Clemens August von Galen
German count, Bishop of Münster, and cardinal, important figure in Catholic resistance to Nazism (1878–1946)
Feast: 22 March (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Count Clemens August von Galen was born on 16 March 1878 at Dinklage castle in Oldenburg, the eleventh of thirteen children. Ordained at Münster on 28 May 1904, he served as a chaplain in Berlin from 1906 and from 1929 as parish priest of St Lambert's, Münster.
As Bishop of Münster, 'the Lion of Münster', he sharply condemned the killing of the sick and disabled deemed 'lives unworthy of life'. The state wanted to arrest him but feared the Catholic people's reaction. A cardinal, he died on 22 March 1946 and was buried in the ruined cathedral.
The miracles
The Dicastery's biography does not describe the miracles approved in the cause.
Why that counted as sanctity
A bishop who practised Christian virtue heroically and dared to oppose the tyranny of his time.
Connected on this site
- Hermann Lange Blessed“They copied and distributed the anti-Nazi sermons of Bishop Clemens August von Galen of Münster.” — Wikipedia
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - biography: Clemens August Graf von Galen
- Wikidata Q76439 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Clemens August Graf von Galen (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.