Eustace White
Encyclopedia
St Eustace White, one of the Catholic Forty Martyrs of England and Wales
. Born in Louth, Lincolnshire
in 1559, he was a convert to Catholicism who travelled to Europe to study for the priesthood. He was ordained, probably at the Venerable English College, Rome
in 1588, and returned to England
for his ministry later that year - the year of the Spanish Armada
. He thus began his ministry just as anti-Catholic feeling was reaching fever pitch. A friendly conversation with a fellow traveller led to his arrest in Dorset three years later. Eustace put up a very articulate defence in the West Country but had no chance to defend himself in the London court and so was torture
d and then hanged, drawn and quartered
at Tyburn
later that year.
--In a letter written to Father Henry Garnet
from prison, 23 November 1591.
Forty Martyrs of England and Wales
The Forty Martyrs of England and Wales are a group of men and women who were executed for treason and related offences in the Kingdom of England between 1535 and 1679...
. Born in Louth, Lincolnshire
Louth, Lincolnshire
Louth is a market town and civil parish within the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England.-Geography:Known as the "capital of the Lincolnshire Wolds", it is situated where the ancient trackway Barton Street crosses the River Lud, and has a total resident population of 15,930.The Greenwich...
in 1559, he was a convert to Catholicism who travelled to Europe to study for the priesthood. He was ordained, probably at the Venerable English College, Rome
Venerable English College, Rome
The Venerable English College, commonly referred to as the English College, is a Roman Catholic seminary in Rome, Italy, for the training of priests for England and Wales...
in 1588, and returned to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
for his ministry later that year - the year of the Spanish Armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
. He thus began his ministry just as anti-Catholic feeling was reaching fever pitch. A friendly conversation with a fellow traveller led to his arrest in Dorset three years later. Eustace put up a very articulate defence in the West Country but had no chance to defend himself in the London court and so was torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
d and then hanged, drawn and quartered
Hanged, drawn and quartered
To be hanged, drawn and quartered was from 1351 a penalty in England for men convicted of high treason, although the ritual was first recorded during the reigns of King Henry III and his successor, Edward I...
at Tyburn
Tyburn
Tyburn is a former village just outside the then boundaries of London that was best known as a place of public execution.Tyburn may also refer to:* Tyburn , river and historical water source in London...
later that year.
Quote
- "The morrow after Simon and Jude's day I was hanged at the wall from the ground, my manacles fast locked into a staple as high as I could reach upon a stool: the stool taken away where I hanged from a little after 8 o'clock in the morning till after 4 in the afternoon, without any ease or comfort at all, saving that TopcliffeRichard TopcliffeRichard Topcliffe was a landowner and Member of Parliament during the reign of Elizabeth I of England. He became notorious as a priest-hunter and torturer and was often referred to as the Queen's principal "interrogator"....
came in and told me that the Spaniards were come into SouthwarkSouthwarkSouthwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
by our means: 'For lo, do you not hear the drums' (for then the drums played in honour of the Lord Mayor). The next day after also I was hanged up an hour or two: such is the malicious minds of our adversaries."
--In a letter written to Father Henry Garnet
Henry Garnet
Henry Garnet , sometimes Henry Garnett, was a Jesuit priest executed for his complicity in the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Born in Derbyshire, he was educated in Nottingham and later at Winchester College, before moving to London in 1571 to work for a publisher...
from prison, 23 November 1591.