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Thomas Belchiam
English Franciscan
SaintResearchedFranciscansPre-congregation
Born
1508
Died
3 August 1537
verified
Beatified
—
not needed: before formal processes
Canonised
By tradition
recognised before formal processes began
Who they were
Thomas Belchiam, an Observant Franciscan, boldly opposed Henry VIII's divorce and wrote a book rebuking the faithless bishops who dared not tell the king the truth.
He and some thirty of his brethren were imprisoned and left to die of hunger; he died on 3 August 1537.
The miracles
As a martyr he was raised to the altars without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A friar who told the king the truth and starved for it.
Sources
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - Thomas Belchiam
- Wikidata Q7787544 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Thomas Belchiam (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.