Mine eyes have seen the glory

Those who wage war generally have one thing in common: they believe their cause is just. They may even hold that God is on their side as they combat forces of evil or oppression. Sometimes they feel assured of divine assistance due to extraordinary signs or events.

The Old Testament is full of such miraculous intervention on the battlefield, as when Moses defeated the Amalekites or when Joshua brought down the walls of Jericho. Such reports are plentiful in the Christian era as well.

Constantine saw a cross in the sky inscribed “by this sign, you will conquer” before he defeated his rival Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge in A.D. 312. In the 1400s, St. Joan of Arc received angelic inspiration to lead French forces into battle against England. A fervent rosary campaign among Catholics is credited for the Holy League’s naval defeat of the Ottoman Empire at Lepanto in 1571. On a smaller but more recent scale, Gen. George Patton in 1944 had his entire Third Army pray for “fair weather for battle” so that “armed with Thy power, we may advance from victory to victory” — and so it happened.

There are other, lesser-known triumphs in history that have been attributed to heavenly intervention. These are just a few.

718: COVADONGA, SPAIN.

Muslims had invaded the Iberian Peninsula in 711, and by 718 they were in full control. After Christians found a statue of Mary hidden in a cave in northwest Spain, their armies managed to engage and defeat the Muslims in the area. They credited the victory to the discovery of the statue, and the victory came to be regarded as the beginning of the reconquistador, the retaking of Spain from the Muslims. Today a local feast there every September 7 honors Our Lady of Covadonga, also known as Our Lady of the Battles.

844: ST. JAMES AT CLAVIJO.

The apostle James died in Jerusalem in A.D. 44 but is said to have evangelized Spain during his lifetime. He is also said to be buried there, a pious belief that inspires the walking pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela. When the occupying Muslims, or Moors, demanded a tribute of 100 virgins, King Ramiro I of Asturia refused and prepared for battle. That night, he dreamed of St. James, who told him God had appointed him as Spain’s patron. The next day, James miraculously appeared on horseback with sword in hand and helped Spaniards defeat the Muslim army in the Battle of Clavijo. Historians say the battle never occurred, but ever since James has been honored as Matamoros (“Moor-Slayer”).

911: MIRACLE OF BLACHERNAE.

With Constantinople under siege, as the people gathered in the Blachernae Church to pray an all-night vigil for protection, the Virgin Mary entered through the church doors accompanied by St. John the Baptist, St. John the Apostle, and a host of angels. The Virgin prayed at the altar in tears before removing her veil and holding it over the faithful as she ascended out of sight. The people understood this as an assurance of her protection. The city was spared, and Eastern Catholic and Orthodox churches ever since have observed October 1 as the Feast of the Holy Protection.

1489: OUR LADY OF HALLE.

In the Basilica of St. Martin in Halle near Brussels was enshrined a statue of Mary breastfeeding the child Jesus, a 13th-century gift from St. Elizabeth of Hungary. As an army led by Philip of Cleve besieged the city, an apparition of Mary reportedly caught 33 cannonballs in her skirt or cloak. The cannonballs remain on display at the basilica today.

1633: KONSTANZ, GERMANY.

As Swedish troops were attacking Konstanz, above the Church of St. Augustine appeared a vision of the Virgin Mary. This apparition emboldened the Germans in their defense of the city such that they successfully repelled the invaders. Afterward the Germans built a chapel honoring Mary with a plaque describing her intervention.

1871: SIEGE OF PARIS.

In January 1871, during the Franco-Prussian War, Prussian troops were attempting to deal a decisive blow to Paris. An army led by a General Schmidt en route to attack Paris from the west suddenly received orders to halt its advance on January 17 — the very day Our Lady appeared in the sky for three hours in the small hamlet of Pontmain. It is said that the Prussian contingent saw the apparition and that Schmidt informed his superiors he could not progress further because “there is an invisible ‘Madonna’ barring the way.” Paris surrendered and signed an armistice 11 days later anyway, but many lives in the path of Schmidt’s planned route likely were saved.

1920: BATTLE OF WARSAW.

During the Polish-Soviet War, Mary is said to have appeared the night of August 14-15 to Red Army soldiers at Radzymin, about 12 miles outside Warsaw, holding a shield that deflected their bullets. The frightened Soviets retreated, ending their advance on Warsaw, and the outgunned Poles went on to win the war. The Battle of Warsaw is known as the “Miracle on the Vistula,” named for the river that runs through the city.