Stanislas, << STAN is lus, >> Saint (1030-1079), is the patron saint of Poland and the city of Krakow, where he served as bishop. He was proclaimed a saint of the Roman Catholic Church in 1253, and is honored as a martyr. His name is also spelled Stanislaus.
Saint Stanislas was born at Szczepanowski, Poland. As a priest he took charge of a parish near Krakow. He was named bishop of Krakow in 1072 by Pope Alexander II. His outspoken attacks against sin in both low and high places earned him the hatred of King Boleslaw II of Poland. Boleslaw ordered Stanislas killed. The king accompanied the guards who had been ordered to kill Stanislas. When the guards would not obey, the king killed the bishop himself. Saint Stanislas’s feast day is celebrated on April 11.
