The

Lives

of

The Fathers, Martyrs,

and other

Principal Saints;

compiled from

original monuments, and other authentic records;

illustrated with the

remarks of judicious modern critics and historians.

———————

By the Rev. Alban Butler

———————

With the approbation of

Most Rev. M. A. Corrigan, D.D.,

Archbishop of New York.

———————

in 4 volumes

from the original vols. I–XII.

new york:

P. J. Kenedy,

publisher to the holy see,

Excelsior Catholic Publishing House,

5 Barclay Street.

1903

Preface

“The Lives of the Saints” is republished. This work—this inestimable work, is at length given to the public. Hitherto the circulation of it was confined to those who could afford to purchase it in twelve volumes, and at a proportionate price. It is now stereotyped, printed in good character, on fine paper, and published at a price not only below its value, but below the hopes of the publisher it is therefore now, and for the first time, that “The Lives of the Saints” are, properly speaking, given to the public.

And what is the nature and character of this work, which is thus placed within the reach of almost every family in Ireland? We presume to say, that “The Lives of the Saints” is an historical supplement to the Old and New Testaments; an illustration of all that God has revealed, and of all the sanctity which his divine grace has produced among the children of men. It is a history, not so much of men, as of all ages and nations; of their manners, customs, laws, usages, and creeds. It is a succinct, but most accurate and satisfactory account of all that the Church of God has done or suffered in this world from the creation to almost our own days: an account not extracted from authentic records only, but one which exhibits at every page the living examples, the speaking proofs, of whatever it sets forth or asserts. As drawings taken by an artist, and afterwards carved on plates of steel or copper, present to us views of a country, or of the productions of the earth and sea, so “The Lives of the Saints” exhibit to the reader images the most perfect of whatever the human race, in times past, has yielded to God in return for his countless mercies.

But “The Lives of the Saints” are not confined to history, though they embrace whatever is most valuable in history, whether sacred, ecclesiastical, or profane. No! This work extends farther; it presents to the reader a mass of general information, digested and arranged with an ability and a candor never surpassed. Here, no art, no science, is left unnoticed. Chronology, criticism, eloquence, painting, sculpture, architecture—in a word, whatever has occupied or distinguished man in times of barbarism or of civilization; in peace or in war; in the countries which surround us, or in those which are far remote; in these latter ages, or in times over which centuries upon centuries have reversed; all, all of these are treated of, not flippantly nor ostentatiously but with a sobriety and solidity peculiar to the writer of this ...