Camille Costa de Beauregard: life, influence, legacy, and...
Camille Costa de Beauregard was a French Catholic priest, born in 1841 and died in 1910. He dedicated his life to workers, particularly orphans following a cholera epidemic. Among other things, he founded Le Bocage, a horticultural vocational training center. In 2024, Pope Francis announced his beautification, which took place on May 17, 2025 in Chambéry. Find out more about Camille Costa de Beauregard's life, the miracle attributed to him, and his posterity. At the end of this reading, discover other saintly figures.
Biography of Camille Costa de Beauregard
Camille Costa de Beauregard was born on February 17, 1841 in Chambéry, Savoie.
He came from a wealthy family, as his father, the Marquis Pantaléon (Albert Costa de Beauregard), was a high-ranking parliamentarian in Turin. To understand Camille Costa de Beauregard's faith, we need to look at his father's, who had a real influence on Camille. For example, despite his closeness to Charles-Albert of Sardinia, Camille de Costa de Beauregard's father rallied to Napoleon III for the simple reason that the regime was more favorable to the Church than that of Camillo Cavour, President of the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of Sardinia. Camille Costa's father gave up a brilliant career in Turin, but nevertheless became President of the Savoy General Council. Camille's father was also involved in various charitable associations throughout his life. As for young Camille's mother, she was Marthe de Veyrac, a woman deeply affected by the brutal death on the scaffold of three of her grandmothers. Staunch Catholics, Camille's parents had a total of six sons and three daughters.
Young Camille Costa de Beauregard grew up between his father's château in La Motte Servolex, and an apartment in Chambéry that the family rented out in winter. Camille first studied with the Brothers of the Christian Schools in La Motte-Servolex, then in Jesuitschools. At the age of 16, Camille fell victim to typhoid with serious pulmonary complications, and his parents decided to send him back to the Château de La Motte Servolex. After being confined to bed for several weeks, Camille Costa continued his studies, at his own pace, under the guidance of his tutor, Abbé Chenal. Chenal also accompanied Camille Costa on several spa treatments. In addition to his studies, Camille Costa enjoyed reading, playing the piano, painting, taking walks and spending evenings with Chambéry's well-to-do youth. His elegance and courtesy earned him the nickname "Le Beau Chevalier". At the same time, his faith was very fragile, as evidenced by the fact that he no longer went to church. Abbé Chenal nevertheless encouraged him to recite a daily prayer to Mary: the "Souvenez-vous ".
One day, he entered the cathedral in Chambéry, and everything changed: he heard the call to become a priest at the age of 22. In September 1863, he left for the French Seminary in Rome, and was ordained a priest in 1866. He returned to Chambéry in June 1867, despite having received a number of ecclesiastical offers in Rome. He also turned down a prestigious post from his bishop, Mgr Billiet. Instead, Camille Costa de Beauregard asked him to become a simple curate at Chambéry Cathedral, without accommodation or compensation. Camille Costa de Beauregard put his heart and soul into the workers, and set up a mutual aid fund under the patronage of Saint-François de Sales.
Camille Costa de Beauregard is best known for the role he played with children during the cholera epidemic. In August 1867, cholera struck Chambéry, causing 136 deaths. Many children were orphaned. Seized with compassion, Camille Costa took in half a dozen orphans in the two-room apartment he rented. Then, the Count of Boigne granted him Le Bocage, a former customs building covering half a hectare of land. Camille Costa surrounded himself with a team, starting with Abbé Chenal. It was here, in March 1868, that the Orphelinat du Bocage was born. Up to 125 boarders could live there, thanks to the orphanage's financing by donors. Fathers Costa and Chenal did not run the orphanage alone, calling on the Christian Brothers and then the Daughters of Charity. The orphanage became a renowned center for horticultural vocational training. Boys as young as 13 learn the gardening trade in greenhouses. Camille Costa bought the La Villette estate in La Ravoire to enable the older children to learn about vegetables, fruit trees, farm work and fish farming. After Abbé Chenal's death, Abbé Costa trained other priests to support him in this work. Le Bocage's pedagogy was strongly influenced by Don Bosco, whom Camille Costa had met in Turin. It is based on a family spirit, with relationships based on trust, effort and listening, between young people and educators. Leisure activities also play an important role in maintaining a certain balance. Camille Costa de Beauregard was in charge of Le Bocage until his death on March 25, 1910. His nephew Ernest Costa de Beauregard was to succeed him. The Salesian Fathers of Don Bosco took over from 1954 (death of Camille Costa's nephew) to 2016.
Camille Costa's cause for beatification was presented in Rome in 1925. He was proclaimed "Venerable" in 1991 by Pope John Paul II.
Following a miraculous healing of a young man's eye, Camille Costa is beatified. Camille Costa de Beauregard will be beatified on May 17, 2025.
A miracle granted to Camille Costa de Beauregard
René Jacquemond, a child, suffered a serious eye injury when a ball of burdock, a flowering plant, was thrown at him. The children had claimed that it was a stone thrown by a car that had injured René, whereas it was in fact a children's game of throwing burrs at each other. In any case, young René was seriously injured. As the injury worsened, hope of recovery diminished. But then a miracle happened. A nurse applied a handkerchief belonging to Camille Costa to the child's eye, and the eye healed completely. Medicine then pronounced this healing. Between 2015 and 2018, five ophthalmologists' reports concluded that the child's injury "could only evolve towards a lack of healing, or even the loss of the eye". The case was then referred to Rome. On March 30, 2023, the commission of medical experts reporting to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints declared the healing inexplicable.
Beatification of Camille Costa de Beauregard on May 17, 2025 at Chambéry Cathedral
The decree authorizing Camille Costa's beatification was signed by Francis on March 14, 2024. As a result, Camille Costa de Beauregard was beatified on Saturday May 17, 2025 at 3pm, in Chambéry Cathedral. This was a great joy for the Dioceses of Savoie, who had been preparing for this unique event for several months prior.
Posterity of Camille Costa de Beauregard
The Bocage
Today, Le Bocage continues its mission. Today, it welcomes 200 students to the Lycée Costa de Beauregard. In addition, it accompanies many young people in the context of child protection.
Association of Friends of Camille Costa de Beauregard
The Association of Friends of Camille Costa de Beauregard was created in 2017 to promote the works and thought of Camille Costa de Beauregard.
Let us pray to answer the call to holiness!
Following in the footsteps of Christ and Camille Costa de Beauregard, let us pray to respond to the universal call to holiness. To this end, Hozana invites you to discover several communities, such as , these , and many others.
