Egidio Galea

Egidio Galea OSA MBE (5 May 1918 – 3 January 2005) was a Maltese Augustinian Roman Catholic priest, missionary, and educator, and a significant figure in the Catholic resistance to Nazism in Italy during World War II. He was a close aide to the Irish priest Hugh O'Flaherty.

The Reverend Egidio Galea OSA MBE
Church	Catholic Church
Personal details
Born	5 May 1918 Birgu, Malta
Died	3 January 2005(2005-01-03) (aged 86) Birgu, Malta
Buried	St. Lawrence Cemetery, Birgu
Alma mater	Pontifical Gregorian University (STD)

Biography

Early life and education

Galea was born on 5 May 1918 in Birgu, Malta.^[1][2] He studied at the Dockyard School in Senglea and later attended the Boys' Secondary School in Valletta.^[1] In 1933, Galea entered the Order of Saint Augustine, and after several years studying philosophy, he was sent to Rome in 1937 to study theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University,^[1] where he earned his Doctor of Sacred Theology.^[3]

World War II activities

It was during his time at the Pontifical Gregorian University that Galea met Hugh O'Flaherty, an Irish priest who worked in Rome as a Vatican diplomat.^[1] O'Flaherty was working to rescue and hide or help escape thousands of Jews and Allied soldiers in Nazi-occupied Italy. O'Flaherty needed help in this endeavor, and Galea became one of his closest aides.^[1][4][5] During the course of World War II, O'Flaherty and his aides were responsible for saving more than 6,500 Allied soldiers and Jews. After the liberation, Galea was made a member of the Order of the British Empire.^[1]

Later life

In 1945, Galea returned to Malta, where he taught Scripture to Augustinian seminarians.^[1] Between 1955 and 1961, he was sent to Tunisia, where he worked as a missionary and also taught Latin.^[1] In 1961, he returned to Malta, and between 1967 and 1971, he served as the Augustinian provincial superior.^[1] Between 1984 and 1990, he was a lecturer at the Augustinian Institute at the University of Malta.^[1] Throughout the years, he authored several articles and books, mainly discussing Augustine of Hippo, his life, and the Augustinian Order.^[1][3]

Galea died on 3 January 2005 at the age of 86.^[1][2][3] He is buried at the Santa Maria Addolorata Cemetery in Paola.