Michał Kozal
Polish Roman Catholic bishop, martyr and blessed (1893–1943)
Feast: 26 January (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Michał Kozal was born at Nowy Folwark, in the archdiocese of Poznań, on 25 September 1893 to a poor, large, devout family. He was ordained in Gniezno cathedral on 23 February 1918 and became auxiliary bishop of Włocławek.
For defending the faith and the freedom of the Church under the Nazi regime he spent three years in Dachau, enduring with invincible patience. Sick with typhus, he was killed there by a lethal injection on 26 January 1943.
The miracles
As a martyr, beatified without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A bishop who defended the faith under Nazism and died a martyr in Dachau.
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - biography: Michal Kozal
- Wikidata Q936256 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Michał Kozal (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.