Charles de Foucauld Blessed Charles Eugène de Foucauld ( 15 September 1858 – 1 December 1916 ) was a French Catholic religious and priest living among the Tuareg in the Sahara in Algeria . He was assassinated in 1916 outside the door of the fort he built for the protection of the Tuareg , and is considered by the Catholic Church to be a martyr . His inspiration and writings led to the founding of the Little Brothers of Jesus among other religious congregation s . He was beatified on 13 November 2005 by Pope Benedict XVI . Charles de Foucauld was an officer of the French Army in North Africa where he first developed his strong feelings about the desert and solitude . On his subsequent return to France and towards the end of October 1886 , at the age of 28 , he went through a conversion experience at the church of St Augustin in Paris . Biography . In 1890 , de Foucauld joined the Cistercian Trappist order first in France and then at Akbès in Syria , but left in 1897 to follow an undefined religious vocation in Nazareth . He began to lead a solitary life of prayer , near a convent of Poor Clares and it was suggested to him that he be ordained . In 1901 , at the age of 43 , he was ordained in Viviers , France , and returned to the Sahara in Algeria and lived a virtually eremitical life . He first settled in Beni Abbes , near the Moroccan border , building a small hermitage for " adoration and hospitality " , which he soon referred to as the " Fraternity " . Later , he moved to be with the Tuareg people , in Tamanghasset in southern Algeria . This region is the central part of the Sahara with the Ahaggar Mountains ( the Hoggar ) immediately to the west . Charles used the highest point in the region , the Assekrem , as a place of retreat . Living close to the Tuareg , and sharing their life and hardships , he made a ten - year study of their language and cultural traditions . He learned the Tuareg language and worked on a dictionary and grammar . His dictionary manuscript was published posthumously in four volumes and has become known among Berberologues for its rich and apt descriptions . He formulated the idea of founding a new religious institute , which became a reality only after his death , under the name of the Little Brothers of Jesus . On December 1 , 1916 , de Foucauld was dragged from his fortress by a gang of armed bandits led by El Madani ag Soba , who was connected with the Senussi Bedouin . Their intention was to kidnap de Foucauld , but when the gang was disturbed by two guardsmen , one startled bandit ( 15 - year - old Sermi ag Thora ) shot their prisoner through the head , killing him instantly . De Foucauld was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI on November 13 , 2005 , and is listed as a martyr in the liturgy of the Catholic Church . Legacy . Charles de Foucauld died alone , and without the immediate fellowship of others sharing his practice of the life of " Jesus of Nazareth " and hospitality in the desert of Algeria . Yet he was successful at inspiring and helping to organize a confraternity within France in support of his idea . This organization , called the Association of the Brothers and Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus , consisted of lay and ordained members totaling 48 people at the time of his death . It was this group , and specifically the efforts of Louis Massignon , the world - famous scholar of Islam , and a best selling biography written by René Bazin in 1921 - " La Vie de Charles de Foucauld Explorateur en Maroc , Eremite du Sahara " - which kept his memory alive and inspired the family of lay and religious fraternities that include Jesus Caritas , the Little Brothers of Jesus and the Little Sisters of Jesus , among a total of 19 different religious congregations . Though originally French in origin , these groups have expanded to include many cultures and languages on all continents . De Foucauld was honored along with François - Henry Laperrine on an Algerian stamp in 1950 .