Communist destruction of the Our Lady of Consolation Trappist Abbey at Yangjiaping in 1947

From Catholic World Report:

The untold story of the Communist destruction of the Our Lady of Consolation Trappist Abbey at Yangjiaping in 1947


"One of the most tragic examples of how merciless the Party can be is the appalling Communist massacre of 33 holy martyrs connected to Our Lady of Consolation Trappist Abbey at Yangjiaping. Still today, Chinese Catholics only speak of this incident in hushed tones for fear of the government. In 1947, a bedraggled and terrorized group of Trappist monks arrived in Beijing, where the American Jesuit, Father Charles J. McCarthy, SJ (1911-1991), was the first person to collect the horrible stories of what had happened to their celebrated abbey, then in ruins. The stories they provided Father McCarthy had clearly stirred the young priest, for he later penned one of the most harrowing accounts of Communist atrocities in China’s early modern history. He began his narrative in vivid terms:

In the early morning hours of August 30, 1947, the Trappist Abbey of Our Lady of Consolation…was reduced to ruins by fire. … The burning of their monastery, effected by Communists who control this region, was but one act, and not the most pathetic, in a long tragic persecution inflicted on the brave Trappist Community. At present writing, 16 Trappists are known to have died during the ordeal. (1)

The death toll indeed rose beyond 16, and as the details of their deaths came to light the inhumane tactics of China’s Communists also became known. "