Profile
Ambrose was the fourth son of Sir Alexander Barlow and Mary Brereton. A baptized Catholic on 30 November 1585, he was raised as a Protestant, but as an adult he returned to Catholicism. He was educated at the College of Saint Gregory, Douai, France, and the Royal College of Saint Alban in Valladolid, Spain. He became a Benedictine in 1616 and ordained in 1617 in Douai. He returned to England to minister to covert Catholics in south Lancashire for 24 years. Unlike many of his brother priests, Ambrose was very open about his work, and was arrested several times. On 25 April 1631, just as he ended Easter Sunday Mass at Morley Hall near Manchester, England, he was arrested by an armed mob led by the local Anglican vicar. He was charged with the crime of being a priest, and freely admitted it. He was one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.
Born
- 1585 in Barlow Hall, England
Died
- hanged, drawn, and quartered on Friday 10 September 1641 at Lancaster, Lancashire, England
- skull preserved as a relic at Wardley Hall, sometimes known as the House of the Skull, near Manchester, England
- his hand is preserved at Stanbrook Abbey, Worcester, England
Venerated
- 8 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI (decree of martyrdom)
Beatified
- 15 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI
Canonized
- 25 October 1970 by Pope Paul VI
Source: https://catholicsaints.info/saint-ambrose-edward-barlow/
