Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel
English nobleman and Catholic saint (1557-1595)
Feast: 19 October (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Philip Howard, Earl of Arundel, son of the executed Duke of Norfolk, was raised a Protestant and lived at court far from virtue, for a time deserting his wife. Hearing St Edmund Campion's disputations in the Tower was the first step in his conversion.
Reconciled with his wife, he was received into the Church in 1584. Suspected and imprisoned, he was condemned on evidence known to be false and left to die in the Tower. Refused a last sight of his wife and the son born during his imprisonment unless he would attend Protestant service, he died on 19 October 1595, aged thirty-eight.
The miracles
As a martyr he was raised to the altars without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A courtier who gave up everything, even his family, rather than deny his faith.
Connected on this site
- Edmund Campion Saint“Hearing St Edmund Campion's disputations in the Tower was the first step in his conversion.” — this site's research
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - Philip Howard
- Wikidata Q336320 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Philip Howard, 13th Earl of Arundel (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.