Eighty-five martyrs of England and Wales

Eighty-five Martyrs of England and Wales
Died	Between 1584 and 1679, England and Wales
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church
Beatified	22 November 1987, by Pope John Paul II

The Eighty-five Martyrs of England and Wales are a group of men who were executed on charges of treason and related offences in the Kingdom of England between 1584 and 1679. Of the eighty-five, seventy-five (sixty-one priests and fourteen laymen) were executed under Jesuits, etc. Act 1584.

They are considered martyrs in the Roman Catholic Church and were beatified on 22 November 1987 by Pope John Paul II.

They were chosen from a number of priests and laymen executed between 1584 and 1679. Their names were:

In England, these martyrs, together with those beatified between 1886 and 1929, are commemorated by a feast day on 4 May. This day also honours the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales who hold the rank of saint; the Forty Martyrs were honoured separately on 25 October until the liturgical calendar for England was revised in the year 2000.

In Wales, 4 May specifically commemorates the beatified martyrs of England and Wales. At least two of the martyrs named in this group of 85 - William Davies and Charles Mahoney - have Welsh connections. In the Welsh calendar, 25 October is still kept as a distinct feast of the 'Six Welsh Martyrs and their companions', as the Forty canonised Martyrs are known in Wales.

Queen Elizabeth I was excommunicated by Pope Pius V, on 25 February 1570, creating a situation full of perplexity for English Roman Catholics. Once this declaration was made, a number of Catholics acted on it, and a number, under the influence of Spanish ambassador Bernardino de Mendoza and others, were implicated in plots against Elizabeth which were undoubtedly treasonable from the English Government's point of view. That a certain party of English Catholics was in rebellion against Elizabeth is not disputed. Thus William Allen, with many of the exiles of Douai and Louvain, and Robert Persons, with many of the Jesuits, saw in the rule of Elizabeth a greater danger to the highest interests of England than had previously been threatened in cases where history had justified the deposition of kings. And the supreme authority had sanctioned this view.

...
Wikipedia