Anna Kolesárová
Slovak martyr and Blessed
Feast: 22 November (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
The Vatican record
- 6 March 2018 — Martyrdom recognised (decree list, 2018)
Who they were
Anna Kolesárová was born on 14 July 1928 at Vysoká nad Uhom, in eastern Slovakia near the Ukrainian border, into a deeply religious family, and went to Mass daily. When her mother died she took over the care of the home for her father and elder brother.
In 1944, during the Red Army's occupation, a Soviet soldier tried to assault her; she resisted, and he killed her before her family's eyes. She is called 'a victim of chastity' and was the first lay Blessed of Slovakia.
The miracles
As a martyr, beatified without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A sixteen-year-old who gave her life rather than yield to violence.
The cause
The cause continues. No postulation address is published here yet. Favours received through this person’s intercession, and offers of help, are best sent to the religious order or congregation they belonged to, or to the diocese where the cause was opened; either will pass them to the postulation.
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - biography: Anna Kolesárová
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints — promulgated decrees (causesanti.va), summarised in our own words
- Wikidata Q10826612 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Anna Kolesárová (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.