Who Was Saint Maria della Pace?

Saints

A young Franciscan Missionary of Mary killed in the 1900 Taiyuan Massacre during the Boxer Uprising.

Saint Maria della Pace was a sister of the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary killed at Taiyuan, Shanxi province, China, on July 9, 1900, at twenty-four years old, in the mass killing known as the Taiyuan Massacre. She is venerated among the 120 Martyrs of China, beatified in 1946 and canonized in 2000 by Pope John Paul II, one of the youngest of her congregation’s sisters to die there.

No known portrait of Saint Maria Della Pace
No portrait or image of Saint Maria Della Pace is known to survive; this icon marks pages without an identifiable image.

Quick Facts

  • Born: c. 1876
  • Died: July 9, 1900, age 24
  • Place: Taiyuan, Shanxi, China
  • Venerated as: Religious, Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, martyr

Who Was Saint Maria della Pace?

Saint Maria della Pace was a religious sister of the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary killed at Taiyuan, Shanxi province, China, on July 9, 1900, at just twenty-four years old, in the mass execution known as the Taiyuan Massacre, alongside her fellow sister-missionaries and two Italian Franciscan bishops.

Historical Setting

The Taiyuan Massacre of July 9, 1900, ordered by the provincial governor Yuxian amid the wider Boxer Uprising, claimed dozens of lives in a single coordinated act of violence, making it one of the most concentrated losses of missionary and Chinese Catholic life in the entire uprising. The Franciscan Missionaries of Mary had come to Shanxi to serve the local Church only a few years before their deaths.

Why the Church Remembers Saint Maria della Pace

Maria della Pace is remembered as one of the youngest of the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary who died at Taiyuan, her short missionary life cut off in the same act of violence that claimed her religious sisters and the bishops they served alongside.

Canonization and Feast Day

The production register records Maria della Pace’s beatification in 1946 and canonization in 2000, when Pope John Paul II canonized her among the 120 Martyrs of China.

What Catholics Can Learn Today

Maria della Pace’s youth and short missionary service before her death remind us that the call to serve the Church’s mission, and the risks that call can carry, is not reserved for those with decades of experience.

A Prayer to Saint Maria della Pace

Saint Maria della Pace, young missionary martyr, pray for those who answer the call to mission early in life, that they may serve with the same generous courage you showed at Taiyuan. Amen.

Sources

  • Vatican.va (canonization of the 120 Martyrs of China, 2000)
  • The Roman Martyrology