Siméon-François Berneux
French Roman Catholic missioner, bishop and saint (1814-1866)
Feast: 7 March (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Siméon-François Berneux was born at Château-du-Loir on 14 May 1814, ordained in 1837, and joined the Paris Foreign Missions in 1839. He set out for the Far East in 1840, was captured on Easter morning after Mass and rejoiced to be dragged away as the Saviour was.
Made bishop, he said: 'Korea, land of martyrs, how could I refuse to go!' With priests of the Paris Foreign Missions and twenty companions, he was martyred in Korea in 1866, having told his persecutors he had come to save their souls.
The miracles
As martyrs they were beatified without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A missionary bishop who chose Korea, 'land of martyrs', and died a martyr there.
Connected on this site
- The Korean Martyrs Saint honoured together
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - biography: Siméon-François Berneux e compagni
- Wikidata Q1071801 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Siméon-François Berneux (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.