Howard

The Holy Rosary (Fifteen Decades with Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious Mysteries)

The Rosary in its standard fifteen-decade form was formally established by Pope Pius V's bull Consueverunt Romani Pontifices (1569) and is closely linked to the Battle of Lepanto (1571), at which Philip II of Spain organized the Holy League. Jakob Sprenger's Dominican confraternity at Cologne, founded in 1475, enrolled more than 100,000 members within its first decade, spreading the devotion throughout Europe. Mary Queen of Scots carried her personal gold-and-enamel rosary beads to her execution at Fotheringhay in 1587, bequeathing them to Anne, Countess of Arundel; these beads were held at Arundel Castle until stolen in May 2021. John Paul II added five Luminous Mysteries in 2002, expanding the standard form to twenty decades.