Stephen Rowsham (Rousham, Rouse) was an English
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
priest, executed on 3 April 1587. He is a Catholic martyr, and was
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 ...
by
Pope John Paul in 1987.
Life
A native of
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
, born c. 1555,
[Clifton Diocese , Beatified Martyrs of the Clifton Diocese]
he entered
Oriel College, Oxford
Oriel College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title formerly claimed by University College, wh ...
, in 1572. He took orders in the English Church, and was Vicar at the
University Church of St Mary the Virgin, Oxford
The University Church of St Mary the Virgin (St Mary's or SMV for short) is an Oxford church situated on the north side of the High Street. It is the centre from which the University of Oxford grew and its parish consists almost exclusively of un ...
about 1578.
[Whitfield, Joseph Louis. "Stephen Rowsham." The Catholic Encyclopedia]
Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 28 March 2016
Becoming convinced of the truth of the Catholic religion he entered the
English College[ at ]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 ...
on 23 April 1581, where he was ordained priest at Michaelmas, and sent on the English mission on 30 April 1582, along with Robert Ludlam.
Rowsham is described as small of stature, with one shoulder higher than the other, with a certain twist to the neck. This made him more easily recognisable and he was arrested almost immediately on landing. He was sent to the Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...
on 19 May 1582, and remained a prisoner for more than three years, during half of which time (from 14 August 1582 until 12 February 1584) he was confined to the dungeon known as the "Little Ease". On the latter date he was transferred to the Marshalsea
The Marshalsea (1373–1842) was a notorious prison in Southwark, just south of the River Thames. Although it housed a variety of prisoners, including men accused of crimes at sea and political figures charged with sedition, it became known, in ...
, from which prison he was carried into exile in the autumn of 1585.[
He arrived at Reims, 8 October, but set out for England again on 7 February 1586. The field of his labours, which were continued for about a year, was in the west of England. He was taken at the house of the Widow Strange in Gloucester. His trial and martyrdom were at Gloucester in March 1586–87.][ Because of the outcry from spectators when John Sandys was cut down quickly and disemboweled alive, Rowsham was allowed to hang until he was dead.Whitfield, Joseph L., "Venerable Stephen Rowsham'', ''Lives of the English Martyrs'']
(Edwin Hubert Burton and John Hungerford Pollen,eds.) Longmans, Green and Co., 1914, 279.
See also
* Douai Martyrs
The Douai Martyrs is a name applied by the Catholic Church to 158 Catholic priests trained in the English College at Douai, France, who were executed by the English state between 1577 and 1680.
History
Having completed their training at Douai, ...
References
Sources
* Edward Rishton, ''Diarium Turri-Lundin''
* John Hungerford Pollen, ''Acts of the English Martyrs'' (London, 1891)
"The Martyrs of England and Wales (1535–1680), Hagiography Circle
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowsham, Stephen
1587 deaths
English beatified people
Eighty-five martyrs of England and Wales
16th-century venerated Christians
People from Oxfordshire
16th-century English Roman Catholic priests
Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford
Year of birth unknown