- Robert Cecil, first Earl of Salisbury, and King James I's chief minister
During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, anti-Catholicism ran so high in England that it became high treason for Catholic priests to enter the country, and for anyone to help them.
But priests, especially Jesuits, continued to come to England to minister. Sometimes they would live in the homes of noblemen, pretending to be the owner's cousin or teacher. Or they would stay at safe houses which were identifiable through a code or a secret symbol.
In case of a government raid, hiding places were build into these houses. These became known as "priest holes."
The best known builder of these secret places was a Jesuit lay brother and master carpenter named Nicholas Owen. Owen saved the lives of many priests during the persecution, relying on prayer before beginning to build a new priest hole. After the failure of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605 (an attempt to assassinate King James I), the government blamed the Jesuits. Owen was arrested and tortured in the Tower of London. He died in March of 1606.
Nicholas Owen was canonized October 25, 1970, as on of the 40 martyrs of England and Wales. Today is his feast day. He is the patron saint of escapologists and illusionists.
- Little Black Book, Diocese of Saginaw