:''See also John Hewitt (disambiguation)'' John Hewitt or Hewett (alias Weldon, alias Savell)Rudge, F.M. "John Hewett." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 26 March 2020 (date of birth unknown; executed at

Mile End Green Mile End is a district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London, England, east-northeast of Charing Cross. Situated on the London-to-Colchester road, it was one of the earliest suburbs of London. It became part of th ...

, 5 October 1588) was an English

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest. He is a Catholic martyr,

beatified Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...

in 1929.

Life

His father was William Hewett, a

draper Draper was originally a term for a retailer or wholesaler of cloth that was mainly for clothing. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. History Drapers were an important trade guild during the medieval period ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. From

Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

, Hewttt passed to the English College,

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by ...

, where, in 1583, he received

minor orders Minor orders are ranks of church ministry. In the Catholic Church, the predominating Latin Church formerly distinguished between the major orders —priest (including bishop), deacon and subdeacon—and four minor orders—acolyte, exorcist, lecto ...

. In the summer of 1585 he went to York (possibly because of ill health), where he was captured and banished in September, reaching Reims once more in November, 1585. After his ordination he set out on 7 January 1586. He used the alias Weldon, and was disguised as the serving-man of John Gardiner, Esq. of Grove Place, Buckinghamshire. Sometime prior to March 1587, Hewitt/Weldon was arrested at their lodgings in

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

and sent to

Newgate prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey Street just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, t ...

. There he met Nicholas Horner, a tailor who was imprisoned for having harbored priests. The irons had so injured Horner's leg that it had to be amputated; Hewitt assisted Horner during the procedure.Dunn, Henry E., "Venerable John Hewitt", ''Lives of the English Martyrs''
(Edwin Hubert Burton and John Hungerford Pollen, eds.) Longmans, Green and Co., 1914, 508. In October, 1588, he was formally arraigned on a charge of obtaining ordination from the

See of Rome The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

and entering England to exercise the ministry. He was sentenced to death, and the day following was taken through the streets of London to Mile End Green, where he was hanged.

References

;Attribution * The entry cites: **

Richard Challoner Richard Challoner (29 September 1691 – 12 January 1781) was an English Roman Catholic bishop, a leading figure of English Catholicism during the greater part of the 18th century. The titular Bishop of Doberus, he is perhaps most famous for hi ...

, ''Memoirs of English Catholics'', I (London, 1878) **''Douay Diaries'', ed.

Thomas Francis Knox Father Francis Knox (born as Thomas Francis Knox; 24 December 1822 – 20 March 1882, LondonThompson Cooper''Knox, Thomas Francis (1822–1882)'' reviewed by Sheridan Gilley, ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hewitt, John 1588 deaths 16th-century English Roman Catholic priests English beatified people 16th-century venerated Christians Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Year of birth unknown One Hundred and Seven Martyrs of England and Wales