Thomas Cottam (1549 – 30 May 1582) was an English Catholic priest and martyr from

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, who was executed during the reign of

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

Life

Cottam was born to Protestant parents, Laurence Cottam of Dilworth and Anne Brewer, but was converted as an adult to Catholicism by Thomas Pound. He studied at

Brasenose College Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the m ...

, Oxford, and received his M.A. on 14 July 1572, before leaving for London, where he became master of a grammar school. It was there that he met Pound and decided to head to

Douai Douai (, , ,; pcd, Doï; nl, Dowaai; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord département in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe some from Lille and from Arras, D ...

to become a priest. He was ordained a deacon at

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department and in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, regio ...

in December 1577 and, desiring to become a missionary to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, went to Rome and was received as a

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

novice at Sant' Andrea on 8 April 1579. That October he came down with a fever and was sent to Lyons to recuperate. The spy Sledd had been in Rome, and traveling with some Englishmen arrived in Lyon, where he made the acquaintance of Cottam. Discovering that Cottam intended to proceed to England, he made careful note of Cottams's appearance and particulars and continuing on to Paris passed the information to the English ambassador. From there he went to the English College, Rheims, considering himself accepted for India, if his health improved after a visit to England. He was ordained around 28 May 1580, at

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital ...

and left on 5 June with four companions for England. Betrayed by Sledd, he was immediately arrested at Dover. Through a ruse by Dr. Ely, one of his fellow-travellers, Cottam reached London safely; however, the good deed put the doctor at risk, and Cottam voluntarily surrendered himself. He was initially committed "close prisoner" 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 ...

, where it is thought he said his first

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

. After being tortured, he was removed on 4 December 1580 to the Tower, where he endured the

rack Rack or racks may refer to: Storage and installation * Amp rack, short for amplifier rack, a piece of furniture in which amplifiers are mounted * Bicycle rack, a frame for storing bicycles when not in use * Bustle rack, a type of storage bin ...

and the

scavenger's daughter The Scavenger's daughter was a type of torture device invented during the reign of King Henry VIII of England. History The Scavenger's Daughter (or Skevington's Daughter) was invented as an instrument of torture in the reign of Henry VIII by Sir ...

(twice).Selwood, Dominic, ''England's Salem'', ''Catholic Herald'', 5 October 2018 Cottam was arraigned with

Edmund Campion Edmund Campion, SJ (25 January 15401 December 1581) was an English Jesuit priest and martyr. While conducting an underground ministry in officially Anglican England, Campion was arrested by priest hunters. Convicted of high treason, he was ...

and others and on 16 November 1581, he was sentenced to death. His execution was deferred until 30 May 1582, when he was executed at

Tyburn Tyburn was a manor (estate) in the county of Middlesex, one of two which were served by the parish of Marylebone. The parish, probably therefore also the manor, was bounded by Roman roads to the west (modern Edgware Road) and south (modern Ox ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cottam, Thomas 1549 births 1582 deaths Executed people from Lancashire English beatified people Converts to Roman Catholicism 16th-century English Jesuits Martyred Roman Catholic priests People executed under Elizabeth I 16th-century Roman Catholic martyrs 16th-century venerated Christians Forty-one Martyrs of England and Wales

Life

See also

References