Five Polish Brothers

They weren't Polish, and they weren't related, but were instead five hermits who were martyred together. They were - Benedict, Krystyn, Isaac, Jan and Mateusz. They were murdered during a robbery on the night of November 10, 1003, most likely in the village of Święty Wojciec near Międzyrzecz. Isaac, Mateusz and Krystyn are the first Polish saints canonized in the history of the Catholic Church. In 1038, the relics of the Five Brothers Martyrs were transported from Gniezno to Prague by Czech soldiers during a plundering expedition to Poland.

In 1987, František Tomášek, then Archbishop of Prague, donated the relics for the new church in Bydgoszcz. Currently, they are exposed for public veneration in the chapel of the Divine Mercy. The reliquary, realized by the artist Robert Kaja, portrays five figures of martyrs supporting a royal crown topped with a cross.^[11] Part of the relics is walled up in the main altar.

Benedict and Jan were two Italian Benedictines. Mateusz and Isaac were novices. Krystyn was a helper. Their memorial is kept on November 12.