Father San Vitores' Shrine, Agana

Marking the location and the date of tremendous upheaval and change on the island of Guam, this shrine is a memorial to the first Catholic Missionary, Father San Vitores. It is at this site that he and his assistant were killed for baptizing the infant daughter of the Chief of Tumon against the Chief's wishes. In April of 1672, immediately after the execution of the missionary, the Spanish descended on the Chamorro people and within two generations brought the population of nearly 200,000 Chamorro people down to just 5,000. It marked the end of Chamorro freedom and the beginning of Spanish rule.

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