Roger Cadwallador (1568 – 27 August 1610) was a

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 1987.

Life

Roger Cadwallador was born to a Welsh family at

Stretton Sugwas Stretton Sugwas ( ) is a village and civil parish in Herefordshire, England, about northwest of Hereford. The parish also includes the hamlet of Swainshill. The population of this Civil Parish at the 2011 census was 505. In 1087 the village wa ...

, near

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

. He was ordained

subdeacon Subdeacon (or sub-deacon) is a minor order or ministry for men in various branches of Christianity. The subdeacon has a specific liturgical role and is placed between the acolyte (or reader) and the deacon in the order of precedence. Subdeacons in ...

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 ...

, 21 September 1591, and

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

the following February. In August 1592, was sent to the English College at Valladolid, where he was ordained priest in 1593.Wainewright, John. "Ven. Roger Cadwallador." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 18 November 2021 Returning to England in 1594, he worked in

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthshire ...

as a missionary in both Welsh and English, especially among the poor, for about 16 years. Search was made for him in June 1605, but it was not till Easter, 1610, that he was arrested at the house of Mrs. Winefride Scroope, widow, within eight miles of Hereford. He was then brought before the

Bishop of Hereford The Bishop of Hereford is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Hereford in the Province of Canterbury. The episcopal see is centred in the Hereford, City of Hereford where the bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is in the Hereford Cathedr ...

, Robert Bennet, who committed him to Hereford gaol where he was loaded with irons night and day. On being transferred to

Leominster Leominster ( ) is a market town in Herefordshire, England, at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is north of Hereford and south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of 11,700, Leominster is t ...

gaol he was obliged to walk all the way in

shackles A shackle (or shacklebolt), also known as a gyve, is a U-shaped piece of metal secured with a clevis pin or bolt across the opening, or a hinged metal loop secured with a quick-release locking pin mechanism. The term also applies to handcuffs ...

, though a boy was permitted to go by his side and bear up by a string the weight of some iron links which were wired to the shackles. He was condemned, merely for being a priest, some months before his execution, which took place at

; a very full account is given by

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 ...

. He is said to have hung for a long time, suffering great pain, owing to the unskilfulness of the hangman, and was eventually cut down and butchered alive. Pits praises his knowledge of Greek, from which he translated

Theodoret Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus ( grc-gre, Θεοδώρητος Κύρρου; AD 393 – 458/466) was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457). He played a pivo ...

's ''Ecclesiastical History''. It was published posthumously at St. Omer's.

Veneration

Roger Cadwallador was beatified by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

in 1987. There is a chapel dedicated to Cadwallador in the Church of Saint Ethelbert in

."Leominster – St Ethelbert", Taking Stock
/ref>

References

;Attribution * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cadwallador, Roger 1568 births 1610 deaths English College, Valladolid alumni English beatified people 17th-century venerated Christians People from Herefordshire Eighty-five martyrs of England and Wales 16th-century English Roman Catholic priests 17th-century English clergy

Life

Veneration

See also

References