Thomas Garnet
English Jesuit priest and martyr
Feast: 25 October (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Thomas Garnet of Southwark studied at St-Omer and Valladolid and was admitted to the Jesuits by his uncle, Henry Garnet. He worked on the English mission, going from place to place to bring back souls astray.
Arrested after the Gunpowder Plot, he was severely handled in the Tower, though nothing connected him with the plot. Later offered his life for taking the Oath of Allegiance, he refused, and was executed at Tyburn on 23 June 1608, saying he was 'the happiest man this day alive'.
The miracles
As a martyr he was raised to the altars without a miracle. Canonised among the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.
Why that counted as sanctity
The first martyr of St-Omer, happy to die for Christ.
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Thomas Garnet
- Wikidata Q2157314 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Thomas Garnet (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.