Bienheureux Georges
Napper
Prêtre et martyr en
Angleterre (+ 1610)
Né à Holywell Manor, à Oxford, il fut élevé au "Collège du Corps du Christ" dans la même ville. Après ses études à Douai, au séminaire destiné aux futurs prêtres qui retournaient en Angleterre, il y fut ordonné prêtre en 1596. De retour dans son pays, il exerça son ministère sacerdotal dans l'Oxforshire, mais il fut arrêté en 1610 et exécuté.
Pour gagner des âmes au Christ dans l'Église, il fit un travail remarquable,
tant dans son ministère clandestin que dans sa prison, et, sous le roi Jacques
Ier, à cause de son sacerdoce, il fut condamné à mort et conduit à la potence.
Martyrologe romain
SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/8981/Bienheureux-Georges-Napper.html
GEORGE NAPPER
Prêtre, Martyr, Bienheureux
1550-1610
Martyr anglais, né au
manoir de Holywell, Oxford, en 1550 ; et exécuté à Oxford le 9 novembre,
1610.
Il était fils d'Edward
Napper (décédé en 1558), proviseur, en son temps, du All Souls College, et
d’Anne, sa seconde épouse, fille de John Peto, de Chesterton, Warwickshire, et
nièce de William, cardinal Peto.
Il entra au Collège
Corpus Christi le 5 janvier, 1565-6, mais en fut expulsé en 1568 comme un
hérétique. Le 24 août 1579, il effectua une visite au Collège anglais de
Reims — qui accueillait alors un grand nombre d'étudiants
anglais —, mais en décembre 1580, il fut emprisonné. Il était encore
emprisonné rue Wood Counter , Londres, le 30 septembre, 1588 ; lorsqu'il
fut libéré en juin 1589, suite à une grâce royale dont il fut le bénéficiaire.
Il entra alors au Collège anglais de Douai, en 1596, et de là il fut envoyé en
mission en 1603. Il semble avoir vécu avec son frère William à Holywell.
Arrêté à Kirtlington, à
quatre miles de Woodstock, très tôt dans la matinée du 19 juillet 1610, alors
qu’il avait sur lui un ciboire contenant deux hosties consacrées ainsi qu'un
petit reliquaire. Traduit devant Sir Francis Eure à Upper Heyford, il subit une
fouille en règle, mais on ne trouva sur lui que son bréviaire, de l’huile
sainte, et un étui à aiguilles avec du fil et un dé à coudre. Le lendemain, il
fut envoyé au Château d’Oxford, et mit en examen à la session suivante pour le
simple motif qu’il était prêtre. La possession sur lui des saintes huiles fut
jugée comme une preuve accablante, et il fut condamné, puis gracié peu après.
En prison, il réconcilia un condamné nommé Falkner, et cela ne fit qu’aggraver son
crime. Plus tard, le 2 novembre, on croyait qu'il allait voir sa peine commuée
en exil. Comme il refusa le serment d'allégeance, qui décrivait le pouvoir du
pape comme “faux, condamnable, et sa doctrine hérétique”, on décida de
l'exécuter.
Il souffrit le martyr
entre une et deux heures de l'après-midi, après avoir dit la messe ce matin-là.
Sa tête selon Wood fut accrochée sur le Tom Gateway ; selon la déclaration
moins probable de Challoner sur le clocher de l'église du Christ. Des morceaux
de son corps ont été placés sur les quatre portes de la ville, mais au moins
quelques-uns ont été secrètement enlevés, et enterrés dans la chapelle
(aujourd'hui une grange) du manoir de Sanford, une ancienne commanderie des
Templiers.
Alphonse Rocha
SOURCE : http://alexandrina.balasar.free.fr/george_napper.htm
A
plaque to Bl. George Napier in a wall of Oxford Castle was blessed by the
Catholic Archbishop of Birmingham on October 23, 2010 near the site of the
Castle Gallows. Photo by Joseph Shaw.
Also
known as
George Napier
29 October as
one of the Martyrs
of Douai
1 December as
one of the Martyrs
of Oxford University
Profile
Son of George and Anne
Napper; his father taught at
All Souls College. Great-nephew of William Cardinal Peto. Educated at
Corpus Christi College in Oxford; seminarian at
the English College, Douai, France. Ordained in 1596,
he returned to England to
minister to the covert Catholics in
Oxfordshire, England beginning
in 1603.
He travelled the
countryside on foot, and apparently lived with his brother William who put
himself in great danger by hiding him. He was betrayed and arrested on 19 July 1610 when
he was found carrying a breviary, holy oils,
a reliquary,
and a pyx containing
two consecrated Hosts;
when he was later searched, the reliquary and pyx had
disappeared. George was sent to Oxford Castle where he was convicted of the
crime of priesthood.
While in prison,
he ministered to fellow prisoners;
this was considered an additional crime. He was offered a commutation of his
sentence from death to exile if
he would sign an oath of allegiance against the pope;
he declined. Martyr.
Born
1550 at
Holywell Manor, Oxford, England
hanged,
drawn, and quartered between 1 and 2 in the afternoon of 9 November 1610 at Oxford, England
body parts hung on the
city gates as warnings to other Catholics
some parts recovered and
given burial at
Sanford manor
8 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI (decree
of martyrdom)
15
December 1929 by Pope Pius XI
Additional
Information
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Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
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Martirologio Romano, 2005 edition
MLA
Citation
“Blessed George
Napper“. CatholicSaints.Info. 30 April 2022. Web. 8 November 2023.
<https://catholicsaints.info/blessed-george-napper/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/blessed-george-napper/
Ven. George Napper
(Or Napier).
English martyr, born
at Holywell manor,
Oxford, 1550; executed at Oxford 9 November, 1610. He was a son of Edward
Napper (d. in 1558), sometime Fellow of All Souls College, by Anne, his second
wife, daughter of John Peto, of Chesterton, Warwickshire, and niece of William, Cardinal Peto.
He entered Corpus Christi College 5 January, 1565-6, but was ejected in 1568 as
a recusant. On
24 August, 1579, he paid a visit to the English College at Reims, and by December,
1580, he had been imprisoned.
He was still in the Wood Street Counter, London, on 30 September, 1588; but was
liberated in June, 1589, on acknowledging the royal supremacy. He entered the
English College, Douai,
in 1596, and was sent on the mission in 1603. He appears to have lived with his
brother William at Holywell.
He was arrested at Kirtlington, four miles from Woodstock, very early in the
morning of 19 July, 1610, when he on him a pyx containing
two consecrated Hosts
as well as a small reliquary.
Brought before Sir Francis Eure at Upper Heyford (Wood says before a justice named
Chamberlain), he was strictly searched; but the constable found nothing but his
breviary, his holy
oils, and a needle case with thread and thimble. The next day he was sent
to Oxford Castle, and indicted at the session soon after under 27 Eliz., c. 2
for being a priest.
The possession of the oils was held to be conclusive and he was condemned, but
reprieved. In gaol he reconciled a condemned felon named Falkner, and this was
held to aggravate his crime, but as late as 2 November it was believed that he
would have his sentence commuted to one of banishment. As he refused the oath of allegiance,
which described the papal deposing
power as a "false, damnable, and heretical" doctrine, it was decided
to execute him. He suffered between one and two in the afternoon, having
said Mass that
morning. His head according to Wood was set up on Tom Gateway; according to
Challoner's less probable statement on Christ Church steeple. His quarters were
placed on the four city gates, but at least some were secretly removed, and
buried in the chapel (now
a barn) of Sanford manor, formerly a preceptory of Knights Templar.
Wainewright,
John. "Ven. George Napper." The Catholic
Encyclopedia. Vol. 10. New York: Robert Appleton
Company, 1911. <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10703a.htm>.
Transcription. This
article was transcribed for New Advent by Christine J. Murray.
Ecclesiastical
approbation. Nihil Obstat. October 1, 1911. Remy Lafort, S.T.D.,
Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2021 by Kevin Knight.
Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10703a.htm
NAPPER, GEORGE, BL.
Priest, martyr; b.
Holywell Manor, Oxford, England, 1550; d. hanged, drawn, and quartered at
Oxford, Nov. 9, 1610. George was the son of Edward Napper (d. 1558) and his
second wife, Anne Peto of Chesterton, Warwickshire (the niece of William
Cardinal Peto). George endured many things because of his Catholic faith,
including expulsion from Corpus
Christi College, Oxford (1568). He visited the English College at
Rheims (Aug. 24, 1579) for which he was imprisoned the following year at the
Wood Street Counter in London (December 1580 until June 1589). Upon
acknowledging the royal supremacy, he was released. In 1596, he began seminary
studies at Douai. Following his ordination, he set off for the English mission
(1603), where he lived with his brother William in the family home. George was
found carrying a pyx with two consecrated Hosts and a reliquary when he was
arrested at Kirtlington near Wood-stock (July 19, 1610). The next day he was sent
to Oxford Castle. Soon thereafter he was indicted under 27 Eliz., c. 2 for
being a priest, condemned, but reprieved. In prison he reconciled a condemned
felon, which added the crime of persuasion to popery. Even then it was expected
that he would be banished rather than executed. His refusal to take the oath of
supremacy settled the matter. He was permitted to say Mass prior to his death.
Some of Napper's relics were retrieved by the faithful and buried in the former
chapel of Sanford manor, which later became a preceptory of Knights Templar.
Napper was beatified by Pius
XI on Dec. 15, 1929.
Feast of the English
Martyrs: May 4 (England).
See Also: england,
scotland, and wales, martyrs of.
Bibliography: R. Challoner, Memoirs of Missionary Priests, ed. J. H. Pollen (rev. ed.
London 1924; repr. Farnborough 1969). J. H. Pollen, Acts of English Martyrs (London
1891).
[K. I. Rabenstein]
New Catholic Encyclopedia
SOURCE : https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/napper-george-bl
Blessed George Napier
1548-1610
A Brief History of the
Priest and Martyr
His Early Life
George Napier was born in
the Old Manor House, Holywell, just outside the walls of Oxford City in the
year 1548. He was a son of Edward Napper (died in 1558), sometime Fellow of All
Souls College, Oxford, by Anne, his second wife, daughter of John Peto, of
Chesterton, Warwickshire, and niece of Cardinal William Peto. He attended and
studied at the Oxford Grammar School and went on to continue his studies to
Corpus Christi College on the 5 January 1566, but was ejected in 1568 as a
recusant–someone who refused to attend Anglican services. This happened because
in 1568 George Napier opposed Queen Elizabeth's nomination of a renegade
Catholic, William Cole, as President of the College. George and two friends
nominated Robert Harrison who was favourable to Catholicism. The Queen forced
the College to elect her Candidate and expelled George Napier and his friends.
He returned to Holywell and built a house with his brother William on some
property they owned in Cowley as a place of shelter for priests.
Getting Imprisoned and
Ordained
In 1579 George went
overseas to the English College at Rheims to continue his Catholic Education
and perhaps with the intention of becoming a Priest. A year later in 1580 he
was arrested with three other Laymen and St.Ralph Sherwin. We do not know how
long he remained in prison for his Faith. We do know that nine years later in
1588 he was in the Counter Prison, Chapside, London. As soon as he was free he
went across to France to the English College at Douai to continue his studies
for the Priesthood. He was later ordained at the age of 48. He became a Prefect
of Studies and taught Humanities at the College for seven years.
Missionary Life as a
Secretive Priest
George Napier left France
and returned back to Oxford on the death of Elizabeth in 1603. He lived at
Holywell Manor and at Temple Cowley. He worked as a missionary priest for
another seven years, saying Mass, hearing Confessions and administering the
other Sacraments to the Catholics in the area. On the early morning of July 19th,
1610, Father George Napier was bringing Holy Communion to a sick person. He had
on him a pyx containing two consecrated Hosts as well as a small reliquary and
he was arrested in the village of Kirlington near Woodstock and brought before
the Justice of the Peace at Heyford. He was strictly searched; but the
constable found only his breviary, his holy oils, and a needle case with thread
and thimble.
The Death Of George
Napier
The next day George
Napier was lodged in the Bacardo Prison-North Gate of the City where he was
moved to Oxford Castle and at Autumn Assizes was condemned to death-to be hung,
drawn and quarted because he was a Priest under act 27 Eliz., c. 2 against
Jesuits(Seminary Priests). The possession of the oils was held to be conclusive
and he was condemned, but reprieved. In gaol (jail) he reconciled a condemned
felon named Falkner, and this was held to aggravate his crime, but as late as 2
November it was believed that he would have his sentence commuted to one of
banishment. As he refused the oath of allegiance, he was condemned to death. On
hearing he was about to die he exclaimed "Welcome by God's grace and pray
God I may be constant." The night before his death he gave a little party
to some of his friends with him in the prison and treated them well, taking for
himself only a little pigeon pie and some prunes.
The final moments of his
life
On the morning of
November 10th, 1610, he dressed himself in his best white suit and was then
taken out, placed on a hurdle, and dragged to the gallows, and executed. He was
62 years of age. On mounting the gallows he was told to confess his treason.
"Treason, Sir" he said "I thank God I never knew what treason
meant." Then he prayed for the King said the "De Profundis" and
his final words were "Into Thy Hands O Lord I commend my spirit" Many
Protestants in the crowd weeping and these with the Catholics prevented the
hangman from cutting him down and quartering him while he was still alive;
indeed they ran forward and pulled at him as he was hanging, so as to hasten
his death and put him out of his agony the sooner. "He was much
pitied" writes Anthony-a-Wood, "for that his grey hairs would come to
such an end, and lamented by many that such rigour should be shown on an
innocent and harmless person".
He died on November 10th,
1610. His mutilated quarters were placed on the four gates of the City and his
head on the gate of Christ Church. The body of our martyr was collected
together by his brother William and buried secretly in the Chapel of the
Knights Templar, at Sandford-on-Thames. The picture below is of the Ceramic
Plaque found on the outside wall of the school. It tells us his story and
celebrates his memory. It was blessed by Maurice Couve de Murville, the Seventh
Archbishop of Birmingham, on Wednesday September 2nd 1992. The ceramic artist
was Mr A Pope of Wolverhampton.
George Napier's
Beatification and Honour's
Blessed George Napier was
beatified in 1929 by Pope Pius XI. He was dedicated a Plaque on the wall of
Oxford Castle which states "Close to this spot lies the site of the
medieval gallows. In 1610 Blessed George Napier, Catholic Priest and Martyr, was
executed here." The Plaque was blessed by Archbishop of Birmingham Bernard
Longley around November 3rd 2010.
The quote Blessed George
Napier was referencing: Luke 23:46 NIV-"Jesus called out with a loud
voice, ""Father, into your hands I commit my spirit."" When
he had said this, he breathed his last."
Developed by Edwin Gigi -
2018 - Year 13 - Powered by w3.css
SOURCE : https://historyofbgn.github.io/Blessed%20George%20Napier.html
Friday, November 9, 2012
Blessed
George Napper or Napier
From the Catholic
Encyclopedia:
English martyr, born at Holywell manor, Oxford, 1550; executed at Oxford 9
November, 1610. He was a son of Edward Napper (d. in 1558), sometime Fellow of
All Souls College, by Anne, his second wife, daughter of John Peto, of
Chesterton, Warwickshire, and niece of William, Cardinal Peto. He entered
Corpus Christi College 5 January, 1565-6, but was ejected in 1568 as a
recusant. On 24 August, 1579, he paid a visit to the English College at Reims,
and by December, 1580, he had been imprisoned. He was still in the Wood Street
Counter, London, on 30 September, 1588; but was liberated in June, 1589, on
acknowledging the royal supremacy. He entered the English College, Douai, in
1596, and was sent on the mission in 1603. He appears to have lived with his
brother William at Holywell. He was arrested at Kirtlington, four miles from
Woodstock, very early in the morning of 19 July, 1610, when he on him a pyx
containing two consecrated Hosts as well as a small reliquary. Brought before
Sir Francis Eure at Upper Heyford (Wood says before a justice named
Chamberlain), he was strictly searched; but the constable found nothing but his
breviary, his holy oils, and a needle case with thread and thimble. The next
day he was sent to Oxford Castle, and indicted at the session soon after under
27 Eliz., c. 2 for being a priest. The possession of the oils was held to be
conclusive and he was condemned, but reprieved. In gaol he reconciled a
condemned felon named Falkner, and this was held to aggravate his crime, but as
late as 2 November it was believed that he would have his sentence commuted to
one of banishment. As he refused the oath of allegiance, which described the
papal deposing power as a "false, damnable, and heretical" doctrine,
it was decided to execute him. He suffered between one and two in the
afternoon, having said Mass that morning. His head according to Wood was set up
on Tom Gateway; according to Challoner's less probable statement on Christ
Church steeple. His quarters were placed on the four city gates, but at least
some were secretly removed, and buried in the chapel (now a barn) of Sanford
manor, formerly a preceptory of Knights Templar.
In October of 2010 (just a month after Pope Benedict
XVI's visit to Scotland and England), Archbishop Bernard Longley of Birmingham
dedicated a plaque to the martyr:
During his homily Archbishop Longley said: "Today we gather as pilgrims to
celebrate the Mass of the Martyrs of Oxford University and to commemorate the
400th Anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed George Napier. As pilgrims we are
part of a long tradition of Christians setting out from home on a journey of
faith to some place particularly associated with the life of our Lord - of those
most closely associated with him as Christian witnesses.
"The life of a pilgrim is touched and transformed through the experience
of pilgrimage and of the ways that are linked with the life and witness of the
saints we honour. For us this pilgrimage is characterised by the fidelity to
the Church and teaching of Christ demonstrated by Blessed George Napier and his
companion martyrs – and by the courage of the Holy Spirit at work within them
and strengthening them in the final act of love and of witness in this
city."
The Archbishop of Birmingham said: "The lives of our martyrs were taken
from them because they adhered to their faith in Christ within the Catholic
Church. Their witness is echoed for me whenever we sing the beautiful words of
Blessed John Henry Newman: 'And I hold in veneration, For the love of him
alone, Holy Church as his creation, And her teaching as his own.'
Archbishop Bernard Longley concluded: "One month ago an apostolic witness
came to strengthen our faith. We continue to benefit from the impact of Pope
Benedict’s visit to this diocese. Paradoxically in the time of Blessed George
Napier and his companions the role of faith as the foundation of civil society
was hardly questioned, yet the liberty to practice faith was narrowly defined.
"Today the Holy Father has reminded us of the importance of faith in
strengthening civil society and of the opposition we can encounter. He said:
'There are some who now seek to exclude religious belief from public discourse,
to privatise it or even to paint it as a threat to equality and liberty. Your
religion is in fact a guarantee of authentic liberty and respect, leading us to
look upon every person as a brother or sister."
SOURCE : http://supremacyandsurvival.blogspot.com/2012/11/blessed-george-napper-or-napier.html
On this date in 1610, the
Catholic priest George
Napier (or Napper, or Nappier) was hanged, drawn, and quartered at
Oxford, having said Mass that very morning.
A son of Oxford himself
who went abroad to France for ordination in his outlawed faith, Napier cut a
fairly typical martyrology for the Catholic clergy. He was caught red-handed with
the implements of the Roman church, refused to avow the supremacy of
the English crown, and aggravated his offense by converting a fellow-prisoner
to Catholicism.
This unfortunate
has made
headlines recently around the fourth centennial of his martyrdom, for
which occasion a pilgrimage of
Catholic faithful unveiled a
plaque in Nappier’s honor at Oxford Castle.
SOURCE : http://www.executedtoday.com/2010/11/09/1610-blessed-george-napier/
Beato Giorgio
Napper Sacerdote e martire
Holywell, Inghlterra, 1550
- Oxford, Inghilterra, 9 novembre 1610
Martirologio
Romano: A Oxford in Inghilterra, beato Giorgio Napper, sacerdote e
martire, che tanto nell’esercizio clandestino del suo ministero quanto in
carcere operò mirabilmente per guadagnare anime a Cristo nella Chiesa e per il
suo sacerdozio meritò di ricevere, sotto il re Giacomo I, la corona del
martirio.
Figlio di Edoardo e di Anna Peto, il Napper nacque nel castello di Holywell (Oxford) nel 1550. Frequentava il Corpus Christi College di Oxford, quando nel 1568 venne espulso perché ricusante. Arrestato alla fine del 1580, rimase in carcere quasi nove anni, ottenendo infine di essere rilasciato per aver riconosciuto la supremazia spirituale della regina. Pentitosi poi vivamente della sua debolezza, chiese ed ottenne di essere ammesso al Collegio inglese di Douai, dove fu un costante esempio di edificazione per le sue virtù e la sua profonda pietà, distinguendosi anche per l'abnegazione con cui assistette e curò due compagni colpiti dalla peste.
Dopo aver ricevuto l'ordinazione sacra nel 1596, si fermò per alcuni anni in Anversa prima di partire per le missioni inglesi, che raggiunse solo nel 1603, andandosi a stabilire nella sua nativa contea di Oxford, dove per sette anni potè esercitare indisturbato la sua attività missionaria e pastorale con grande profitto delle anime.
Catturato a Kirtlington nelle prime ore del mattino del 19 lugl. 1610, fu rinchiuso nelle prigioni di Oxford, venendo poco dopo processato e dichiarato colpevole di alto tradimento; i suoi parenti riuscirono tuttavia ad ottenere una proroga di qualche mese all'esecuzione della sentenza, e forse sarebbero riusciti anche a farlo rilasciare, se egli nel frattempo non avesse commesso un nuovo delitto capitale, agli occhi dei persecutori, riconciliando un delinquente condannato a morte, di nome Falkner, che sul patibolo si dichiarò infatti cattolico. Dopo un ulteriore rinvio, ed avendo il Napper rifiutato decisamente di prestare il giuramento di fedeltà, venne infine giustiziato ad Oxford il 9 nov. 1610. I particolari della cattura e del martirio del Napper furono minuziosamente descritti da un gentiluomo cattolico, suo compagno di prigionia, rimasto nondimeno sconosciuto, in una lettera inviata il 19 dic. seguente ad un sacerdote che gliene aveva chiesto la narrazione, pubblicata poi dal Challoner.
Innalzato all'onore degli altari da Pio XI il 15 dic. 1929, il beato Napper viene commemorato il 9 novembre.
Autore: Niccolò Del Re
SOURCE : https://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/76880
Voir aussi : http://www.oxfordhistory.org.uk/streets/inscriptions/central/napier.html
