Ralph Corbie
Irish Jesuit
Feast: 7 September (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Ralph Corby, born near Dublin, grew up in the north of England, was ordained at Valladolid and became a Jesuit about 1626. From about 1631 he worked around Durham.
Seized in his Mass vestments in 1644, he was sent to Newgate with his friend John Duckett. Both admitted their priesthood and were executed at Tyburn on 7 September 1644.
The miracles
As a martyr he was raised to the altars without a miracle.
Why that counted as sanctity
A Jesuit who gave up a reprieve for his friend.
The cause
Ralph Corbie has been beatified; the cause continues. Favours received, and offers of help, go to the postulation, the office that carries the cause forward: Jesuits: the cause of Ralph Corbie.
Connected on this site
- John Duckett Blessed“After a year's work in Durham he was taken on his way to baptise two children, and sent to Newgate with the Jesuit Ralph Corbie; when a reprieve was obtained for one of them, each refused it for himself.” — this site's research
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - Ralph Corby
- Wikidata Q1526338 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Ralph Corbie (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.