Anthony of Padua canonized the year after death

1228

Less than a year after his death at thirty-six, the Portuguese Franciscan preacher was declared a saint by Gregory IX. His rapid canonization reflected both his extraordinary popular cult in northern Italy and his reputation as a finder of lost things. Churches dedicated to him multiplied across Europe, and his tongue, found miraculously preserved when his tomb was opened, was placed in a gold reliquary in Padua.