On August 15, 1992, Constantin Brâncoveanu with his sons Constantin, Ștefan, Radu, Matei, and with his advisor Ianache were declared holy martyrs by the Romanian Orthodox Church, being celebrated on August 16, so as not to coincide with the feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God.
Their sacrificial end on August 15, 1714, 311 years ago, on the very day the ruler turned 60, is described by Andrea Memno, the Venetian ambassador to Constantinople, who was forced to witness the execution.
Their martyrdom was recognized by the Romanian Orthodox Church, which declared them saints on August 15, 1992. The reliquary containing the relics of Saint Martyr Voivode Constantin Brâncoveanu is located at the St. George – New Church in Bucharest, the place of worship being one of his foundations.
Today, the local proclamation of the canonization of Saint Lady Maria Brâncoveanu took place at the "St. George" – New Church in the Capital, marking her first celebration as a saint by the Church.
Synodal Tomos
"Saint Maria Brâncoveanu endured imprisonment, contempt, hunger, and deprivation, but she did not fall into despair, but rather strengthened herself through prayer and hope in God," the proclamation tomos states.
The document presents the countless trials through which Saint Lady Maria Brâncoveanu passed after the martyrdom of her husband and sons in 1714.
"Only in the year 1716 was Lady Maria able to return to Wallachia, being helped by the ruler Ioan Mavrocordat. In secret and with great piety, she brought the relics of the Holy Brâncoveanu family from the island of Halki, where they had been buried by a few devout Christians, and placed them in the St. George – New Church in Bucharest, their foundation, and above the tomb, she placed a candle that burns to this day in memory of the Saint Martyr Voivode."
Among other things, the tomos provides: "So that the piety of the right-worshipping Christians may increase through the veneration and invocation in prayer of Saint Lady Maria Brâncoveanu, may she also be a protectress of new or renovated churches."