestant hatred against Catholic Saint days. The transformation of St. Nicholas into Father Christmas or Father January […]

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Recipe in Honor of a Saint

December 4, 2023

The veneration of the 4th century Saint and bishop, Nicholas of Myra (also “of Bari,” the resting place of most of his relics), is widespread in both the Christian East and West. In Russia it seems that only the Blessed Virgin Mary is more popular. Few historical records on him survived the harsh test of […]

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Saint Louis to his son: “Avoid waging war on Christians”

November 30, 2023

Saint Louis tried to avoid waging war against Christians every way possible, only resorting to war when every peaceful means to solve the dispute had been exhausted. He recommended the same, in writing, to his son: “Dear son, I encourage you to avoid waging war on Christians by every means possible. If you suffer some […]

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Treasures of the Orient

November 30, 2023

Something of the luxury of the orient shows that the soul of the people was involved in it. The Persian carpet was not thought up by some nabob; not the designs, nor the colors, nor the manner of weaving them. Happy are the modest artisans who, on the shores of the Caspian Sea, make and […]

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RIP – King Leka I

November 30, 2023

On November 30, 2011, His Majesty King Leka I died of heart failure in Tirana, Albania. Albanian President Bamir Topi, Prime Minister Berisha and political parties sent condolences to the Royal family. “His active efforts and role to topple the communist system and, during transition, to heighten Albania’s national values and promote the integrating process […]

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November 30 – His name means manhood, or valour

November 30, 2023

St. Andrew The name “Andrew” (Gr., andreia, manhood, or valour), like other Greek names, appears to have been common among the Jews from the second or third century B.C. St. Andrew, the Apostle, son of Jonah, or John (Matt., xvi, 17; John, i, 42), was born in Bethsaida of Galilee (John, i, 44). He was […]

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December 1 – Sister Anuarita of Bafwabaka: A Mary Goretti of Central Africa

November 30, 2023

The present Soviet-Cuban aggression against the African continent has been prepared by decades of infiltration, propaganda, and communist inspired terrorist activity. The lives of the African people have been systematically disrupted, the land has been devastated, and religious and shrines of the Church have been desecrated. These assaults have at times, by way of reaction, […]

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The Virgin Mary appears to General Gaston de Sonis

November 30, 2023

December 1 – The Virgin Mary appears to General Gaston de Sonis after his army’s losses at Patay promising that France would survive On the night of December 1 [1870], the Zouaves were ordered to advance to Patay [France], where Joan of Arc had won a renowned victory against the English. [General Louis-Gaston de] Sonis […]

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Bl. Ralph Sherwin – December 1

November 30, 2023

Bl. Ralph Sherwin English martyr, born 1550 at Rodesley, near Longford, Derbyshire; died at Tyburn, 1 December, 1581. In 1568 Sir William Petre nominated him to one of the eight fellowships which he had founded at Exeter College, Oxford, probably acting under the influence of the martyr’s uncle, John Woodward, who from 1556 to 1566 […]

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December 2: The Battle of Loigny

November 30, 2023

The battle of Loigny, one of the most bloody encounters of that terrible winter, was made memorable by the heroic attitude of the Pontifical Zouaves, commanded by Charette, who was himself under the orders of General de Sonis, an eminent leader and a fervent Catholic. After the battle, Abbé Theuré’s house was filled with wounded […]

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Our Lady of Joy – December 2

November 30, 2023

Our Lady of Joy (aka Notre Dame de Liesse, or Causa Nostrae Laetitiae) In 1134 three Knights of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, prisoners of the Muslims in Egypt, miraculously found or received in their prison a statue of Our Lady, which they named Our Lady of Joy, or Notre Dame de Liesse. […]

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St. Francis Xavier, Apostle of the Indies – December 3

November 30, 2023

St. Francis Xavier Born in the Castle of Xavier near Sanguesa, in Navarre, 7 April, 1506; died on the Island of Sancian near the coast of China, 2 December, 1552. In 1525, having completed a preliminary course of studies in his own country, Francis Xavier went to Paris, where he entered the collège de Sainte-Barbe. […]

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The king who made France “First-born daughter of the Church”

November 27, 2023

Clovis Son of Childeric, King of the Salic Franks; born in the year 466; died at Paris, 27 November, 511. He succeeded his father as the King of the Franks of Tournai in 481. His kingdom was probably one of the States that sprang from the division of Clodion’s monarchy like those of Cambrai, Tongres […]

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Lessons in Psychological Warfare – Siege of Jasna Góra

November 27, 2023

Siege of Jasna Góra, November 28-December 27, 1655 This account of the siege of  Częstochowa is based on the Memoirs of the Siege of Czestochowa by Father Augustine Kordecki (Pamietnik oblezenia Częstochowy, edited and with a preface by Jan Tokarski, London, Veritas, 1956.) Written by Friar Kordecki in response to a wish of King Casimir, […]

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Count Louis de Baude Frontenac

November 27, 2023

November 28 – Count Louis de Baude Frontenac A governor of New France, born at Paris, 1662; died at Quebec, 28 Nov., 1698. His father was captain of the royal castle of St-Germain-en-laye; his mother, née Phelypeaux, was the daughter of the king’s secretary of state; Louis XIII was his godfather. By his valour and […]

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