Sub Tuum Praesidium
Sub Tuum Praesidium is an ancient prayer asking the Holy Mother of God for help in our needs and dangers. Its opening means “Under your protection.” It is prayed on its own or as an optional addition after the Rosary.
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In Latin
Sub tuum præsídium confúgimus,
sancta Dei Génetrix;
nostras deprecatiónes ne despícias in necessitátibus;
sed a perículis cunctis líbera nos semper,
Virgo gloriósa et benedícta.
Beneath Mary's protection
Sub Tuum Praesidium asks for the intercession of the Holy Mother of God in our needs and dangers. Its opening means “Under your protection.” It is often prayed for the Church or a family in difficulty. The petition names our needs without specifying them, so a particular intention can be offered before the words begin.
It is among the oldest surviving Marian prayers. An ancient Greek form is preserved on a papyrus held by the John Rylands Library. Scholars differ over the manuscript's date. The surviving Greek prayer and the traditional Latin form are witnesses to its long use in Christian devotion.
The title “Mother of God” names the truth that Mary's Son is God made man. The Catechism explains this title in §495. In the prayer, we ask the mother of Jesus to accompany our petition to him.
A prayer for the Church
In September 2018, Pope Francis invited Catholics to pray the Rosary daily during October and conclude with Sub Tuum Praesidium and the Prayer to Saint Michael. The invitation asked for protection for the Church and acknowledged the need to confront faults and abuses. The Holy See's communiqué records the request and the Latin texts.
That appeal belongs to a particular historical occasion. It did not establish a permanent requirement that every Rosary end with these prayers. You may still follow the sequence as a voluntary prayer for the Church. The ordinary Rosary closing prayers can precede it.
Praying this short invocation
No Rosary bead is assigned to Sub Tuum Praesidium. It can be said after the closing prayers or on its own for a particular intention. A family or group can pray the whole text together. After the Rosary places it beside other customary choices.