Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima

Our Lady of Fatima is a title given to the Virgin Mary in honor of her apparition to three children in Fatima, Portugal in 1917. According to the children, the Virgin Mary revealed three secrets, including one that the conversion of Russia would lead to world peace.

The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima was founded in 1946 by Father Harold Colgan of Plainfield, New Jersey. Following his recovery from a severe illness, he vowed to spend the rest of his life spreading the devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. Blue Army members believed that through daily prayer, usually in the form of the Rosary, they could bring about world peace. Father Colgan described the group by saying, "We will be the Blue Army of Mary and Christ, against the Red of the world and of Satan." For many years, the Blue Army devoted itself to praying for an end to communism; Colgan received a papal blessing from Pius XII in 1947 to further this mission.

The Blue Army was instantly popular in the United States and around the world. There were over one million members in the Blue Army by 1950, and five million by 1953. One could become a member through a pledge of devotion to Our Lady, including vows to say the Rosary daily and wear the brown scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Today the Blue Army is known as the World Apostolate of Fatima, and has its world headquarters in Fatima, Portugal. In the United States, they are headquartered at the Blue Army Shrine of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in Washington Township, New Jersey. Currently there are over 20 million members of the Blue Army worldwide.

From the guide to the Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima collection, 1941-1978, (University of Dayton)