John Wall
English Catholic Franciscan friar and martyr
Feast: 22 August (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
John Wall, of a staunch Lancashire Catholic family, was ordained in Rome in 1645 and in 1651 became a Franciscan at Douai, taking the name Joachim of St Anne. From 1656 he worked zealously in Worcestershire for twenty years.
Arrested in 1678, he was condemned for his priesthood. Examined by Oates and Bedloe, he was found innocent of any plot and offered his life if he would abjure his religion. He refused and was executed at Redhill, Worcester, on 22 August 1679.
The miracles
As a martyr he was raised to the altars without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A Franciscan who refused to buy his life by denying his faith.
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - John Wall
- Wikidata Q670320 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — John Wall (priest and martyr) (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.