St. Margaret Ward
Margaret
Ward was born a gentleman's daughter at Congleton in Cheshire, England,
and for a time lived as a lady's companion in the house of a lady of
distinction named Whitall, then residing in London.
Learning that William Watson, the priest who wrote the work known as the “Quodlibets,”
was imprisoned in Bridewell, she became friendly with the jailer's wife
and obtained permission to visit him. After several visits she disarmed
the vigilance of the jailer and furnished the priest with a rope so he
could make his escape. At the appointed time the boatman whom she had
engaged to convey Father Watson down the river refused to carry out his
part of the plan, and in her distress she confided her difficulty to a
young man, John Roche, who agreed to assist her. He provided a boat and
exchanged clothes with the fugitive, who made good his escape.
But
the clothes betrayed John Roche, and the rope convinced the jailer that
Margaret Ward had been instrumental in the flight of the prisoner. They
were both arrested and clapped in irons. Margaret was flogged and hung
up by the wrists, with only the tips of her toes touching the ground.
This torture was prolonged for so long that she was crippled and
paralyzed, but her sufferings only served to strengthen her all the
more. Still refusing to betray the priest, they were offered their
freedom if they would ask the Queen’s pardon and attend a Protestant
service, both of which they refused.
Margaret was tried and
condemned to death at Newgate. She was hanged at Tyburn in London on
August 30, 1588. On the scaffold, she was denied any last words because
her persecutors were afraid of the impression her speech would have on
the attending crowd.
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