Francis Ferdinand de Capillas


Francis Fernández de Capillas

Missionary and Protomartyr of China
Born15 August 1607
Baquerín de Campos,
Palencia, Spain
DiedJanuary 15, 1648(1648-01-15) (aged 40)
Fu'an, Fujian, Qing China
Cause of deathDecapitation
Venerated inRoman Catholicism
Beatified2 May 1909 by Pope Pius X
Canonized1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II
Major shrineDominican Priory of St. Paul, Valladolid, Spain
Feast15 January

Francis Fernández (or Ferdinand) de Capillas (15 August 1607 – 15 January 1648) was a Spanish Dominican friar who went as a missionary to Asia. He died in China as a martyr. He was canonized by Pope John Paul II on 1 October 2000, as one of the 120 Martyrs of China.

De Capillas is honored by the Holy See as the protomartyr among the missionaries in China, and is considered the glory and pride of the Dominican Order.