40 Martyr Reflections: Saint Anne Line

Anne Line had such a desire to die from Christ that she is said to have had a holy envy of priests and others who were in more of an advantageous position to be martyred. Father William Thompson, who was also martyred, even promised Anne that he would pray before his execution that she might also be permitted to give her life in witness to the true faith.

Like many faithful Catholic women during penal times, Anne Line set about to protect priests and organise the celebration of Mass for recusants. But, unlike many wives of aristocrats living in large country mansions who undertook these dangerous tasks, Anne was a poor, simple woman who suffered prolonged illness. She was a world away from the recusant country estates. Instead, renowned Jesuit priest Fr John Gerard put his complete trust in Mrs Line, placing her in charge of a refuse house for priests in London in the 1590s.

We don’t know exactly when Anne Heigham was born but it seems to be around the 1568 mark. Her father, William, was a staunch Calvanist and threw Anne and her brother (William) out of the family house in Great Dunmow, Essex, when he discovered they had both converted to Catholicism. He was so angry that he disinherited his son of the family estate.

Shortly after becoming a Catholic and while still a teenager, she met another convert, Roger Line, in the early 1580s. Both were dedicated to the mission of hiding priests, the men who held the key to the salvation of countless Catholics. Shortly after their marriage they moved at a house near Bishopsgate in London. During a Mass in 1585, both Anne’s husband (only 19 at the time) and brother were apprehended and taken to Compter Prison in Wood Street together with celebrant Fr Thompson.

After a period of time in prison, Roger was sentenced to banishment and went to Flanders. He was never to see his young beloved wife again. Mr Line received a small pension from the King of Spain part of which he sent to Anne for her living costs. But Roger died tragically early in 1593, leaving his c.25 year old widow devastated.

Fr John Gerard selected Anne to be the housekeeper of the house of retreat for priests. The shrewd English Mission priest said Mrs Line was "just the sort of person that I wanted at the head of the house" to "manage money matters, take care of the guests and meet the inquiries of strangers". Fr Gerard described her as having a "good store of charity and wariness".

By this point, Mrs Line wasn’t in good health. She suffered with headaches and had such a weak body that friends thought she was going to die every time the seasons changed. But although the flesh was weak the spirit was strong. She wept each time she received Holy Communion, which was at least once a week. At this time, receiving Our Lord that regularly was rare for a layperson, even in countries with no persecution of Catholics. Anne spent many an hour in prayer and meditation.

When Fr Gerard escaped from the Tower of London with the help of two lay brothers in October 1597, the search to find Anne Line was stepped up. Incidentally, Fr Gerard (one of the main characters in the excellent book by Alice Hogg "God’s Secret Agents) had been suspended by his wrists no less than eight times.

Anne had to move between house to house but still managed to dodge the authorities for another eight years or so. During this period, she ran three refuge houses in the capital she taught Catholic children and looked after priests.

On the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple (or Candlemas), February 2 1601, guards broke down the door down to Mrs Line’s house just as Mass was being celebrated. Because it was heavily bolted, the brave woman was able to bundle the celebrating priest, Father Francis Page, down a hiding hole and he made his escape. However, Anne and two others were arrested.

At the Old Bailey on February 26 1601, Anne Line stood trial on a charge of harbouring a priest. Now in such a physical state unable to walk, she had to be carried to court by chair. The evidence was patchy but the judge was the vehemently anti-Catholic Lord Chief-Justice Popham. Despite the facts being in doubt, Mrs Line was happy to effectively plead guilty. She boldly told the court that, far from regretting concealing a priest, she grieved that she "could not receive a thousand more".

While in Newgate prison awaiting her horrible execution, Anne revealed to her fellow inmates that she had received the second of two vision in her life just a couple of days beforehand. When praying her office, Anne said she witnessed her book glow and took it as a sign of her future martyrdom.

On the gallows on February 27 1601, Mrs Line repeated what she had said at her trial, declaring loudly to the bystanders: "I am sentenced to die for harbouring a Catholic priest, and so far I am from repenting for having so done, that I wish, with all my soul, that where I have entertained one, I could have entertained a thousand."

She was hanged immediately before two priests, Fr Roger Filcock and Fr Mark Barkworth. The latter priest kissed her hand while her body was still hanging, and said: "Oh blessed Mrs. Line, who has now happily received thy reward, thou art gone before us, but we shall quickly follow thee to bliss, if it please the Almighty."After a brief struggle choking on the rope, she died. Some of her remains were recovered by the Countess of Arundel’s men and buried in an unknown place.

One of the few universal female saints to have been married, and indeed widowed, Saint Anne Line was a humble housekeeper but played an integral role in keeping the Catholic faith alive. She was clearly devastated by the loss of her husband but her faith made her strong to continue the work of harbouring priests and organising Masses.

The modern day presbytery housekeeper is an important role, carrying out cleaning, cooking and administration for the priest. There are certainly some - how can I put it - interesting characters I have known that look after the house for priests. According to my internet research, there are four patron saints of housekeepers - Anne, Martha, Monica and Zita. Saint Anne Line is certainly a worthy name to be among them. She is also wonderful saint for widowed people to pray to.

Saint Anne Line Pray for Us.