Leon-Jean-Marie De Smedt (; 3 December 1881 – 16 November 1951) was a Belgian Catholic priest, missionary, and Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Xiwanzi The Roman Catholic Diocese of Xiwanzi/Chongli ( la, Sivanzean(us), ) is a diocese located in the city of Xiwanzi in the Ecclesiastical province of Suiyuan in China. History * August 20, 1840: Established as Apostolic Vicariate of Mongolia 蒙� ...

between 1931 and 1951. He was a member of the

CICM Missionaries The CICM Missionaries officially named as the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ( la, Congregatio Immaculati Cordis Mariae) abbreviated C.I.C.M, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of Pontifical Right for men established in ...

Biography

Leon-Jean-Marie De Smedt was born in

Sint-Niklaas Sint-Niklaas (; french: Saint-Nicolas, ) is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Sint-Niklaas proper and the towns of Belsele, Nieuwkerken-Waas, and . Sint-Nikl ...

Flemish Region The Flemish Region ( nl, Vlaams Gewest, ),; german: Flämische Region usually simply referred to as Flanders ( nl, link=no, Vlaanderen ) ; german: link=no, Flandern is one of the three regions of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and t ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, on 3 December 1881. In 1899, he joined the Assembly of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He was ordained a priest on 16 July 1905. In 1906, the

sent him to preach in the

. On 14 December 1931, Pope Pius XI appointed him Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Xiwanzi, succeeding

Everard Ter Laak Everard Ter Laak (; November 5, 1868 - May 5, 1931) was a Dutch Roman Catholic missionary and bishop who worked in China during the late Qing dynasty and early Republic of China. Biography Everard Ter Laak was born on November 5, 1868 in Didam, ...

. On 17 April 1932, he was consecrated in the Cathedral by

Louis van Dyck Louis van Dyck (; 21 January 1862 – 4 December 1937) was a Belgian Catholic priest, missionary, and Bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Suiyuan between 1915 and 1937. Biography Louis van Dyck was born in Loenhout, Flemish Region, Belgiu ...

, Louis Janssens and . After the outbreak of the Pacific War, Leon-Jean-Marie De Smedt and other Belgian missionaries were detained by the

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...

in both

Weixian Internment Camp The Weixian Internment Camp (), better known historically as the Weihsien Internment Camp, was a Japanese-run internment camp called a ”Civilian Assembly Center” in the former (), located near the city of Weifang, Shandong, China. The comp ...

and Beiping Internment Camp, until they were released in 1945. During the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...

, the Cathedral was completely destroyed. Leon-Jean-Marie De Smedt moved to

Zhangjiakou Zhangjiakou (; ; ) also known as Kalgan and by several other names, is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Hebei province in Northern China, bordering Beijing to the southeast, Inner Mongolia to the north and west, and Shanxi to the south ...

. On 24 May 1951, Leon-Jean-Marie De Smedt held a consecration ceremony for Assistant Bishop

Melchior Zhang Kexing Melchior Zhang Kexing (; 6 January 1914 – 6 November 1988) was a Chinese Catholic priest and Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Xiwanzi between 1951 and 1988. Biography Melchior Zhang Kexing was born into a wealthy family in Xiwanzi of ...

. On 20 September 1951, he was arrested by the Communist government and the

Legion of Mary The Legion of Mary ( la, Legio Mariae, postnominal abbreviation L.O.M.) is an international association of members of the Catholic Church who serve it on a voluntary basis. It was founded in Dublin, as a Marian movement by the layman and civi ...

was dissolved. Leon-Jean-Marie De Smedt died in prison on November 16.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:De Smedt, Leon-Jean-Marie 1881 births 1951 deaths People from Sint-Niklaas 20th-century Belgian Roman Catholic priests 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in China Roman Catholic missionaries in China Belgian prisoners of war in World War II Belgian people who died in prison custody