By Ivy Chai
Praying for miracles?
Would you like the Blessed Martyrs of Compiègne to intercede for you?
The Martyrs of Compiègne were the 16 members of the Carmel of Compiègne, executed on 17 July 1794 during the French Revolution. The martyrs were proclaimed venerable in 1902 and were beatified in 1906.
The Sisters had refused to comply with the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, a law passed in 1790, which subordinated the Catholic Church to the revolutionary government, confiscated all Church land and banned religious orders.
The Carmelites of Compiègne resisted the suppression of their monastery and so were arrested in June 1794 and imprisoned at the former Visitation convent of Compiègne, where they offered themselves daily for the peace of France and the Church.
On 17 July 1794, they were tried in Paris, convicted of treason and sentenced to death by guillotine. Providentially, they were wearing their outlawed religious habits, since their only secular clothes were being washed on the day of the trial.
Opening of Process of Canonization “by equivalence” of the Blessed Martyrs of Compiègne
The Carmelite Sisters of the Monastery of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Kuching, have received a request from Fr Marco del S. Cuore OCD, Postulator General in Rome, to share their recent joyful news.
In a letter dated 1 February 2022, the Holy Father, at the request made by the French Episcopal Conference, with the support of the Order of Carmelites Discalced (OCD), has agreed to open a special process of Canonization “by equivalence” of the 16 Blessed Carmelite Martyrs of Compiègne, Mother Teresa of St Augustine and Companions.
The promulgation letter requests “to report any graces that have occurred through their intercession” and “have experienced and/or become aware of” answered prayers. All the material should be sent as soon as possible by email to carmelitesdecompiegne@gmail.com addressed to Mrs Claire Millet ocds. “The consistent work is to demonstrate the spread of the fame of holiness and of the signs that surround these Martyrs in the world”, adds the Postulator General.
List of Martyrs
The Martyrs of Compiègne consisted of 11 nuns, three lay sisters, and two externs (or tertiaries).
Choir Nuns
Mother Teresa of St Augustine, prioress (Madeleine-Claudine Ledoine). Born in Paris, 22 September 1752. Professed May 1775. She was the only child of an employee of the Paris Observatory.
Mother St Louis, sub-prioress (Marie-Anne [or Antoinette] Brideau). Born in Belfort, 7 December 1752. Professed September 1771. Her father was a professional soldier, probably stationed at Compiègne at some point in his career.
Mother Henriette of Jesus, ex-prioress for two terms, elected by the community in 1779 and 1782; novice mistress (Marie-Françoise Gabrielle de Croissy). Born in Paris, 18 June 1745. Professed February 1764, prioress from 1779 to 1785. Mother Henriette was the great-niece of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, King Louis XIV’s minister. She had already spent half her life as a Carmelite at the time of her execution, coming to Compiègne when she was 16. She was refused entrance at first by the prioress at the time because of her youth. She was sent home in Amiens for another year, and finally made her profession in 1764.
Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified (Marie-Anne Piedcourt). Born 1715, professed 1737. According to writer John B. Wainewright, while mounting the scaffold she said, “I forgive you as heartily as I wish God to forgive me.”
Sister Charlotte of the Resurrection, ex-sub-prioress (1764 and 1778) and sacristan (Anne-Marie-Madeleine Thouret). Born in Mouy, 16 September 1715. Professed August 1740. Sister Charlotte was the oldest sister of the group of martyrs. She “possessed a very lively mind” and was “naturally inclined towards gaiety”.
Sister Euphrasia of the Immaculate Conception (Marie-Claude Cyprienne). Born in 1736 in Bourth. Professed in 1757; entered Compiègne in 1756, at the age of 20. She was witty, humorous, and “possessed an undeniable exterior charm”.
Sister Teresa of the Sacred Heart of Mary (Marie-Antoniette Hanisset). Born in Rheims in 1740 or 1742. Professed in 1764. She was the daughter of a saddle maker. She served as the carmel’s interior turn sister, receiving goods for the community from the outside world.
Sister Julie Louise of Jesus, widow (Rose-Chrétien de la Neuville). Born in Loreau (or Évreux), in 1741. Professed probably in 1777. She had married a cousin despite her calling to the religious life. After her husband died prematurely, she became so depressed and disconsolate, she went into deep mourning, to the point that her family feared for her sanity. She received help from a cleric associated with her family and recovered with a new sense of her calling.
Sister Teresa of St Ignatius (Marie-Gabrielle Trézel) Born in Compiègne, 4 April 1743. Professed in 1771. She was a native of Compiègne. She was called “a mystic with a sense of the Absolute”.
Sister Mary-Henrietta of Providence (Anne Petras). Born in Cajarc, 17 June 1760. Professed in October 1786. Sister Mary-Henrietta, before joining the Carmelite order, was a member of the Sisters of Charity of Nevers. She came from a large, pious family; five of her sisters were also nuns in the Nevers order, and two of her brothers were priests.
Sister Constance of St Denis, novice (Marie-Geneviève Meunier). Born in Saint-Denis, 28 May 1765 or 1766. Sister Constance was the youngest member of the community. She was barred from making her final vows as a nun due to the revolutionary laws outlawing it, so she professed them to Mother Teresa before going to her death.
Lay Sisters
Sister St Martha, lay sister (Marie Dufour). Born in Beaune, 1 October or 2, 1742. Entered the community in 1772.
Sister Mary of the Holy Spirit, lay sister (Angélique Roussel). Born in Fresnes, 4 August 1742. Professed in 1769.
Sister St Francis Xavier (Julie Vérolot), lay sister. Born in Laignes or Lignières, 11 January 1764. Professed in 1789.
Externs
Catherine Soiron, born in 1742.
Thérèse Soiron, born in 1748. Both had been tertiaries in service of the community since 1772.
*Story/Bio of the Martyrs of Compiègne sourced from Wikipedia
