More than 40,000 Christians were martyred
Indeed the Church has been strengthened beyond measure because of the courageous men and women, as well as adolescents and children, who willingly shed their blood as martyrs rather than abandon their faith. But it didn't all happen in those dim, misty years when Christianity was first finding its way. In our own time—in the 20th century, in fact—more Catholics have lost their lives as martyrs than in any previous century in the history of the Church. Far more.
Martyrdom has been an occupational hazard for missionaries throughout the centuries. During the short and bloody history of the Boxer Uprising in China at the opening of the 20th century, brutalities were commonplace and widespread. More than 40,000 Christians were martyred, including bishops, priests, men and women religious and laypersons. Among them were Franciscan Father Gregory Grassi and his companions, who were hacked to death for preaching the faith.
http://www.americancatholic.org/Newsletters/MM/ap1100.asp