John Rigby
English Roman Catholic martyr
Feast: 21 June (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
John Rigby, a Lancashire gentleman in the service of Sir Edmund Huddleston, went to court on behalf of his sick mistress, who was charged with recusancy, and was compelled to admit that he was a Catholic.
He confessed that he had been reconciled to the Church and had since refused to attend Protestant services. Refusing again and again to conform, he was executed at St Thomas's Waterings on 21 June 1600.
The miracles
As a martyr he was raised to the altars without a miracle. Canonised among the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.
Why that counted as sanctity
A layman who would not deny his faith even to save his life.
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - John Rigby
- Wikidata Q6254927 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — John Rigby (martyr) (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.