Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland
Earl of Northumberland
Feast: 22 August (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Thomas Percy, whose father was executed after the Pilgrimage of Grace, regained the Earldom of Northumberland under Queen Mary. His loyalty to the Catholic Church was well known; he married Anne Somerset, a valiant woman who suffered much for the faith.
He took part in the Northern Rising of 1569. Later handed over to the English government, he was beheaded at York on 22 August 1572, refusing to save his life by abandoning his religion.
The miracles
As a martyr he was raised to the altars without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A nobleman who would not buy his life by giving up his faith.
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - Blessed Thomas Percy
- Wikidata Q2701365 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.