Jacques Jules Bonnaud

Blessed

Jacques Jules Bonnaud

SJ
Saint-Joseph-des-Carmes Church in Paris, formerly a prison where Bonnaud and others were martyred in 1792 during the French Revolution.
BornOctober 27, 1740
Cap-Haitien, Haiti
DiedSeptember 2, 1792(1792-09-02) (aged 51)
Carmes Prison, Paris
Cause of deathAssassination
Honored inCatholic Church
BeatifiedOctober 17, 1926 by Pope Pius XI
Major shrineSaint-Joseph-des-Carmes
FeastSeptember 2

Jacques Jules Bonnaud, SJ (also James Julius Bonnaud; 1740 – 1792) was a Haitian-born French Jesuit priest who, with several others, was assassinated in the September Massacres during the Reign of Terror as part of the French Revolution. He was likely the first Haitian professor or theologian in Europe.

Having died out of loyalty to the Catholic Church and the pope, he is recognized as a martyr and was beatified on October 17, 1926, by Pope Pius XI, at the same time as many other secular priests, Jesuits, Capuchins and Carmelites who were victims of the excesses of the Revolution. As of 2024, he Is the only beati of African descent from North America.