1935 - Baptistin Biron

August 20, 1935

Mabian, Sichuan

The Nosu tribes living in the remote Daliangshan (‘Great Cold Mountains’) in southern Sichuan Province had lived for centuries as virtual independent states outside of the control of the Chinese, who feared entering their domain. In the 1920s the French Catholics bravely commenced a work in the mountains of Mabian County, and it was there that French missionary Henri Baptistin Biron was killed in 1935.

Biron was born in Paris in 1882. As a schoolboy he showed great ability in mathematics, and was the top of his class in algebra and geometry. Biron entered the Missions Etrangères de Paris at the age of 20. The Superior of the mission, Mr. Delpech, said of the new recruit, “He is the personification of health and strength. It will not surprise me if he lives to be 100 and achieves great things.”[1] Biron was ordained a priest in September 1906, departing for China two months later. After a gruelling overland journey, he reached his destination of Suifu (now Yibin) in southern Sichuan on April 16, 1907. He set about learning Chinese, and after just a few months was able to preach. The young Frenchman so impressed his colleagues that he was given charge of the mission at Changning just a year after his arrival. He devoted his whole heart to the work, preaching the gospel and overseeing the Catholic school.

During his itineration around the district, Biron came into contact with Nosu men and women from the nearby mountains. These fierce and proud people fascinated Biron. They appeared to come from a thousand years back in time, with little or no knowledge of Chinese customs or language. In 1914 the Frenchman decided to concentrate his efforts on reaching the Nosu. To begin with, Biron’s strategy was to travel to Mabian, a town on the edge of Nosu territory. There was a small Chinese church there, and Biron expended much energy trying to mobilize the believers to reach out to the Nosu. They were reluctant, and explained to the missionary that nobody could understand the language, and besides, the Nosu were barbarians who had killed the Chinese for centuries. One day, however, a breakthrough occurred when a Nosu man who could speak Chinese visited the church out of curiosity. Baptistin Biron treated him with kindness. On his next visit to Mabian the man brought some friends to meet the foreigner. They invited Biron to visit their homes in the mountains. After arriving in the village,

“The chief invited Biron to stay in his house. Everyone came to stare at him in amazement, for he was the first white man they had ever seen. After a small meal, Biron spoke to the villagers about the true God, treated the sick, and distributed salt—a gift much appreciated by the Nosu. Several other villages sent representatives asking Biron to come and share his message with them, but first he decided to instruct four of the men who had shown the most interest in the gospel, in the hope they could carry the message back to their own people.”[2]

The work progressed slowly over the years but several key Nosu leaders had grasped the gospel and become genuine believers. Each trip into the mountains was exhausting for the Frenchman, crossing many sharp peaks and deep valleys, fording streams and rivers, and scrambling up cliff faces on hands and knees. Biron considered the sacrifice all worthwhile for the joy of seeing some of them come to love Jesus.

In 1934 the Nosu from one tribe proposed giving Biron a piece of land to build a Catholic mission. The Chinese authorities, however, were strongly opposed to the idea. Rumours abounded that the Frenchman was going to be proclaimed ‘King of the Nosu.’ Consequently, the Chinese military launched a punitive strike into the mountains. The Nosu hid in the hills until they had departed, and returned to find many of their houses burned to the ground.

Nosu from a different area blamed the problems solely on the presence of the French priest. Unexpectedly, at nine o’clock in the morning of August 20, 1935, a Nosu man and his slave appeared at the house where Biron was staying and acted as if they were selling musk. Without warning,

“Five Nosu men, hidden in the undergrowth nearby, fell on Biron and bound his hands behind his back. Suddenly about 100 Nosu warriors emerged from the forest with wild screams and cries. As they plundered the house, one of the men placed a rope around the neck of the poor missionary. Others punched him and plucked out pieces of his beard, and the rope was tugged violently, causing terrible agony. The martyr soon fell to the ground, and his torturers celebrated by singing a victory song. The Nosu dragged Biron’s lifeless body for nearly one kilometre before stripping him of his clothing and departing into the mountains.”[3]

Some of Baptistin Biron’s Nosu friends recovered the 53-year-old missionary’s body and carried it back to Mabian for burial.

1. My translation of the Baptistin Biron Obituary in the Archives des Missions Etrangères de Paris, China Biographies and Obituaries, 1900-1999.
2. Baptistin Biron Obituary in the Archives des Missions Etrangères de Paris.
3. Baptistin Biron Obituary in the Archives des Missions Etrangères de Paris.