1785 - Francesco della Torre

April 19, 1785

Francesco della Torre

Beijing Prison

One of the better-known martyrs of the 1784-85 persecutions was Francesco Giuseppe della Torre. Born in 1732 in Genoa, Italy, della Torre was a member of the Congregation of St. John the Baptist. In the Orient he held a vital job as Procurator of the Sacred Congregation of Propaganda for China and Indo-China (today’s Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia). He was “not only the business agent of the Propaganda missionaries, but also the representative of the Congregation in these parts of the world.”[I]

Described by his fellow missionaries as “of weak constitution, but a man of fine character and therefore highly esteemed,”[II] della Torre was working in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong in 1781 when he was summoned to appear in court. Della Torre had received official permission to live in China and be in charge of foreigners’ mail, and so was legally protected as long as this status remained in place. The Guangdong officials wanted to prosecute della Torre, but did not dare to do so until they received permission from the Imperial court in Beijing.

In January 1785, Beijing undertook steps to have della Torre arrested. First, the emperor revoked his official status, and in the next few weeks “evidence” against the Italian came flooding in from the provinces, resulting in a warrant being issued for the priest’s arrest. Information was gathered that showed della Torre had been far more instrumental in helping new missionaries sneak into China than previously believed. Della Torre’s servants were questioned, and the court discovered that dozens of missionaries had stayed at his home before embarking for inland provinces.

On January 15th della Torre was again called before the judicial commissioner and interrogated. As he had done previously,

“…he was very careful not to betray a single missionary in the provinces. But to his great surprise he was confronted with one of his servants who reiterated the confession he had made before. Msgr. della Torre could say little against the facts cited by his own servant, and seeing that the admission of the facts could do no additional harm to the missionaries in the field, confirmed the testimony that he himself had sent the missionaries named into the provinces. From that time on he was considered a ‘major criminal’ and retained as a prisoner.”[III]

On January 23rd Francesco della Torre was bound and sent on the long journey north to Beijing. He arrived in the nation’s capital on April 8th, after an arduous ten-week journey. The faithful Catholic had survived the long journey to Beijing under guard in good health, but,

“…before the month was over, he was a dying man. The missionaries employed at the imperial court, who held him in high esteem, made special efforts to obtain a milder sentence for him, and evidently succeeded, for according to Father Jean M. Ventavon, Msgr. della Torre was to have been sent back to Macau without further objection, but on April 29, the day on which the sentence was ratified by the emperor, Msgr. della Torre died in prison.”[IV]

I Willeke, Imperial Government and Catholic Missions in China, 19.
II Willeke, Imperial Government and Catholic Missions in China, 19.
III Willeke, Imperial Government and Catholic Missions in China, 113.
IV Willeke, Imperial Government and Catholic Missions in China, 147-148.