Felipe de las Casas Ruiz was born in
Mexico City in 1572. His parents had recently emigrated from Spain. He joined the Reformed
Franciscans of the Province of St. Didacus, founded in Mexico by
Peter Baptista, with whom he suffered
martyrdom later. After some months in the Order, Philip grew tired of religious life, and left the Franciscans. He took up a mercantile career, and went to the
Philippines, another Spanish colony, where he led a secular life. Later he desired to re-enter the Franciscans and was again admitted at
Manila in 1590. After some years it was determined that he was ready for
ordination and sent to Mexico for this, since the
episcopal see of Manila was vacant at that time, and thus no
bishop was available locally to ordain him. He sailed on the
San Felipe on 12 July 1596, but a storm drove the vessel upon the coast of Japan. The governor of the province confiscated the ship and imprisoned its crew and passengers, among whom were Franciscan
friar, Juan de Zamorra, as well as three other friars, two
Augustinians and a
Dominican. The discovery of soldiers, cannon and ammunition on the ship led to the suspicion that it was intended for the conquest of Japan, and that the missionaries were merely to prepare the way for the soldiers. This was also said by one of the crew, and it enraged the Japanese
Taikō,
Toyotomi Hideyoshi, generally called
Taicosama by Europeans. In consequence, he commanded on December 8, 1596, the arrest of the Franciscans in the
friary at
Miako, now
Kyoto, where Philip had gone. The friars were all kept prisoners in the friary until 30 December, when they were transferred to the city prison. There were six Franciscan friars, seventeen Japanese Franciscan
tertiaries and the Japanese
Jesuit Paul Miki, with his two native servants. The ears of the prisoners were
cropped on 3 January 1597, and they were paraded through the streets of
Kyoto; on 21 January, they were taken to
Osaka, and thence to
Nagasaki, which they reached on 5 February 1597. They were taken to a mountain near Nagasaki city, "Mount of the Martyrs", bound upon crosses, after which they were pierced with spears. The bones of Philip were brought to Mexico City in 1598. ==Beatification and canonization==