Štěpán Trochta


Štěpán Trochta

Cardinal
Bishop of Litoměřice
Trochta in 1970.
ChurchRoman Catholic Church
DioceseLitoměřice
SeeLitoměřice
Appointed27 September 1947
Term ended6 April 1974
PredecessorAnton Alois Weber
SuccessorJosef Koukl
Other post(s)Cardinal-Priest of San Giovanni Bosco in Via Tuscolana (1973-74)
Orders
Ordination29 June 1932
by Maurilio Fossati
Consecration16 November 1947
by Saverio Ritter
Created cardinal
  • 28 April 1969 ("in pectore")
  • 5 March 1973 (published)

by Pope Paul VI
RankCardinal-Priest
Personal details
Born
Štěpán Trochta

(1905-03-26)26 March 1905
Died6 April 1974(1974-04-06) (aged 69)
Litoměřice, Czechoslovakia
MottoActio sacrificum caritas ("Actions offer charity")
Coat of arms
Styles of
Štěpán Trochta
Reference styleHis Eminence
Spoken styleYour Eminence
Informal styleCardinal
SeeLitoměřice
Ordination history of
Štěpán Trochta
History
Priestly ordination
Ordained byMaurilio Fossati
Date29 June 1932
PlaceTurin, Kingdom of Italy
Episcopal consecration
Principal consecratorSaverio Ritter
Co-consecrators
Date16 November 1947
PlacePrague, Czechoslovakia
Cardinalate
Elevated byPope Paul VI
Date
  • 28 April 1969 ("in pectore")
  • 5 March 1973 (revealed)
Episcopal succession
Bishops consecrated by Štěpán Trochta as principal consecrator
Ladislao Hlad26 March 1950

Štěpán Trochta (Czech pronunciation: [ˈʃcɛpaːn ˈtroxta]; 26 March 1905, Francova Lhota – 6 April 1974, Litoměřice) was a Czech Roman Catholic cardinal in the former Czechoslovakia who served as the Bishop of Litoměřice from 1947 until his death and was a professed member from the Salesians of Don Bosco. Trochta was considered a staunch defender of ecclesial rights and privileges in Czechoslovakia which the communist regime had sought to limit and suppress; Pope Paul VI (who made Trochta a cardinal) labelled Trochta after his death as a "defender of the faith" due to his commitment in standing up for Church rights and beliefs. He was a prisoner of war during World War II and for the decades after was stopped from performing his ecclesial duties until the end of his life when he was permitted to do so.

His cause for sainthood had been planned in his old diocese but plans to do so collapsed and it has been scrapped. There are still local initiatives to commence the process.