Windsor Martyrs

Who is Windsor Martyrs?

The Windsor Martyrs were 16th century English Protestants martyred at Windsor in Berkshire. Their names were Robert Testwood, Anthony Pearson and Henry Filmer.

In 1543, during the reign of Henry VIII, the three Windsor Martyrs were arrested by Bishop Gardiner's agent, Dr John London, on the evidence of William Simonds, the Catholic former Mayor of Windsor, who had a grudge against them. John Marbeck and Robert Benet were also arrested, but were later released. They were condemned on 26 July, after Simonds threatened the jurers, and burnt to death on 4 August on the site of the Windsor & Eton Riverside railway station.

Their story was recorded in Foxe's Book of Martyrs. According to Foxe, many who saw their patient suffering confessed that they could have found in their hearts to have died with them, although the Vicar of Bray, who was also watching, decided he would change with the times in order to prevent the same from happening to him.