On the eve of the beatification of Venerable Servants of God Pedro de Corpa and Companions – five Spanish Franciscan missionaries martyred near present-day Savannah, Georgia, U.S. – His Eminence Frank Cardinal Leo embarked with Bishop Stephen D. Parkes of Savannah and other (arch)bishops, clergy (many of whom were Franciscans), and pilgrims on a journey through history Friday, October 30, at Fort King George State Historic Site in Darien, GA.

Overlooking the vast marshlands stretching out towards St. Simons and Little St. Simons Islands, the small peninsula – now home to a reconstructed 18th-century British fort – is believed to be the location of the mission of Asao/Talaje, where Friar Francisco de Veráscola ministered to the Guale people. Though excavated in the mid-20th century, the site still holds many mysteries, as the haphazard documentation of the excavation and eventual reburial of the ruins has baffled historians and archaeologists for decades.

The martyr about whom we know the most, Fray Veráscola was born February 13, 1564, in the small neighborhood Beraskola, in the small town Gordexola, in the Basque Country. The record of his Baptism may still be seen in the parish church there. Apparently, the local community takes great care to remember its history – among those who traveled to Fort King George that day were 12th- and 13th-generation descendants of Friar Francisco’s brother, who still live in the little town of Gordexola.

Due to increasing demand, the staff at the historic site created a special tour focused on the Franciscan missions among the Guale. It is at this location that Friar Francisco is believed to have been martyred, overpowered by a number of men upon his return from a supply run to St. Augustine, as he disembarked from his canoe.

On the evening of Friday, October 30, Solemn Vespers were offered at the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist in Savannah, in anticipation of the beatification of the Venerable Servants of God the following day. Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, presided.

On Saturday, October 31, papal legate Frank Cardinal Leo of Toronto presided over the long-awaited beatification of Venerable Pedro de Corpa and Four Companions, martyred in 1597 along the coast of present-day Georgia. Known collectively as the “Georgia Martyrs,” Friars Pedro de Corpa, Blas Rodríguez de Cuacos, Miguel de Añon, Antonio de Badajoz, and Francisco de Veráscola carried out their apostolate among the Indigenous Guale people, a chiefdom 40,000 strong, who occupied the region between the Ogeechee and Altamaha Rivers within the broader territory called La Florida, part of the Spanish Empire during the colonization of the Americas. For two years, the friars lived amicably among their hosts and received many of them into the Christian faith. In September 1597, however, for defending the sanctity of Christian marriage, they were murdered by a war party led by a baptized Guale determined to return to the practice of polygyny.

With an estimated 9,000 people gathered in the Savannah Convention Center, the beatification is believed to have set a city record for attendance at an indoor event. It was the first beatification in Georgia, the first in the American South, and only the sixth on U.S. soil. Principal concelebrants included Archbishop Caccia, the apostolic nuncio, and three bishops who have actively shepherded the Georgia Martyrs’ Cause for Canonization: Bishop Stephen D. Parkes of Savannah, Bishop Emeritus J. Kevin Boland of Savannah, and Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer of Atlanta. Also concelebrating were Archbishop Joan-Enric Vives i Sicília of Urgell (Spain); Fr. Michael Perry, provincial minister of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe of the Order of Friars Minor; and Fr. Giovangiuseppe Califano, the Franciscan postulator general.

Additionally, in attendance were 193 priests, 31 (arch)bishops, 51 seminarians, 51 deacons, and an honor guard comprised of 110 Knights of Columbus, 37 Knights of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, 21 Knights of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, and 8 Knights of Peter Claver. Seventy ciboria were required for distributing Holy Communion to the crowd of pilgrims, who arrived at the massive hall via water taxi, shuttle bus, personal vehicle, and coach (at least 41 of the latter, from Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina), and who hailed from across the US and from seven foreign nations (in North America, Central America, Southern Europe, and West Africa). A recreated Guale “village” with historical information about the Guale people and the individual martyrs, as well as a martyrs-themed art exhibit with approximately 100 pieces of original art, engaged the thousands, both before and after the Mass of Beatification, during which the new official image of the Georgia Martyrs, by Savannah artist Jared Seff, was revealed to the crowd and to the thousands watching via livestream.

Franciscans were among the first missionaries to establish Indigenous choirs in the New World, and several pieces of music chosen for the Beatification Mass would have been familiar to the Georgia Martyrs, including the Introit, Communio, and Kyrie chants. Composed for the liturgy were a new setting of Psalm 116 in Spanish by Marc Cerisier and a new motet at Communion by Jessica French, based on the poem La Florida (1598–1615) by Franciscan Friar Alonso de Escobedo, a contemporary of the martyrs.

On November 1, the Solemnity of All Saints, a Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated, at the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist. Archbishop Hartmayer of Atlanta (Bishop of Savannah, 2011–2020) presided.

For more information on Blessed Pedro de Corpa and Companions or to view the Mass of Beatification or the Mass of Thanksgiving, please see theGeorgiaMartyrs.org.