Fatima Timeline

2th Century – The village of Fatima is named after a beloved Moslem princess who converted to the Catholic faith and married the Christian knight Goncalo Hermingues

March 28, 1907 – Lucia dos Santos is born 

June 11, 1908 – Francisco Marto is born

 March 11, 1910 – Jacinta Marto is born 

June 28, 1914 – WWI is triggered by assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. 

July 28, 1914 – Austro-Hungary declares war on Serbia, setting off global conflict

 August 1, 1914 – Russia enters WWI against Germany and Austria-Hungary 

1915 - 9-year-old Lucia sees a figure in white suspended in midair 

Spring, 1916 – The Angel of Peace appears to Lucia and her cousins Jacinta and Francisco 

Summer, 1916 – The Angel of Peace appears a second time, announcing himself as the Angel of Portugal

 Fall, 1916 – The Angel of Peace appears a third time 

May 13, 1917 – 1st apparition of Our Lady of Fatima at the Cova da Iria
 

June 13, 1917 – 2nd apparition of Our Lady of Fatima 

July 13, 1917 – 3rd apparition of Our Lady of Fatima – three-part Secret revealed to the children 

August 19, 1917 – 4th apparition of Our Lady occurs in Valinhos near the village of Aljustrel 

September 13, 1917 – 5th apparition of Our Lady of Fatima 

October 13, 1917 – 6th apparition of Our Lady of Fatima, Miracle of the Sun occurs 

Collapse of the Russian Government in March 1917

April, 1917, the United States enters the war

May 5, 1917, Pope Benedict XV calls upon the world to seek the intercession of the Mother of Mercy for the attainment of peace

May 13, 1917, Eugene Pacelli was consecrated as a Bishop, later becoming Pope Pius XII

August 13, 1917, the Fatima shepherds are abducted by Administrator Arturo de Santos, a prominent Freemason

November 7, 1917, the Bolsheviks, under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin, took control in Russian Freemason

January 17, 1918, Pope Benedict XV restores the Diocese of Leiria (which include Fatima)

July 16 - 17, 1918 – Tsar Nicholas II and his family are executed 

In the Fall of 1918, Francisco and Jacinta Marto contract the deadly influenza

September 20, 1918 – Padre Pio receives the stigmata

November 11, 1918 – World War I ends

April 4, 1919 – Francisco dies from influenza 

April 29, 1919 – First Capelinha, “Chapel of Apparitions”, is built at the site of the apparitions

February 20, 1920 – Jacinta dies from tuberculosis and bronchial pneumonia

June 13, 1920 – The first statue of Our Lady of Fatima, sculpted by José Thedim according to Lucia’s description, is placed at the Capelinha

October 13, 1921 – First Mass is celebrated at the Capelinha

February 6, 1922 – Pope Pius XI elected Pope 

March 6, 1922 – Four bombs explode at the Capelinha, blowing off the chapel roof. A 5th bomb near the holm oak tree does not go off. 

April 3, 1922 – Joseph Stalin named General Secretary of the Communist Party. Establishes totalitarian rule by the end of the 1920s

May 3, 1922 – Bishop Jose Alves Correia da Silva opens an official inquiry into the events at Fatima 

December 20, 1922 – The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) is formed 

Vladimir Lenin dies

October 24, 1925 – Lucia joins the Dorothean Sisters in Spain   

December 10, 1925 – Our Lady and the Child Jesus appear to Sr. Lucia in the convent chapel and request the propagation of the First Saturday Communions of Reparation 

December 11, 1925 – Pope Pius XI establishes Feast of Christ the King to oppose the rise of anti-Christian regimes 

February 15, 1926 – The Child Jesus appears to Sister Lucia asking what is being done to spread the First Saturday Devotion 

June 13, 1929 – Sister Lucia receives a vision of the Holy Trinity in the chapel. Our Lady appears and requests the consecration of Russia to her Immaculate Heart by the Holy Father and all the bishops

1930s - Sister Lucia’s letters to her confessor, Fr. Jose Bernardo Goncalves, show that Our Lord and Our Lady made frequent requests for the consecration of Russia during the pontificate of Pius XI

October 13, 1930 – Bishop da Silva issues Pastoral Letter approving the apparitions at Fatima 

January 30, 1933 – Adolph Hitler appointed Chancellor of Germany 

March 12, 1933 – First concentration camp opens outside Berlin 

March 23, 1933 – German Democratic Republic is legally dissolved 

June, 1933 – Germany opens Dachau concentration camp 

August 19, 1934 – Adolf Hitler becomes Führer of Germany 

October 3, 1934 – Sister Lucia professes final vows with the Sisters of St. Dorothy, becoming Sister Maria Lucia of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart 

1935 – Jesus tells mystic Alexandrina de Costa to ask Pope Pius XI to consecrate the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

September 12, 1935 – Jacinta’s corpse is removed from the Vila Nova de Ourem to Fatima. Her face and upper body are preserved 

December 25, 1935 – Sister Lucia completes her first memoir 

May 18, 1936 – Our Lord reveals to Sister Lucia: “Pray very much for the Holy Father. He will do (the consecration), but it will be late. Nevertheless, the Immaculate Heart of Mary will save Russia. It has been entrusted to her.” 

July 18, 1936 – Civil war erupts in Spain

November 21, 1937 – Sister Lucia completes her second memoir

January 25-26, 1938 – An unknown light occurs over Europe’s night skies; foretold by Our Lady as a sign of a worse war coming 

March, 1938 – Germany annexes Austria. Sister Lucia insists this was the beginning of WWII 

February 10, 1939 – Pontificate of Pope Pius XI ends 

March 2, 1939 – Pope Pius XII pontificate begins 

March 15, 1939 – Germany invades Czechoslovakia 

September 1, 1939 – Germany invades Poland, sparking global conflict and World War II 

September 5, 1939 – German troops cross the Vistula River in Poland 

September 13, 1939 – The Bishop of Leiria makes public the request for the First Saturday Devotion 

September 17, 1939 – The Soviets invade Poland

December 2, 1940 – Sister Lucia writes to Pope Pius XII requesting the consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart 

December 8, 1940 – Portuguese Bishops consecrate Portugal to the Immaculate Heart 

June 22, 1941 – Germany invades Soviet Union 

August 31, 1941 – Sister Lucia writes her third memoir, revealing the first 2 parts of the “secret”. 

December 7, 1941 – Japan attacks Pearl Harbor 

December 8, 1941 – Sister Lucia completes her 4th memoir 

May 13, 1942 – Silver anniversary of the first Fatima apparition 

October 13, 1942 – Coronation of Our Lady of Fatima statue with a crown of jewels donated by Portuguese people, in thanksgiving for being spared during WWII 

October 31, 1942 – Pope Pius XII consecrates the world, with veiled reference to Russia, to the Immaculate Heart. Only the Portuguese bishops join the Holy Father. Our Lord reveals to Sister Lucia that because of this act, He will end the war early 

December 8, 1942 – Pope Pius XII repeats the consecration of the world at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome 

September, 1943 – Bishop of Leiria orders Sister Lucia to write the third part of the secret, fearing she was dying 

January 3, 1944 – Our Lady appears to Sister Lucia giving permission to write the 3rd part of the “secret”.  The contents are delivered to the Bishop of Leiria for safekeeping 

May 4, 1944 – Pope Pius XII institutes the Feast of the Immaculate Heart 

June 6, 1944 – Allies invade Normandy

April 15, 1945 – Pope Pius XII encourages prayers for peace during May 

May 7, 1945 – Germany surrenders 

August 6/9, 1945 – Atom bombs dropped on Japan 

August 8, 1945 – Soviets declare war on Japan; invade Manchuria 

August 14, 1945 – Japan surrenders 

 October 24, 1945 – United Nations is officially born

May 13, 1946 – Pope Pius XII crowns the original statue of Our Lady of Fatima as “Queen of the World” 

May 20, 1946 – Sister Lucia returns to Fatima and identifies the site of the angel apparitions 

August 12, 1946 – John Haffert meets with Sister Lucia and they draft what becomes the Blue Army Pledge 

1947 – Cold War officially begins between Eastern and Western Blocs 

1947 – Msgr. Harold V. Colgan co-founds The Blue Army with John Haffert and pledges it will oppose the Red Army of Communism.  

May 13, 1947 – The first Int’l Pilgrim Virgin Statue, sculpted by José Thedim, departs from Fatima, Portugal for a two-year tour, visiting 33 countries 

October 13, 1947 – The 2nd “twin” Int’l Pilgrim Virgin Statue is blessed by the Bishop of Fatima intended to travel worldwide from the West

October 1947 – Msgr. Colgan begins to promote the Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima to conquer the Red Army of Communism.  Same month, the IPVS comes to Canada, is blessed in Ottawa, Canada, and begins to travel

December 8, 1947 – John Haffert brings the Int’l Pilgrim Virgin Statue to the United States and it begins a coast-to-coast tour of America and Canada 

March 25, 1948 – Sister Lucia enters the Carmel of Coimbra, Portugal

January, 1950 – The first issue of SOUL Magazine is published to spread the message of Fatima. A million signed pledges are buried at the Fatima Shrine 

August 15, 1950 – Sister Lucia confirms the scapular is one of the conditions of the Fatima Message 

November 1, 1950 – Pope Pius XII declares the dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Mother

October 30 – November 1, 1951 – Pope Pius XII receives “Fatima Visions” 

October 13, 1951 – At the closing ceremonies of the 1950 Holy Year at Fatima, Cardinal Tedeschini mentions that Pope Pius XII had seen a “miracle of the sun” like at Fatima while walking in the Vatican gardens

July 7, 1952 – In special Apostolic Letter, Pope Pius XII consecrates the Russian people to the Immaculate Heart of Mary 

October 24, 1952 – Pope Pius XII blesses the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue and imparts a special blessing on the Pilgrim Virgin Statue tours 

March 5, 1953 – Joseph Stalin dies 

May 14, 1953 – The Basilica at Fatima is consecrated 

1954 – 100th Anniversary of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception 

October 11, 1954 – Pope Pius declares the Queenship of Mary 

November 12, 1954 – The Fatima Sanctuary Church is elevated to the rank of a Minor Basilica 

February 4, 1956 – The Sacred Apostolic Penitentiary authorizes the recitation of the Fatima prayer after each decade of the Rosary 

October 13, 1956 – Domus Pacis, The Blue Army’s International Center at Fatima, is dedicated. International statues submitted to Rome 

May 13, 1958 – The Virgin statue is dedicated at the Fatima Shrine 

October 9, 1958 – Pope Pius XII dies 

October 28, 1958 – John XXIII elected Pope 

1959 – The Marxist government in the Soviet Union reaches the height of its power 

August 17, 1959 – Pope John XXIII reads the contents of the 3rd part of the “secret” but discerns it is not the right time to release it 

1961 – Padre Pio becomes the spiritual father of Blue Army members

1962 – Salvador Dali completes the painting “Vision of Hell” for the Apostolate 

December 13, 1962 – Pope John XXIII proclaims Our Lady of Fatima principal patroness of the Diocese of Leiria 

August 28, 1963 – Byzantine Chapel at Domus Pacis dedicated

November 21, 1964 – Pope Paul VI renews Pope Pius XII’s consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary before the assembled Second Vatican Council, and proclaims Mary “Mother of the Church” 

March 27, 1965 – Pope Paul VI reads the contents of the 3rd part of the secret and decides not to publish the text 

May 13, 1965 – Pope Paul VI through a Papal mission, presents a Golden Rose to the Fatima sanctuary, entrusting “the entire Church” to Our Lady of Fatima’s protection

August 22, 1965 – Latin Rite Chapel at Domus Pacis dedicated 

May 13, 1967 – Pope Paul VI attends the Golden Jubilee of the apparitions at Fatima and calls for national, diocesan and individual consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  He blesses 25 National Pilgrim Virgin Statues, patterned after the original.  The United States PVS is given to The Blue Army and later crowned by Cardinal O’Boyle in Washington D.C.  

July 21, 1970 – The priceless Icon of Kazan acquired by The Blue Army, is enshrined in the Byzantine Chapel at Domus Pacis

April 16, 1972 – Msgr. Harold Colgan dies

1973 – National Constitution is adopted by the Blue Army 

August 23, 1973 – Holy House Chapel and Convent for the Felician Sisters is dedicated at The Blue Army Shrine. Chapel is replica of the Holy House of Loreto 

August 6, 1978 – Pope Paul VI dies 

October 13, 1978 – The Blue Army officially opens its Shrine building in Washington, NJ.   

October 16, 1978 – John Paul II elected pope after the papacy of Pope John Paul I

October 13, 1979 – First national elections are held for The Blue Army, which has organizations in 90 U.S. dioceses 

May 13, 1981 – Pope John Paul II narrowly survives an assassination attempt in St. Peter’s Square by Mehmet Ali Agca, a Palestinian Communist 

October 7, 1981 – Pope John Paul II makes a prayer of consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in his broadcast at Saint Mary Major in Rome

May 13, 1982 – Pope John Paul II visits Fatima to thank Our Lady for saving his life. His intends to make an act of consecration in union with all the bishops of the Church, but information arrives too late for them to participate

March 25, 1984 – Pope John Paul II consecrates the world (and implicitly Russia) to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in union with the Catholic bishops of the world and some Orthodox bishops. Sister Lucia confirms this consecration “was accepted by Heaven” and fulfills Our Lady’s request

May 1984 – An explosion destroys 80% of the Soviet Union’s main munitions storage depot for its largest fleet. Two-thirds of its missiles are destroyed 

May 13, 1984 – The Pope changes the Diocese of Leiria to “Leiria-Fatima” to highlight the importance of Fatima 

December 13, 1984 – An explosion in Siberia destroys the Soviet Union’s largest ammunition base 

1985 – Replica of the Capelinha completed and dedicated at the Blue Army Shrine grounds 

March 10, 1985 – Soviet President Konstantin Chernenko dies 

March 11, 1985 – Mikhail Gorbachev becomes General Secretary of the Soviet Union and institutes freedom of the press, freedom of religion and limited free enterprise 

April 26, 1986 – The Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident occurs and potentially staves off a nuclear strike during the cold war 

October 1, 1986 – Statue of St. Therese of the Child Jesus at the Blue Army Shrine is dedicated 

February 15, 1988 – Francisco and Jacinta Marto causes for sainthood presented to the pope 

May 12, 1988 – An explosion wrecks the Soviet factory that made rocket motors for its deadly long-range missiles

June 13, 1988 – Mother Teresa visits the Blue Army Shrine and signs the pledge 

May 13, 1989 – Pope John Paul II declares Jacinta and Francisco “venerable” 

August 15, 1989 – Poland moves toward a government led by non-Communists 

October 7, 1989 – Hungarian Communist Party votes to transform itself toward European democratic socialism 

November 9, 1989 – The Berlin Wall comes down 

March 15, 1990 – the Vatican establishes diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union, following a meeting between Pope John Paul II and President Gorbachev 

May 13, 1991 – At Fatima, Pope John Paul II thanks Our Lady for the fruits of the 1984 collegial consecration and renews the consecration of the world to her Immaculate Heart 

August 22, 1991 (Feast of the Queenship of Mary), the Communist Party is defeated in an attempted coup 

December 8, 1991 – Feast of the Immaculate Conception - the Soviet Union is dissolved and the Commonwealth of Independent States established 

December 25, 1991 – President Gorbachev resigns, stating in his farewell speech, “We have been freed politically and spiritually, and this is the most important achievement that we have yet fully come to grips with.” The Soviet flag is lowered and the Russian flag is raised 

In the 1990s, a new Roman Catholic diocese was established in Russia

October 16, 1992 – The Blue Army hosts a peace flight to Moscow; six bishops carry the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue into Red Square where it is crowned in front of Vladimir Lenin’s tomb

February 1993 – Icon of Kazan is transferred from Domus Pacis to Pope John Paul II’s private apartment 

June 29, 1994 – Lightning strikes the National Center of the Blue Army; building is destroyed by fire

January 7, 1995 – First cornerstone of the Cathedral of the Savior is laid in Moscow. Destroyed under atheistic Communism, it is rebuilt with contributions of millions of people across Russia 

October, 1997 – Sister Lucia publishes “Calls from the Message of Fatima” 

October 11, 1998 – the first Shrine to Our Lady of Fatima in Russia is dedicated in St. Petersburg 

August 8, 2000 – St. Joseph Pilgrim House acquired on property adjoining Blue Army Shrine 

March 26, 2000 – Vladimir Putin becomes President of Russia 

May 13, 2000 – Pope John Paul II beatifies Francisco and Jacinta, declaring them “Blessed” 

June 26, 2000 – The Vatican publishes the third part of the secret of Fatima 

October, 2000 – Pope John Paul II has the bullet from the assassination attempt placed in the crown on Our Lady’s statue at Fatima

October 31, 2001 – John Haffert dies 

October, 2002 – Pope John Paul II introduces the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary

October 3, 2003 – Fire guts Blessed Sacrament Chapel at Blue Army Shrine; Angel Tabernacle survives untouched 

 August 28, 2004 – Icon of Kazan returned to the Russian people by Pope John Paul II 

February 12, 2005 – Sister Lucia dies

April 2, 2005 – Pope John Paul II dies 

October 7, 2005 – The World Apostolate of Fatima is declared a Public Association of the Faithful. The Blue Army has remained a “tagline” of the name for consistency

February 3, 2006 – Public Association ceremony takes place at the Vatican

February 19, 2006 – Sister Lucia’s body is transferred from the Carmel to the Basilica of the Shrine of Fatima, laid to rest with the tombs of Francisco and Jacinta 

October 12, 2007 – Church of the Most Holy Trinity at the Shrine of Fatima is dedicated 

October 27, 2007 – First Roman Catholic Bishop is consecrated in Russia since the 1917 revolution 

September 13, 2008 – The Blue Army presents the Russian National Pilgrim Virgin Statue (Odessa statue) to the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross in Kazan, Russia 

October 21, 2009 – Russian President Dmitri Medvedev, announces plans to reintroduce religious education into the public schools 

May 13, 2010 – Pope Benedict XVI visits Fatima and donates a Golden Rose, rejoicing in Mary’s presence and protection 

October 2010  - World Apostolate of Fatima receives permanent decree as Public Association of the Faithful  

2012 – Monsignor Harold V. Colgan and John Haffert are buried in the Shrine cemetery

2013 – The World Apostolate of Fatima holds first General Assembly meeting in Fatima, since becoming a Public Association of the Faithful 

October 23, 2013 – The Immaculate Heart of Our Lady of Fatima statue is blessed by Pope Francis; it is officially introduced at the 2014 March for Life in the United States 

2016-2017 – The World Apostolate of Fatima celebrates the Centenary of the apparitions at Fatima with a two-year tour of the International Pilgrim Virgin statue across America, visiting all 50 states

July 21, 2021 – the Icon of Kazan is ceremoniously placed at the newly restored Cathedral of Kazan and finds its permanent home there