Saint François-Isidore Gagelin

François-Isidore Gagelin, born on May 10, 1799, in Montperreux, Doubs, France, was a member of the Paris Foreign Missions Society and became the first French martyr of the 19th century in Vietnam. He left for Vietnam in 1821 to serve as a missionary. In 1826, Emperor Minh Mạng ordered all missionaries to gather at Huế; Gagelin fled to the south to Đồng Nai in Cochinchina. He was captured once but released. On January 6, 1833, a new edict of prohibition was issued by Minh Mạng, leading to the destruction of churches and forcing missionaries into hiding. Gagelin surrendered on August 24, 1833, and was brought to Huế where he was executed by strangulation on October 17, 1833. He is celebrated as a martyr and his feast day is observed on October 17.