당고개 순교성지

History & origins

Danggogae is remembered as the place where ten Catholics were martyred near the end of the Gihae Persecution in 1839. Tradition records that they had been scheduled for execution outside Seosomun but were moved toward Danggogae because of circumstances around the market and the approaching holiday. Nine were later canonized in 1984, while Maria Yi Seong-rye was beatified in 2014.

Modern development of the shrine began in earnest in the 1980s. Land and memorial facilities were secured, a memorial altar was consecrated in 1987, and the site was later preserved through urban redevelopment. After a major rebuilding project beginning in 2008, Mass resumed in the new memorial church in June 2011, and Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk dedicated the renewed shrine on September 4.