The Five Georgia Martyrs
(Credit : Diocese of Savannah, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
CT News
Feb. 21, 2026 : The five Spanish Franciscan friars collectively known as the “Georgia Martyrs” will be beatified in Savannah, Georgia, U.S.A. on October 31, 2026, according to a recent Vatican announcement.
Cardinal Francis Leo of the Archdiocese of Toronto, Canada, will celebrate the beatification, according to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.
In 1597, six Spanish Franciscans came to what is now the Georgia coast to minister to the native people called the Guale. Two years later, all but one were murdered.
The cause for canonization of the Georgia Martyrs officially began in 1950. In January 2025, Pope Francis recognized Father Pedro de Corpa, Father Blas Rodríguez, Father Miguel de Añon, Brother Antonio de Badajóz, and Father Francisco de Veráscola as martyrs.
A documentary of their lives, “For the Sake of the Gospel,” released in 2024, can be viewed here.
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