1.
Michael Damaskinos
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Michael Damaskenos or Michail Damaskenos was a leading post-Byzantine Cretan painter. He is a representative of the Cretan School of painting that flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries. He was a near-contemporary of the most famous Cretan painter of any period, El Greco, there is little information regarding the life of Damaskinos. He was born in Candia, the son of Tzortzis Damaskinos and he had a daughter named Antonia who married the painter Yannas Mantoufos. According to tradition, Damaskinos spent some time living and working in Vrontisi Monastery, Damaskinos lived in Venice for several years, where he learnt miniature painting and travelled extensively throughout Italy. He was a member of the Greek Brotherhood of Venice from 1577 to 1582 and he painted along with Emmanuel Tzanes the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of San Giorgio dei Greci in Venice. In 1584 he was back in Greece and worked mainly in Crete and his works are in traditional Byzantine style but with many influences from Venetian painting, mainly Renaissance artists such as Tintoretto and Paolo Veronese. That Damaskinos was highly regarded is shown by him being invited from Crete, despite all the many Greek artists already in Venice to paint the frescoes of San Giorgio dei Greci. As was usual for distinguished painters, Damaskinos signed his works, Damaskinos having worked extensively in the Ionian islands has contributed to the fusion of the Cretan and the Heptanese School of painting
2.
Benaki Museum
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The Benaki Museum, established and endowed in 1930 by Antonis Benakis in memory of his father Emmanuel Benakis, is housed in the Benakis family mansion in downtown Athens, Greece. In 1931, the Benakis donated the house in Athens and their collection of more than 37,000 Islamic. More than 9,000 artifacts were added by the 1970s, Benakis remained active in the museum until his death in 1954. Under the directorship of Angelos Delivorrias, the museum added more than 60,000 objects, books and documents, some of which were purchased, Delivorrias opts to focus on displaying donated items in order to encourage public participation and strengthen the communitys ties to the museum. The museum also focuses on the fact that Greek history does not begin and end with specific events, in 2000, the Benaki Museum reopened following a $20 million renovation and restoration of the building, which had been damaged in an earthquake. The renovation allowed it to become the museum in Greece that brings visitors through all ages of Greek culture. It is also unique in that it does not focus on nationalism, although the museums director, Angelos Delivorrias, came up with the idea to refocus the museum and its exhibits in 1973, more than 25 years passed before he was able to make this a new reality. This reality involved moving the collections of Islamic Art and Chinese porcelain with painting to other locations so that the main museum in Athens would focus solely on Greece. As part of the museums re-focusing on Greek culture, its Islamic collection was moved to a new home in 2004 in time for the Athens Olympics, the new museum also has new galleries for temporary traveling exhibits. Covering Islamic art from the 7th through the 19th centuries, it has a collection of Ottoman art from the Empires peak in the 16th century. List of museums with major collections of Islamic art Sabetai, Victoria, Athens, Research Centre for Antiquity of the Academy of Athens. ISBN9789604041015 The Benaki Museum Benaki Collection Postbyzantine ecclesiastical works Benaki Museum - Ebook by Latsis Foundation
3.
St George
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Saint George, according to legend, was a Roman soldier of Syrian origin and officer in the Guard of Roman emperor Diocletian, who ordered his death for failing to recant his Christian faith. As a Christian martyr, he became one of the most venerated saints in Christianity. In hagiography, as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and one of the most prominent military saints, he is immortalised in the myth of Saint George and his memorial, Saint Georges Day, is traditionally celebrated on April 23. Numerous countries, cities, professions and organisations claim Saint George as their patron, accounts differ regarding whether George was born in Cappadocia or Syria Palaestina, but agree that he was raised at least partly in Lydda. There is little information on the life of Saint George. Two stories tell of his possible origins, one says that he was born in the region of Cappadocia, which is now located in central Turkey. Georges parents were both Christian, and they brought him up to be a Christian and his father died when he was fourteen, and his mother took George back to her homeland of Palestine. At seventeen, he joined the Roman army, a second story says that Georges father came from Cappadocia. His mother was from Lydda, in Palestine, and George was born in Lydda, both of his parents were from noble Syrian families and gave him the Greek name of Georgios. Georges father had been an officer in the Roman army, so George joined the Roman army as soon as he could, an earlier work by Eusebius, Church history, written in the 4th century, contributed to the legend but did not name George or provide significant detail. A critical edition of a Syriac Acta of Saint George, accompanied by an annotated English translation, was published by E. W. Brooks in 1925. Pope Gelasius I stated that George was among those whose names are justly reverenced among men. The traditional legends have offered a narration of Georges encounter with a dragon. The modern legend that follows below is synthesised from early and late hagiographical sources, chief among the legendary sources about the saint is the Golden Legend, which remains the most familiar version in English owing to William Caxtons 15th-century translation. At the age of 14, George lost his father, a few years later, George then decided to go to Nicomedia and present himself to Diocletian to apply for a career as a soldier. Diocletian welcomed him with arms, as he had known his father. By his late twenties, George was promoted to the rank of military tribune, however, George objected, and with the courage of his faith, approached the Emperor and ruler. Diocletian was upset, not wanting to lose his best tribune, but George loudly renounced the Emperors edict, and in front of his fellow soldiers and tribunes he claimed himself to be a Christian
4.
Theodore of Amasea
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For another Saint Theodore, see, Theodore Stratelates or Saint Theodore. Saint Theodore of Amasea is one of the two saints called Theodore, who are venerated as Warrior Saints and Great Martyrs in the Eastern Orthodox Church and he is also known as Theodore Tyron. The other saint of the name is Theodore Stratelates, also known as Theodore of Heraclea. When the epithet is omitted, the reference is usually to St Theodore of Amasea, Tiro is a word from classical Latin meaning a recently enlisted soldier or recruit. The Latin word was transliterated into Greek with various spellings, nothing reliable is known about St Theodore except that he was martyred in the early 4th century. The stories told about his life and martyrdom are all matters of myth, however, he again protested paganism by setting fire to the temple of Cybele at Amasea. He was then condemned to death and, after tortures, was executed by being thrown into a furnace and his remains were said to have been obtained by a woman from Eusebia and interred at Euchaita, where he had been born. This was a Byzantine city which no longer exists but is thought to correspond to the modern Avkhat, a shrine was erected there, which became an important place of pilgrimage. Gregory of Nyssa preached in honour of St Theodore in his sanctuary in the late 4th century, and this became a particularly important attribute of St Theodore. He was adopted by crusaders as their patron, the sanctuary of the saint was established at Euchaita, possibly his birthplace, and legends of his life and martyrdom have been developed by hagiographers over the years. Later additions to the story, between the 8th and 10th centuries, told of a dragon who was terrorising the district round Amasea, Amasea was by then in a district liable to attacks by marauding barbarians, against whom the saint was said to have interceded. His sanctuary continued to be visited until around 1100, although the district was by then occupied by the Arabs, in Western Christianity, he is usually called Theodore of Amasea from the ancient city in Pontus where he suffered martyrdom. Sometimes he is called Theodore Euchaita, from the place where he was born and to which his body had been carried. In Eastern Christianity, he is often known as Theodore Teron. There is much confusion between him and St Theodore Stratelates of Heraclea, who is sometimes said to have had a shrine at Euchaita. His lives are listed in Bibliotecha Hagiographica Graeca 1760-1773, St Theodore became especially important in the Eastern Orthodox Church, where his cult spread widely. The first church dedicated to him in Constantinople was built in 452 and he was famous in Syria, Palestine and Asia Minor. Many churches of the Eastern Orthodox Church are dedicated to him, the oldest Georgian Bir el Qutt inscriptions mention him twice
5.
Demetrius of Thessaloniki
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Saint Demetrios of Thessaloniki is a Christian martyr of the early 4th century AD. During the Middle Ages, he came to be revered as one of the most important Orthodox military saints and his feast day is 26 October for Eastern Orthodox Christians following the Gregorian calendar and 8 November for those following the Julian calendar. In the Roman Catholic church he is most commonly called Demetrios of Sermium, the spelling Demetrius is a romanization of the ancient Greek pronunciation, the Byzantine and Modern Greek pronunciation is romanized as Dimitrios or Demetrios. See Demetrios for more on the etymology of the name, in Russian, he is called Димитрий Солунский and was a patron saint of the Rurik dynasty from the late 11th century on. Izyaslav I of Kiev founded the first East Slavic monastery dedicated to this saint, the name Dimitry is in common use. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church reveres St. Demetrios on 26 October as Димитровден, the Romanian Orthodox Church revers St. Demetrios on 26 October as Sf. The Serbian Orthodox Church reveres St. Demetrios as Димитрије, having a feast of Mitrovdan on 8 November, the Macedonian Orthodox Church reveres St. Demetrios on 8 November as Митровден He is known among Albanian-speakers in Kosovo as Shmitri, and in Albania as Shën Dhimitri. He is known in Lebanon as Mar Dimitri or Mitri for short and he is known in the Coptic Church as St. Demetrios of Thessalonica. He is venerated in the Coptic Church on 8 November, the earliest written accounts of his life were compiled in the 9th century, although there are earlier images of him, and the 7th-century Miracles of Saint Demetrios collection. According to these accounts, Demetrios was born to pious Christian parents in Thessaloniki. His very large church in Thessaloniki, the Hagios Demetrios, dates from the mid-5th century, Thessaloniki remained a centre of his veneration, and he is the patron saint of the city. Hence later traditions about Demetrius regard him as a soldier in the Roman army, unsurprisingly, he was extremely popular in the Middle Ages. Some scholars believe that for four centuries after his death, St. Demetrios had no physical relics, what are still purported to be his remains subsequently appeared in Thessaloniki, but the local archbishop John, who compiled the first book of the Miracles ca. 610, was dismissive of their authenticity. These are now kept in Hagios Demetrios. According to believers, these relics were ascertained to be genuine after they started emitting a liquid and this gave the saint the epithet Myrovlētēs. This day is known as Demetrius Saturday, St. Demetrios was initially depicted in icons and mosaics as a young man in patterned robes with the distinctive tablion of the senatorial class across his chest. But an icon of the late 11th century in Saint Catherines Monastery on Mount Sinai shows him as before and this may be due to iconic depiction customs on how saints are depicted
6.
Theodore Stratelates
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Theodore Stratelates is a martyr and Warrior Saint venerated with the title Great-martyr in the Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Catholic and Roman Catholic Churches. There is much confusion between him and St. Theodore of Amasea and they were in fact probably the same person, Theodore came from the city of Euchaita in Asia Minor. He killed a giant serpent living on a precipice in the outskirts of Euchaita, the serpent had terrored the countryside. Theodore armed himself with a sword and vanquished it, Theodore himself invited Licinius to Heraclea, having promised to offer a sacrifice to the pagan gods. He requested that all the gold and silver statues of the gods which they had in Heraclea be gathered up at his house, Theodore then smashed them into pieces which he then distributed to the poor. Theodore was arrested and subjected to torture and crucified and his servant Varos, witnessed this and recorded it. In the morning the soldiers found him alive and unharmed. Not wanting to flee a martyrs death, Theodore voluntarily gave himself over again into the hands of Licinius and this occurred on 8 February 319, on a Saturday, at the third hour of the day. The earliest text referring to the two saints is the Laudatio of Niketas David of Paphlagonia in the 9th century and it was said that his Christianity led to many conversions in the Roman army, which was the reason that Licinius was so concerned. Christopher Walter treats at length of the relationship between these saints, another possibility is that he was in fact originally derived from a third St Theodore called St Theodore Orientalis from Anatolia. In art both Theodore of Amasea and Theodore Stratelates are shown with black hair and pointed beards. In older works they were distinguished by the beard having one point for Theodore Tiron of Amasea. There is much confusion between them and each of them is said to have had a shrine at Euchaita in Pontus. In fact the shrine existed before any distinction was made between the saints, the separate shrine of Stratelates was at Euchaneia, a different place about 35 km west of Euchaita. However, it is now accepted, at least in the west. Delehaye wrote in 1909 that the existence of the second Theodore had not been historically established and this may be either St Theodore of Amasea or St Theodore Stratelates, but the Venetians do not seem to have distinguished between them. See the section on St Theodore and Venice in the article on Theodore of Amasea. St. Gregory of Nyssa, brother of St. Basil the Great, and this is because, although the two Theodores were born in close territories and martyred in parallel, their names were involved in the confusion between two pilgrimage sites
7.
Christ Pantocrator
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In Christian iconography, Christ Pantocrator refers to a specific depiction of Christ. Pantocrator or Pantokrator is, used in context, a translation of one of many names of God in Judaism. When the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek as the Septuagint, in the New Testament, Pantokrator is used once by Paul. Aside from that one occurrence, John of Patmos is the only New Testament author to use the word Pantokrator, the most common translation of Pantocrator is Almighty or All-powerful. In this understanding, Pantokrator is a word formed from the Greek words πᾶς, pas, i. e. all and κράτος, kratos, i. e. strength, might. This is often understood in terms of power, i. e. ability to do anything. Another, more literal translation is Ruler of All or, less literally, in this understanding, Pantokrator is a compound word formed from the Greek for all and the verb meaning To accomplish something or to sustain something. This translation speaks more to Gods actual power, i. e, the Pantokrator, largely an Eastern Orthodox or Eastern Catholic theological conception, is less common by that name in Western Catholicism and largely unknown to most Protestants. In the West the equivalent image in art is known as Christ in Majesty, Christ Pantocrator has come to suggest Christ as a mild but stern, all-powerful judge of humanity. The icon of Christ Pantokrator is one of the most widely used images of Orthodox Christianity. Some scholars consider the Pantocrator a Christian adaptation of images of Zeus, the development of the earliest stages of the icon from Roman Imperial imagery is easier to trace. The image of Christ Pantocrator was one of the first images of Christ developed in the Early Christian Church, in the half-length image, Christ holds the New Testament in his left hand and makes the gesture of teaching or of blessing with his right. The gessoed panel, finely painted using a wax medium on a panel, had been coarsely overpainted around the face. It was only when the overpainting was cleaned in 1962 that the ancient image was revealed to be a high quality icon. The left hand holds a book with a richly decorated cover featuring the Cross. An icon where Christ has a book is called Christ the Teacher. Christ is bearded, his brown hair centrally parted, and his head is surrounded by a halo, the icon is usually shown against a gold background comparable to the gilded grounds of mosaic depictions of the Christian emperors. Often, the name of Christ is written on each side of the halo, as IC, christs fingers are depicted in a pose that represents the letters IC, X and C, thereby making the Christogram ICXC
8.
Triptych
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A triptych is a work of art that is divided into three sections, or three carved panels that are hinged together and can be folded shut or displayed open. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all multi-panel works, the middle panel is typically the largest and it is flanked by two smaller related works, although there are triptychs of equal-sized panels. The form can also be used for pendant jewelry, despite its connection to an art format, the term is sometimes used more generally to connote anything with three parts, particularly if they are integrated into a single unit. The triptych form arises from early Christian art, and was a standard format for altar paintings from the Middle Ages onwards. Its geographical range was from the eastern Byzantine churches to the Celtic churches in the west, renaissance painters such as Hans Memling and Hieronymus Bosch used the form. Triptych forms also allow ease of transport, from the Gothic period onward, both in Europe and elsewhere, altarpieces in churches and cathedrals were often in triptych form. One such cathedral with an altarpiece triptych is Llandaff Cathedral, the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp, Belgium, contains two examples by Rubens, and Notre Dame de Paris is another example of the use of triptych in architecture. One can also see the form echoed by the structure of many stained glass windows. Although strongly identified as a form, triptychs outside that context have been created, some of the best-known examples being works by Hieronymus Bosch, Max Beckmann. The then highest price paid for an artwork at auction was $142.4 million for a 1969 triptych, Three Studies of Lucian Freud. The record was broken in May 2015 by $179.4 million for Pablo Picassos 1955 painting Les Femmes d’Alger, the format has migrated and been used in other religions, including Islam and Buddhism. Likewise, Tibetan Buddhists have used it in traditional altars, a photographic triptych is a common style used in modern commercial artwork. The photographs are arranged with a plain border between them. The work may consist of images that are variants on a theme
9.
Theotokos
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Theotokos is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations, Dei Genetrix or Deipara, are translated as Mother of God or God-bearer, the Council of Ephesus decreed in 431 that Mary is the Theotokos because her son Jesus is both God and man, one divine person with two natures intimately and hypostatically united. Similar to this is the title of Mother of God, Mother of God is most often used in English, largely due to the lack of a satisfactory equivalent of Greek τόκος / Latin genetrix. The title has been in use since the 3rd century, in the Syriac tradition in the Liturgy of Mari and Addai, Theotokos is an adjectival compound of two the Greek words Θεός God and τόκος childbirth, parturition, offspring. A close paraphrase would be whose offspring is God or who gave birth to one who was God, the usual English translation is simply Mother of God, Latin uses Deipara or Dei Genetrix. The Church Slavonic translation is Bogoroditsa, in an abbreviated form, ΜΡ ΘΥ, it often is found on Eastern icons, where it is used to identify Mary. The Russian term is Матерь Божия, variant forms are the compounds Θεομήτωρ and Μητρόθεος, which are found in patristic and liturgical texts. The theological dispute over the term concerned the term Θεός God vs. Χριστός Christ, and not τόκος vs. μήτηρ, to make it explicit, it is sometimes translated Mother of God Incarnate. This decree created the Nestorian Schism, Cyril of Alexandria wrote, I am amazed that there are some who are entirely in doubt as to whether the holy Virgin should be called Theotokos or not. For if our Lord Jesus Christ is God, how is the holy Virgin who gave birth, not. But the argument of Nestorius was that divine and human natures of Christ were distinct, at issue is the interpretation of the Incarnation, and the nature of the hypostatic union of Christs human and divine natures between Christs conception and birth. Within the Orthodox doctrinal teaching on the economy of salvation, Marys identity, role, for this reason, it is formally defined as official dogma. The only other Mariological teaching so defined is that of her virginity, both of these teachings have a bearing on the identity of Jesus Christ. The term was certainly in use by the 3rd century, athanasius of Alexandria in 330, Gregory the Theologian in 370, John Chrysostom in 400, and Augustine all used theotokos. Origen is often cited as the earliest author to use theotokos for Mary, although this testimony is uncertain, the term was used c.250 by Dionysius of Alexandria, in an epistle to Paul of Samosata. The Greek version of the hymn Sub tuum praesidium contains the term, in the vocative, the oldest record of this hymn is a papyrus found in Egypt, mostly dated to after 450. But according to a suggestion by de Villiers possibly older, dating to the mid-3rd century, the use of Theotokos was formally affirmed at the Third Ecumenical Council held at Ephesus in 431. Nestorius opponents, led by Cyril of Alexandria, viewed this as dividing Jesus into two persons, the human who was Son of Mary, and the divine who was not
10.
Saint
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A saint, also historically known as a hallow, is a term used for a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness or likeness to God. Depending on the context and denomination, the term also retains its original Christian meaning, as any believer who is in Christ and in whom Christ dwells, whether in Heaven or on Earth. Depending on the religion, saints are recognized either by official ecclesiastical declaration, the English word saint comes from the Latin sanctus. The word translated the Greek ἅγιος, which derives from the verb ἁγιάζω, the word ἅγιος appears 229 times in the Greek New Testament, and its English translation 60 times in the corresponding text of the King James Version of the Bible. In the New Testament, saint did not denote the deceased who had recognized as especially holy or emulable. Many religions also use similar concepts to venerate persons worthy of some honor, the anthropologist Lawrence Babb in an article about Sathya Sai Baba asks the question Who is a saint. These saintly figures, he asserts, are the points of spiritual force-fields. They exert powerful attractive influence on followers but touch the lives of others in transforming ways as well. In the Bible, only one person is called a saint, They envied Moses also in the camp. The apostle Paul declared himself to be less than the least of all saints in Ephesians 3,8, in the Catholic Church, a saint is anyone in Heaven, whether recognized on Earth or not. There are many persons that the Church believes to be in Heaven who have not been formally canonized, sometimes the word saint also denotes living Christians. They remind us that the Church is holy, can never stop being holy and is called to show the holiness of God by living the life of Christ, the Catholic Church teaches that it does not make or create saints, but rather recognizes them. Proofs of heroicity required in the process of beatification will serve to illustrate in detail the general principles exposed above upon proof of their holiness or likeness to God. On 3 January 993, Pope John XV became the first pope to proclaim a person a saint, on the petition of the German ruler, before that time, the popular cults, or venerations, of saints had been local and spontaneous. Pope John XVIII subsequently permitted a cult of five Polish martyrs, walter of Pontoise was the last person in Western Europe to be canonized by an authority other than the Pope, Hugh de Boves, the Archbishop of Rouen, canonized him in 1153. Thenceforth a decree of Pope Alexander III in 1170 reserved the prerogative of canonization to the Pope, one source claims that there are over 10,000 named saints and beatified people from history, the Roman Martyrology and Orthodox sources, but no definitive head count. Alban Butler published Lives of the Saints in 1756, including a total of 1,486 saints, the latest revision of this book, edited by Rev. Herbert Thurston, SJ and British author Donald Attwater, contains the lives of 2,565 saints. Monsignor Robert Sarno, an official of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints of the Holy See, expressed that it is impossible to give an exact number of saints
11.
Roman army
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The Early Roman army of the Roman Kingdom and of the early Republic. During this period, when warfare chiefly consisted of small-scale plundering raids, it has suggested that the Roman Army followed Etruscan or Greek models of organisation. The early Roman army was based on an annual levy, the infantry ranks were filled with the lower classes while the cavalry were left to the patricians, because the wealthier could afford horses. Moreover, the authority during the regal period was the high king. Until the establishment of the Republic and the office of consul, however, from about 508 BC Rome no longer had a king. The commanding position of the army was given to the consuls, the term legion is derived from the Latin word legio, which ultimately means draft or levy. At first there were only four legions and these legions were numbered I to IIII, with the fourth being written as such and not IV. The first legion was seen as the most prestigious, the latter being a recurring theme in many elements of the Roman army. The bulk of the army was made up of citizens and these citizens could not choose the legion to which they were allocated. Any man from ages 16-46 were selected by ballot and assigned to a legion, until the Roman military disaster of 390 BC at the Battle of the Allia, Romes army was organised similarly to the Greek Phalanx. This was due to Greek influence in Italy by way of their colonies, patricia Southern quotes ancient historians Livy and Dionysius in saying that the phalanx consisted of 3,000 infantry and 300 cavalry. Each man had to provide his equipment in battle, the equipment which he could afford determined which position he took in the battle. Politically they shared the ranking system in the Comitia Centuriata. The Roman army of the mid-Republic was also known as the army or the Polybian army after the Greek historian Polybius. The latter were required to roughly the same number of troops to joint forces as the Romans to serve under Roman command. Legions in this phase were always accompanied on campaign by the number of allied alae. After the 2nd Punic War, the Romans acquired an overseas empire and these volunteers were mainly from the poorest social class, who did not have plots to tend at home and were attracted by the modest military pay and the prospect of a share of war booty. The minimum property requirement for service in the legions, which had been suspended during the 2nd Punic War, was effectively ignored from 201 BC onward in order to recruit sufficient volunteers
12.
Persecution of Christians
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Persecution of Christians can be traced historically based on the biblical account of Jesus from the first century of the Christian era to the present day. Early in the century, the religion was legalized by the Edict of Milan. Christian missionaries as well as converts to Christianity have been the targets of persecution ever since the emergence of Christianity, schisms of the Middle Ages and especially the Protestant Reformation, provoked severe conflicts between Christian denominations persecuting each other. During World War II members of some Christian churches were persecuted in Nazi Germany for resisting Nazi ideology, in more recent times the persecution of Christians has increased in India according to International Christian Concern. The Christian missionary organization Open Doors estimates 100 million Christians face persecution, particularly in Muslim-majority countries such as Pakistan, the early Christians preached the second coming of a Messiah which did not conform to their religious teachings. However, feeling that their beliefs were supported by Jewish scripture, despite individual conversions, the vast majority of Judean Jews did not become Christians. Claudia Setzer asserts that, Jews did not see Christians as clearly separate from their own community until at least the middle of the second century. Thus, acts of Jewish persecution of Christians fall within the boundaries of synagogue discipline and were so perceived by Jews acting and thinking as the established community, the Christians, on the other hand, saw themselves as persecuted rather than disciplined. Inter-communal dissension began almost immediately with the teachings of Stephen at Jerusalem, According to the Acts of the Apostles, a year after the Crucifixion of Jesus, Stephen was stoned for his alleged transgression of the faith, with Saul looking on. Peter and other early Christians were also imprisoned, beaten and harassed, luke T. Walter Laqueur argues that hostility between Christians and Jews spans generations. By the 4th century, John Chrysostom was arguing that the Pharisees alone, the first documented case of imperially supervised persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire begins with Nero. In 64 AD, a fire broke out in Rome, destroying portions of the city. Some people suspected that Nero himself was the arsonist, as Suetonius reported, claiming that he played the lyre, Suetonius however does not specify the reasons for the punishment, he just lists the fact together with other abuses put down by Nero. Contrary to popular misconception, the Church was not in a struggle for its existence during its first centuries, persecutions of Christians were sporadic and locally inspired, and almost never state-sanctioned. In the first two centuries Christianity was a small sect which was not a significant concern of the Emperor. The sole source for this event is early Christian historian Eusebius of Caesareas Church History, Tertullians Apologeticus of 197 was ostensibly written in defense of persecuted Christians and was addressed to Roman governors. The edict of Septimius Severus touted in the Augustan History is considered unreliable by historians, According to Eusebius, the Imperial household of Maximinus predecessor, Alexander, had contained many Christians. Eusebius states that, hating his predecessors household, Maximinius ordered that the leaders of the churches should be put to death
13.
Diocletianic Persecution
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The Diocletianic or Great Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. Later edicts targeted the clergy and ordered all inhabitants to sacrifice to the Roman gods, the persecution varied in intensity across the empire—weakest in Gaul and Britain, where only the first edict was applied, and strongest in the Eastern provinces. Persecutory laws were nullified by different emperors at different times, but Constantine and it was not until the 250s, under the reigns of Decius and Valerian, that such laws were passed. Under this legislation, Christians were compelled to sacrifice to Roman gods or face imprisonment, when Gallienus acceded in 260, he issued the first imperial edict regarding tolerance toward Christians, leading to nearly 40 years of peaceful coexistence. Diocletians accession in 284 did not mark an immediate reversal of disregard to Christianity, in the first 15 years of his rule, Diocletian purged the army of Christians, condemned Manicheans to death, and surrounded himself with public opponents of Christianity. Diocletians preference for autocratic government, combined with his self-image as a restorer of past Roman glory, in the winter of 302, Galerius urged Diocletian to begin a general persecution of the Christians. Diocletian was wary, and asked the oracle of Apollo for guidance, the oracles reply was read as an endorsement of Galeriuss position, and a general persecution was called on February 24,303. Persecutory policies varied in intensity across the empire, where Galerius and Diocletian were avid persecutors, Constantius was unenthusiastic. Later persecutory edicts, including the calls for sacrifice, were not applied in his domain. His son, Constantine, on taking the office in 306, restored Christians to full legal equality. In Italy in 306, the usurper Maxentius ousted Maximians successor Severus, Galerius ended the persecution in the East in 311, but it was resumed in Egypt, Palestine, and Asia Minor by his successor, Maximinus. Constantine and Licinius, Severuss successor, signed the Edict of Milan in 313, Licinius ousted Maximinus in 313, bringing an end to persecution in the East. The persecution failed to check the rise of the church, by 324, Constantine was sole ruler of the empire, and Christianity had become his favored religion. Although the persecution resulted in death, torture, imprisonment, or dislocation for many Christians, the persecution did, however, cause many churches to split between those who had complied with imperial authority, and those who had remained pure. Certain schisms, like those of the Donatists in North Africa, the Donatists would not be reconciled to the Church until after 411. In the centuries that followed, some consider that Christians created a cult of the martyrs. These accounts were criticized during the Enlightenment and afterwards, most notably by Edward Gibbon, modern historians, such as G. E. M. de Ste. Croix, have attempted to determine whether Christian sources exaggerated the scope of the Diocletianic persecution, from its first appearance to its legalization under Constantine, for the first two centuries of its existence, Christianity and its practitioners were unpopular with the people at large
14.
Votum
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In ancient Roman religion, a votum, plural vota, is a vow or promise made to a deity. The word comes from the past participle of the Latin verb voveo, vovere, vow, promise. As the result of this action, a votum is also that which fulfills a vow, that is, the thing promised, such as offerings. The votum is thus an aspect of the nature of Roman religion. In everyday life, individuals might make votive offerings to a deity for private concerns, vota privata are attested in abundance by inscriptions, particularly for the later Imperial era. These are regularly marked with the letters V. S. L. M, votum solvit libens merito, noting that the person making the dedication He has fulfilled his vow, willingly, as it should. William Warde Fowler found in these expressions of … religious feeling. During the Republican era, the votum was a part of ceremonies conducted at the Capitoline by a general holding imperium before deploying. The triumph with its dedication of spoils and animal sacrifices at the Capitol was in part a fulfillment of such a vow. A general who faced an uncertain outcome in battle might make a votum in the field promising to build an out of gratitude for divine aid in a victory. In 311 BC, Junius Bubulcus became the first plebeian general to vow and oversee the building of a temple, he honored the goddess Salus, a vow would also be made in connection with the ritual of evocatio, negotiations with the enemys tutelary deity to offer superior cult. An extreme form of votum was the devotio, the ritual by which a general sacrificed himself in battle, in the Republic, vota pro salute rei publicae were offered at the beginning of the year, on the day the consuls took office. Under the Empire, the people assembled on January 3 to offer collective vows for the salus of the emperor, offerings were made to Jupiter, Juno, Salus, and sometimes other deities. These vows originated in 30 BC, when the senate decreed vota on behalf of Octavian as princeps, the vota for the state continued on January 1, while those on behalf of the emperor and his family became fixed on January 3. In Rome, these ceremonies were conducted by the consuls and pontiffs, vota publica continued even after Christianity had become the official religion of the Empire, and possibly as late as the 6th century. Because the vows were as much affirmations of political loyalty as religious expressions, they were difficult to abolish without undermining the sacral aura of the emperors authority
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Imperial cult (ancient Rome)
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The Imperial cult of ancient Rome identified emperors and some members of their families with the divinely sanctioned authority of the Roman State. Augustuss reforms transformed Romes Republican system of government to a de facto monarchy, couched in traditional Roman practices, the princeps was expected to balance the interests of the Roman military, Senate and people, and to maintain peace, security and prosperity throughout an ethnically diverse empire. A deceased emperor held worthy of the honor could be voted a state divinity by the Senate, in the development of Imperial rule from Principate to Dominate, the role of the Senate was increasingly marginalised and military loyalty became the key to Imperial authority. The Imperial cult was inseparable from that of Romes official deities, whose cult was essential to Romes survival, Traditional cult was a focus of Imperial revivalist legislation under Decius and Diocletian. Christian apologists and martyrologists saw the cult of the Emperor as a particularly offensive instrument of pagan impiety and it therefore became a focus of theological and political debate during the ascendancy of Christianity under Constantine I. The emperor Julian failed to reverse the declining support for Romes official religious practices, Romes traditional gods and Imperial cult were officially abandoned. However, many of the rites, practices and status distinctions that characterized the cult to emperors were perpetuated in the theology, for five centuries, the Roman Republic did not give worship to any historic figure, or any living man, although surrounded by divine and semi-divine monarchies. Romes legendary kings had been its masters, with their removal, Republican Romans could identify Romulus, similarly, Aeneas was worshipped as Jupiter Indiges. The aristocrats who held almost all Roman magistracies, and thereby occupied almost all of the Senate, among the highest of honors was the triumph. The triumphator rode in a chariot, bearing divine emblems, in a supposed to be inherited from the ancient kings of Rome. Whatever his personal ambitions, his victory and his triumph alike served the Roman Senate, people, in private life, however, tradition required that some human beings be treated as more or less divine, cult was due from familial inferiors to their superiors. A client could call his patron Jupiter on earth, the dead, collectively and individually, were gods of the underworld or afterlife. A prominent clan might claim divine influence and quasi-divine honors for its leader, death masks were made for all notable Romans and were displayed in the atria of their houses, they were used to represent their ghostly presence at family funerals. The mask of Scipio Africanus, Cornelias father and victor over Hannibal, was stored in the temple of Jupiter, a tradition arose in the centuries after his death that Africanus had been inspired by prophetic dreams, and was himself the son of Jupiter. There are several cases of unofficial cult directed at men viewed as saviors and this celebration, in Spain, featured a lavish banquet with local and imported delicacies, and a mechanical statue of Victory to crown Metellus, who wore a triumphators toga picta for the occasion. These festivities were organized by the quaestor Gaius Urbinus, but were not acts of the state, Metellus liked all this, but his older and pious contemporaries thought it arrogant and intolerable. After Gaius Marius defeated the Teutones, private citizens would offer food and drink to him alongside their household gods, when the Romans began to dominate large parts of the Greek world, Romes senior representatives there were given the same divine honours as were Hellenistic rulers. There were similar instances of divine cult to humans in the century, although some rulers, like Agesilaus
16.
Martyr
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A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, refusing to renounce, or refusing to advocate a belief or cause as demanded by an external party. This refusal to comply with the presented demands results in the punishment or execution of the martyr by the oppressor, originally applied only to those who suffered for their religious beliefs, the term is now often used in connection with people imprisoned or killed for espousing a political cause. Most martyrs are considered holy or are respected by their followers, becoming symbols of exceptional leadership, Martyrs play significant roles in religions. Similarly, martyrs have had effects in secular life, including specific figures such as Socrates, as well as in politics. In its original meaning, the martyr, meaning witness, was used in the secular sphere as well as in the New Testament of the Bible. The term, in this sense, entered the English language as a loanword. The death of a martyr or the value attributed to it is called martyrdom, the early Christians who first began to use the term martyr in its new sense saw Jesus as the first and greatest martyr, on account of his crucifixion. The early Christians appear to have seen Jesus as the archetypal martyr, the word martyr is used in English to describe a wide variety of people. However, the table presents a general outline of common features present in stereotypical martyrdoms. Examples of this are found in the Mahabharata, during the great war which commenced, even Arjuna was brought down with doubts, e. g. attachment, sorrow, fear. This is where Krishna instructs Arjuna how to carry out his duty as a righteous warrior, Martyrdom in Judaism is one of the main examples of Kiddush Hashem, meaning sanctification of Gods name through public dedication to Jewish practice. Religious martyrdom is considered one of the significant contributions of Hellenistic Judaism to Western Civilization. Frend, Judaism was itself a religion of martyrdom and it was this Jewish psychology of martyrdom that inspired Christian martyrdom. In Christianity, a martyr, in accordance with the meaning of the original Greek martys in the New Testament, is one who brings a testimony, in particular, the testimony is that of the Christian Gospel, or more generally, the Word of God. A Christian witness is a biblical witness whether or not death follows, however, over time many Christian testimonies were rejected, and the witnesses put to death, and the word martyr developed its present sense. Where death ensues, the follow the example of Jesus in offering up their lives for truth. The concept of Jesus as a martyr has recently received greater attention, analyses of the Gospel passion narratives have led many scholars to conclude that they are martyrdom accounts in terms of genre and style. Several scholars have concluded that Paul the Apostle understood Jesus death as a martyrdom
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Saint George
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Saint George, according to legend, was a Roman soldier of Syrian origin and officer in the Guard of Roman emperor Diocletian, who ordered his death for failing to recant his Christian faith. As a Christian martyr, he became one of the most venerated saints in Christianity. In hagiography, as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and one of the most prominent military saints, he is immortalised in the myth of Saint George and his memorial, Saint Georges Day, is traditionally celebrated on April 23. Numerous countries, cities, professions and organisations claim Saint George as their patron, accounts differ regarding whether George was born in Cappadocia or Syria Palaestina, but agree that he was raised at least partly in Lydda. There is little information on the life of Saint George. Two stories tell of his possible origins, one says that he was born in the region of Cappadocia, which is now located in central Turkey. Georges parents were both Christian, and they brought him up to be a Christian and his father died when he was fourteen, and his mother took George back to her homeland of Palestine. At seventeen, he joined the Roman army, a second story says that Georges father came from Cappadocia. His mother was from Lydda, in Palestine, and George was born in Lydda, both of his parents were from noble Syrian families and gave him the Greek name of Georgios. Georges father had been an officer in the Roman army, so George joined the Roman army as soon as he could, an earlier work by Eusebius, Church history, written in the 4th century, contributed to the legend but did not name George or provide significant detail. A critical edition of a Syriac Acta of Saint George, accompanied by an annotated English translation, was published by E. W. Brooks in 1925. Pope Gelasius I stated that George was among those whose names are justly reverenced among men. The traditional legends have offered a narration of Georges encounter with a dragon. The modern legend that follows below is synthesised from early and late hagiographical sources, chief among the legendary sources about the saint is the Golden Legend, which remains the most familiar version in English owing to William Caxtons 15th-century translation. At the age of 14, George lost his father, a few years later, George then decided to go to Nicomedia and present himself to Diocletian to apply for a career as a soldier. Diocletian welcomed him with arms, as he had known his father. By his late twenties, George was promoted to the rank of military tribune, however, George objected, and with the courage of his faith, approached the Emperor and ruler. Diocletian was upset, not wanting to lose his best tribune, but George loudly renounced the Emperors edict, and in front of his fellow soldiers and tribunes he claimed himself to be a Christian
18.
Latin Church
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The Latin Church, commonly called Roman Catholic Church, sometimes Western Church, is the largest autonomous particular church sui iuris within the Catholic Church, applying Latin liturgical rites. There are 24 such sui iuris particular churches within the Catholic Church, all the other particular churches sui iuris, of which there are 23, originated farther east and are, therefore, collectively known as the Eastern Catholic Churches. Because of the migrations, members of all of these particular churches sui iuris are no longer confined to their areas of origin. A person is a member of or belongs to a particular church, a person also inherits or is of, a particular patrimony or rite. Since the rite has liturgical, theological, spiritual and disciplinary elements, Particular churches that inherit and perpetuate a particular patrimony are identified by metonymy with that patrimony. Accordingly, rite has been defined as a division of the Christian church using a distinctive liturgy, is considered equal to the Latin rite within the Church. It thus used the rite as a technical designation of what may now be called a particular church. Church or rite is used as a single heading in the United States Library of Congress classification of works. The last known use was Pope Pius XII in Humani generis who taught that the Mystical Body of Christ and the Roman Catholic Church are one. Most ecclesiologists - experts in the theology of the Church itself - instead use Roman Catholic to refer exclusively to the Latin Church. The reasons for this are that each of the 24 Catholic Churches sui iuris have a modifier - Maronite, Ukrainian, Roman, etc. - and that Latin and Roman are virtually interchangeable. Further, as Adrian Fortescue noted in his article in the 1910 Catholic Encyclopedia, today, the most common Latin liturgical rites are the Roman Rite, the Ambrosian Rite, the Mozarabic Rite, and variations of the Roman Rite. The 23 Eastern Catholic Churches share five families of liturgical rites, the Latin liturgical rites, like the Armenian, are used only in a single sui iuris particular church. In the Eastern Churches these sacraments are usually administered immediately after baptism, celibacy, as a consequence of the duty to observe perfect continence, is obligatory for priests in the Latin Church. Rare exceptions are permitted for men who, after ministering as clergy in other churches and this contrasts with the discipline in most Eastern Catholic Churches. In the Latin Church, a man may not be admitted even to the diaconate unless he is legitimately destined to remain a deacon. Marriage after ordination is not possible, and attempting it can result in canonical penalties, Latin Mass Church of Rome Particular church General Roman Calendar Eastern Catholic Churches Catholic Encyclopedia, Latin Church
19.
Crusades
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The First Crusade arose after a call to arms in a 1095 sermon by Pope Urban II. Urban urged military support for the Byzantine Empire and its Emperor, Alexios I, the response to Urbans preaching by people of many different classes across Western Europe established the precedent for later Crusades. Volunteers became Crusaders by taking a vow and receiving plenary indulgences from the church. Some were hoping for apotheosis at Jerusalem, or forgiveness from God for all their sins, others participated to satisfy feudal obligations, gain glory and honour, or find opportunities for economic and political gain. Many modern Historians have polarised opinions of the Crusaders behaviour under Papal sanction, to some it was incongruous with the stated aims and implied moral authority of the papacy and the Crusades, to the extent that on occasions that the Pope excommunicated Crusaders. Crusaders often pillaged as they travelled, while their leaders retained control of captured territory rather than returning it to the Byzantines. During the Peoples Crusade thousands of Jews were murdered in what is now called the Rhineland massacres, Constantinople was sacked during the Fourth Crusade rendering the reunification of Christendom impossible. These tales consequently galvanised medieval romance, philosophy and literature, but the Crusades also reinforced the connection between Western Christendom, feudalism, and militarism. Crusade is not a term, instead the terms iter for journey or peregrinatio for pilgrimage were used. Not until the word crucesignatus for one who was signed with the cross was adopted at the close of the century was specific terminology developed. The Middle English equivalents were derived from old French, croiserie in the 13th–15th centuries, croisade appeared in English c1575, and continued to be the leading form till c1760. By convention historians adopt the term for the Christian holy wars from 1095, the Crusades in the Holy Land are traditionally counted as nine distinct campaigns, numbered from the First Crusade of 1095–99 to the Ninth Crusade of 1271/2. Usage of the term Crusade may differ depending on the author, pluralists use the term Crusade of any campaign explicitly sanctioned by the reigning Pope. This reflects the view of the Roman Catholic Church that every military campaign given Papal sanction is equally valid as a Crusade, regardless of its cause, justification, generalists see Crusades as any and all holy wars connected with the Latin Church and fought in defence of their faith. Popularists limit the Crusades to only those that were characterised by popular groundswells of religious fervour – that is, only the First Crusade, Medieval Muslim historiographers such as Ali ibn al-Athir refer to the Crusades as the Frankish Wars. The term used in modern Arabic, ḥamalāt ṣalībiyya حملات صليبية, campaigns of the cross, is a loan translation of the term Crusade as used in Western historiography. The Islamic prophet Muhammad founded Islam in the Arabian Peninsula, the resulting unified polity in the seventh and eighth centuries led to a rapid expansion of Arab power. This influence stretched from the northwest Indian subcontinent, across Central Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, southern Italy, tolerance, trade, and political relationships between the Arabs and the Christian states of Europe waxed and waned
20.
Late Middle Ages
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The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history generally comprising the 14th and 15th centuries. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the modern era. Around 1300, centuries of prosperity and growth in Europe came to a halt, a series of famines and plagues, including the Great Famine of 1315–1317 and the Black Death, reduced the population to around half of what it was before the calamities. Along with depopulation came social unrest and endemic warfare, France and England experienced serious peasant uprisings, such as the Jacquerie and the Peasants Revolt, as well as over a century of intermittent conflict in the Hundred Years War. To add to the problems of the period, the unity of the Catholic Church was shattered by the Western Schism. Collectively these events are called the Crisis of the Late Middle Ages. Despite these crises, the 14th century was also a time of progress in the arts. Following a renewed interest in ancient Greek and Roman texts that took root in the High Middle Ages, combined with this influx of classical ideas was the invention of printing, which facilitated dissemination of the printed word and democratized learning. These two things would lead to the Protestant Reformation. Toward the end of the period, the Age of Discovery began, the rise of the Ottoman Empire, culminating in the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, eroded the last remnants of the Byzantine Empire and cut off trading possibilities with the east. Europeans were forced to seek new trading routes, leading to the expedition of Columbus to the Americas in 1492 and their discoveries strengthened the economy and power of European nations. The changes brought about by these developments have led scholars to view this period as the end of the Middle Ages and beginning of modern history. However, the division is artificial, since ancient learning was never entirely absent from European society. As a result there was continuity between the ancient age and the modern age. Some historians, particularly in Italy, prefer not to speak of the Late Middle Ages at all, but rather see the period of the Middle Ages transitioning to the Renaissance. The term Late Middle Ages refers to one of the three periods of the Middle Ages, along with the Early Middle Ages and the High Middle Ages, leonardo Bruni was the first historian to use tripartite periodization in his History of the Florentine People. Flavio Biondo used a framework in Decades of History from the Deterioration of the Roman Empire. Tripartite periodization became standard after the German historian Christoph Cellarius published Universal History Divided into an Ancient, Medieval, for 18th-century historians studying the 14th and 15th centuries, the central theme was the Renaissance, with its rediscovery of ancient learning and the emergence of an individual spirit
21.
Byzantine army
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The Byzantine army or Eastern Roman army was the primary military body of the Byzantine armed forces, serving alongside the Byzantine navy. A direct descendant of the Roman army, the Byzantine army maintained a level of discipline, strategic prowess. It was among the most effective armies of western Eurasia for much of the Middle Ages, over time the cavalry arm became more prominent in the Byzantine army as the legion system disappeared in the early 7th century. Since much of the Byzantine military focused on the strategy and skill of generals utilizing militia troops, heavy infantry were recruited from Frankish, restricted to a largely defensive role in the 7th to mid-9th centuries, the Byzantines developed the theme-system to counter the more powerful Caliphate. With one of the most powerful economies in the world at the time, after the collapse of the theme-system in the 11th century, the Byzantines grew increasingly reliant on professional Tagmata troops, including ever-increasing numbers of foreign mercenaries. The Komnenian emperors made great efforts to re-establish a native army, the Komnenian successes were undone by the subsequent Angeloi dynasty, leading to the dissolution of the Empire at the hands of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. The Emperors of Nicaea managed to form a small but effective force using the structure of light and heavily armed troops. It proved effective in defending what remained of Byzantine Anatolia and reclaiming much of the Balkans, another period of neglect of the military followed in the reign of Andronikos II Palaiologos, which allowed Anatolia to fall prey to an emerging power, the Ottoman emirate. In the period after the Muslim conquests, which saw the loss of Syria and Egypt, despite this unprecedented disaster, the internal structures of the army remained much the same, and there is a remarkable continuity in tactics and doctrine between the 6th and 11th centuries. The Eastern Empire dates from the creation of the Tetrarchy by the Emperor Diocletian in 293 and his plans for succession did not outlive his lifetime, but his reorganization of the army did by centuries. Rather than maintain the traditional infantry-heavy legions, Diocletian reformed it into limitanei, there was an expansion of the importance of the cavalry, though the infantry still remained the major component of the Roman armies, in contrast to common belief. In preparation for Justinians African campaign of 533-534 AD, the army assembled amounted to 10,000 foot soldiers and 5,000 mounted archers, the limitanei and ripenses were to occupy the limes, the Roman border fortifications. The field units, by contrast, were to stay well behind the border and move quickly where they were needed, whether for offensive or defensive roles, the field units were held to high standards and took precedence over Limitanei in pay and provisions. Cavalry formed about one-third of the units, but as a result of smaller units, about half the cavalry consisted of heavy cavalry. They were armed with spear or lance and sword and armored in mail, some had bows, but they were meant for supporting the charge instead of independent skirmishing. In the field there was a component of some 15% of cataphractarii or clibanarii. The light cavalry featured high amongst the limitanei, being very useful troops on patrol, the infantry of the comitatenses was organized in regiments of about 500–1,200 men. They were still the heavy infantry of old, with a spear or sword, shield, body armour, but now each regiment was supported by a detachment of light infantry skirmishers
22.
Michael (archangel)
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Michael is an archangel in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran traditions, he is called Saint Michael the Archangel, in the Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox traditions, he is called Taxiarch Archangel Michael or simply Archangel Michael. Michael is mentioned three times in the Book of Daniel, in the New Testament Michael leads Gods armies against Satans forces in the Book of Revelation, where during the war in heaven he defeats Satan. In the Epistle of Jude Michael is specifically referred to as the archangel Michael, by the 6th century, devotions to Archangel Michael were widespread both in the Eastern and Western Churches. Over time, teachings on Michael began to vary among Christian denominations, Michael is mentioned three times in the Hebrew Scriptures, all in the book of Daniel. The prophet Daniel experiences a vision after having undergone a period of fasting, Daniel 10, 13-21 describes Daniels vision of an angel who identifies Michael as the protector of Israel. At Daniel 12,1, Daniel is informed that Michael will arise during the time of the end, the Book of Revelation describes a war in heaven in which Michael, being stronger, defeats Satan. After the conflict, Satan is thrown to earth along with the fallen angels, in the Epistle of Jude 1,9, Michael is referred to as an archangel when he again confronts Satan. A reference to an archangel also appears in the First Epistle to the Thessalonians 4,16 and this archangel who heralds the second coming of Christ is not named, but is often associated with Michael. Michael, is one of the two mentioned in the Quran, alongside Jibreel. In the Quran, Michael is mentioned only, in Sura 2,98, Whoever is an enemy to God, and His angels and His messengers. Then, God is an enemy to the disbelievers, some Muslims believe that the reference in Sura 11,69 is Michael, one of the three angels who visited Abraham. Michaels enmity with Samael dates from the time when the latter was thrown down from heaven, Samael took hold of the wings of Michael, whom he wished to bring down with him in his fall, but Michael was saved by God. But appeal to Michael seems to have more common in ancient times. Thus Jeremiah is said to have addressed a prayer to him, the rabbis declare that Michael entered upon his role of defender at the time of the biblical patriarchs. Thus, according to Rabbi Eliezer ben Jacob, it was Michael who rescued Abraham from the furnace into which he had been thrown by Nimrod. It was Michael, the one that had escaped, who told Abraham that Lot had been taken captive, and he announced to Sarah that she would bear a son and he rescued Lot at the destruction of Sodom. It is said that Michael prevented Isaac from being sacrificed by his father by substituting a ram in his place, later Michael prevented Laban from harming Jacob
23.
Sanctuary of Monte Sant'Angelo
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It is the oldest shrine in Western Europe dedicated to the archangel Michael and has been an important pilgrimage site since the early Middle Ages. The historic site and its environs are protected by the Parco Nazionale del Gargano, in 2011, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of a group of seven inscribed as Longobards in Italy. The earliest account of the foundation of the Sanctuary is a composite Latin hagiographical text known as Liber de apparitione Sancti Michaelis in Monte Gargano and these apparitions are also the first appearances of Saint Michael in western Europe. The second section of the text describes Michaels intercession on behalf of the Sipontans, on the eve of the battle, Michael appears with flaming sword atop the mountain, the Sipontans and Beneventans are victorious. In commemoration of victory, the church of Sipontum instituted a special feast on May 8 honoring the Archangel. Pope Gelasius I directed that a basilica be erected enclosing the space, the Basilica di San Giovanni in Tumba is the final resting-place of the Lombard king Rothari, the designation tumba is now applied to the cupola on squinches. NOTE, Archangel Michael through a session with Pamela Aaralyn. No time during that channeling session did he mention a Bishop, after the Gothic War, Byzantium lacked the power to maintain its holdings in Italy and the Lombards successfully conquered southern Italy by the end of the 6th century. The complex of buildings consists of the Battistero di San Giovanni in Tumba, damaged in 1942, the baptistery presents a rectangular storey on which rests an octagon supporting an elliptical section and a high drum that supports the cupola. The church erected in the century by Archbishop Leone stands upon the remains of an ancient necropolis. A few remnants attest to its once-rich fresco decoration, the Castello was enlarged by the Normans upon an episcopal residence of Orso, Bishop of Benevento, to provide a suitable seat for the Honor Montis Sancti Angeli, further modified by Frederick II. The massive, octagonal campanile was built in the late 13th century by Frederick II as a watchtower and it was turned into a bell tower by Charles I of Anjou. Behind a forecourt the sanctuary presents a portico of two Gothic arches, the one of 1395 by the local architect Simone, the left one a reconstruction of 1865. From the portico steps lead down to the low arched nave, the cavern can be accessed from a Romanesque portal, called the Portale del Toro, the doors, in bronze, were made in Constantinople in 1076, the donation of an Amalfitan noble. They are divided in 24 panels portraying episodes of angels from the Old, the archaic cavern opening to the left, with its holy well, is full of votive offerings, especially the 12th century marble bishops throne supported on crouching lions. Among the ex voto objects is a statue of the Archangel by Andrea Sansovino, Monte SantAngelo was a popular pilgrimage site on the way the way to Jerusalem, pilgrims travelled from as far as the British Isles to visit the “Celestial Basilica”. Among the pilgrims who visited the Saint Michael Archangel Sanctuary were many popes, saints emperors, kings, since 13 July 1996, the pastoral care of Saint Michael Archangel Sanctuary has been given to the Congregation of Saint Michael the Archangel. Saint Michael Chaplet of St. Michael the Archangel Scapular of St. Michael the Archangel Arnold, J. C. Arcadia Becomes Jerusalem, Angelic Caverns and Shrine Conversion at Monte Gargano
24.
Monte Gargano
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The high point is Monte Calvo at 1,065 m. Most of the area, about 1,200 km2, is part of the Gargano National Park. It is within the Italian Province of Foggia, the Latin poet Horace spoke of the oaks of Garganus in Ode II, ix. The coast of Gargano houses numerous beaches and tourist facilities, including such as Vieste, Peschici. The two major lakes of Lesina and Varano are located in the northern part of the peninsula. Monte Gargano is the site of the oldest shrine in Western Europe dedicated to the archangel Michael, the 10 K and the half marathon are supervised by FIDAL. Some 12 to 4 million years ago, during the Late Miocene to Early Pliocene, several of these animals were subject to island gigantism. The fossils are found in partially infilled paleokarst fissures across Monte Gargano, the Gargano Island fauna is known as Mikrotia fauna after an endemic rodent genus of the area. Initially named Microtia, this had to be corrected, because the genus name Microtia was already used for butterflies, the surface features of the ancient karst developed in Mesozoic limestone. In these, sediment accumulated together with the remains of the fauna, forming thick layers of reddish, massive or crudely stratified silty-sandy clays. Through the mid-Pliocene, some of these deposits were flooded, probably due to movement of the Apulian Plate. Others were overlaid by sediments of terrestrial or freshwater origin. In this way a buried, partially reworked paleokarst originated, later, as the ice ages cycle got underway, sea levels sank and the former island was continentalized. In the cool and semiarid conditions of the Early Pleistocene a second cycle occurred. The Gargano Island endemic mammals included, Deinogalerix -5 species of gymnures, Hoplitomeryx - some 5 species of prongdeer with five horns and sabre-like upper canine teeth. They ranged from tiny to the size of a red deer, Mikrotia -3 or more species of murine rodent. The largest species, M. magna, had a skull 10 cm long, paralutra garganensis - an endemic species of otter. Prolagus imperialis and P. apricenicus - huge endemic pika species- P. imperialis was larger than any other known Prolagus
25.
Saint George and the Dragon
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The legend gradually became part of the Christian traditions relating to Saint George and was used in many festivals thereafter. In the tenth-century Georgian narrative, the place is the city of Lasia. The town had a lake with a plague-bearing dragon living in it. To appease the dragon, the people of Silene fed it two sheep every day, when they ran out of sheep they started feeding it their children, chosen by lottery. One time the lot fell on the kings daughter, the king, in his grief, told the people they could have all his gold and silver and half of his kingdom if his daughter were spared, the people refused. The daughter was sent out to the lake, dressed as a bride, Saint George by chance rode past the lake. The princess tried to send him away, but he vowed to remain, the dragon emerged from the lake while they were conversing. Saint George made the Sign of the Cross and charged it on horseback and he then called to the princess to throw him her girdle, and he put it around the dragons neck. When she did so, the dragon followed the girl like a meek beast on a leash, the princess and Saint George led the dragon back to the city of Silene, where it terrified the populace. Saint George offered to kill the dragon if they consented to become Christians, fifteen thousand men including the king of Silene converted to Christianity. George then killed the dragon, and the body was carted out of the city on four ox-carts. The king built a church to the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint George on the site where the dragon died, eastern The oldest icons depicting the saint as a horseman killing the dragon date to the 12th century. Older icons from Georgia show George as a horseman slaying an enemy rather than a dragon. The motif becomes popular especially in Georgian and Russian tradition, the saint is depicted in the style of a Roman cavalryman in the tradition of the Thracian Heros. In Russian tradition, the icon is known as Чудо Георгия о змие, i. e. the miracle of George, the saint is mostly shown on a white horse, facing right, but sometimes also on a black horse, or facing left. The princess is not included. Some icons show George killing the dragon on foot, another motif shows George on horseback with the youth of Mytilene sitting behind him. Icons of Saint George killing the dragon on foot, Western The motif of Saint George as a knight on horseback slaying the dragon first appears in art in the second half of the 13th century
26.
Vinica, Macedonia
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Vinica is a town in Macedonia, in the Eastern Statistical Region of the country. The town of Vinica is the seat of Vinica Municipality, the name Vinica is derived from word vine, since the city was formerly noted for its vineyards. On terracotta icons found in Viničko Kale, the name of town is noted as Vinea or Vince, the town is located under the mountain of Plačkovica, in the southeastern part of the Kočani Valley. It covers the part of the river Bregalnica sinks. There are also several rivers that flow through Vinica, like the Vinička, Gradečka. The town is known for its historic Roman fortress, Viničko Kale, the territory of Vinica was inhabited in neolithic times. More recent evidence of habitation comes from findings on Viničko Kale from the 6th to the 12th century AD, the original settlement was a fort from the time of Byzantium, when it was a centre of wine production. The city was nahiye and governed by Ottoman Empire with Kaymakam between the 14th and 20th centuries, before 1980, on the hill where the fortress was found, there were many vineyards, which were abandoned after excavations. The town has two music groups, Raspeani Viničani and Jana, and one folklore group Kitka. There are several sites in and around Vinica, Vinica. Vinica Fortress, fortified settlement from late ancient times, gorica, settlement and early Christian basilica from late ancient times. Ila, necropolis from the Iron Age, one of the major activities in Vinica is agriculture. Farmers engaged in the production of rice, which is characteristic of the basin in which Vinica is located. The town also has industrial activities, among which is the best represented the textiles, the major companies are, Makprogres, Viničanka, Vinka, Triko, Treska, Mebel-Vi. The city has many shops, bars, restaurants, two clubs, and three major hotels, which are offering a broader range of services. The leading sport in Vinica is soccer, the town formed its first football club in 1934 called Plačkovica, later renamed Sloga Vinica, now FK Sloga 1934 Vinica. There is also a basketball club Slavčo Stojmenski, a karate club Blatec, as of 2002, the municipality had 10,863 inhabitants and the ethnic composition was the following, Macedonians 9.706 Roma 809 Turks 216 Aromanians 101 Others 31 Official municipal site Vinica on net
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Draco (military standard)
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The draco was a military standard of the Roman cavalry. Carried by the draconarius, the draco was the standard of the cohort as the eagle was that of the legion, the draco may have been introduced to the Roman cavalry by Sarmatian units in the 2nd century. According to Vegetius, in the 4th century a draco was carried by each legionary cohort, the dragon was originally a Dacian emblem. According to Fiebiger, the Romans adopted it from the Dacians, the Greek military writer Arrian describes the draco in his passage on cavalry training exercises, calling it Scythian, The Scythian banners are dracontes held aloft on standard-length poles. They are made of colored cloths stitched together, and from the head along the body to the tail. When the horses bearing these devices are not in motion, you see only variegated streamers hanging down, during the charge is when they most resemble creatures, they are inflated by the wind, and even make a sort of hissing sound as the air is forced through them. Arrian says the colorful banners offer visual pleasure and amazement, the Gallo-Roman Latin poet Sidonius offers a similar, if more empurpled, description. The draco is depicted on the Ludovisi battle sarcophagus, above the horseman who is the figure in the composition. It appears in several other reliefs, including the Arch of Galerius, Dacian Draco Clan of Ostoja Scott-Giles, Charles Wilfrid. Encyclopædia Britannica, a new survey of universal knowledge, the Draco, the Late Roman military standard
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Kilkis (regional unit)
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Kilkis is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Macedonia and its capital is the city of Kilkis. The geography of the unit of Kilkis is characterized by the wide and flat Axios river valley in the westcentral part. The mountain range in the west, on the border with Pella regional unit, is Mount Paiko, in the north, the Kerkini range straddles the border with the Republic of Macedonia. At 1,874 m or 6,148 ft the highest peak in Kilkis regional unit is located here, the border with Serres regional unit to the northeast is formed by the lower Kroussia range. Lake Doirani is situated in the north, shared with the Republic of Macedonia, Kilkis borders the Thessaloniki regional unit to the south. The climate of the Kilkis regional unit is humid continental in the north, the area of the modern regional unit was part of the Kingdom of Macedonia from the 8th century BC until the Third Macedonian War, when it became a part of the Roman Empire. At the division of the Roman Empire in 395 AD, the joined the eastern part. Between the 7th century and the 11th century, it changed hands between the Byzantine Empire and the Bulgarian Empire repeatedly, in the 13th and 14th century Western Europeans and Serbs briefly ruled the area. The Ottoman Empire conquered the area in 1371, and ruled it until the First Balkan War of 1912, in the Second Balkan War of 1913, the Greek army captured the area, which became part of Greece. It absorbed many of the Greeks from Northern Macedonia, especially from Gevgeli, Vogdantsa, Polyane, in fact, a very large segment of the population of Kilkis regional unit are in origin Caucasus Greeks from the former Russian Imperial province of Kars Oblast in the South Caucasus. Until 1939, when created into a separate prefecture, the area was part of the Thessaloniki Prefecture, at the 2011 Kallikratis reform, the Kilkis Prefecture became a regional unit. Two railways pass through the unit, from Thessaloniki to Skopje via Polykastro and Eidomeni. The regional unit Kilkis is subdivided into 2 municipalities, at the same time, the municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below. Province of Kilkis Province of Peοnia - Goumenissa Note, Provinces no longer any legal status in Greece. List of settlements in the Kilkis regional unit Municipality of Kilkis Prefecture of Kilkis History of the Greek Army at the Battle of Kilkis
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Late antiquity
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Late antiquity is a periodization used by historians to describe the time of transition from classical antiquity to the Middle Ages in mainland Europe, the Mediterranean world, and the Near East. The development of the periodization has generally been accredited to historian Peter Brown, precise boundaries for the period are a continuing matter of debate, but Brown proposes a period between the 3rd and 8th centuries AD. Generally, it can be thought of as from the end of the Roman Empires Crisis of the Third Century to, in the East, the early Islamic period, following the Muslim conquests in the mid–7th century. In the West the end was earlier, with the start of the Early Medieval period typically placed in the 6th century, beginning with Constantine the Great, Christianity was made legal in the Empire, and a new capital was founded at Constantinople. The resultant cultural fusion of Greco-Roman, Germanic and Christian traditions formed the foundations of the subsequent culture of Europe, the term Spätantike, literally late antiquity, has been used by German-speaking historians since its popularization by Alois Riegl in the early 20th century. Concurrently, some migrating Germanic tribes such as the Ostrogoths and Visigoths saw themselves as perpetuating the Roman tradition, Constantine confirmed the legalization of the religion through the so-called Edict of Milan in 313, jointly issued with his rival in the East, Licinius. Monasticism was not the only new Christian movement to appear in Late Antiquity, notable in this regard is the topic of the Fifty Bibles of Constantine. Within the recently legitimized Christian community of the 4th century, a division could be distinctly seen between the laity and an increasingly celibate male leadership. Celibate and detached, the clergy became an elite equal in prestige to urban notables. The Late Antique period also saw a transformation of the political and social basis of life in. The later Roman Empire was in a sense a network of cities, archaeology now supplements literary sources to document the transformation followed by collapse of cities in the Mediterranean basin. Burials within the urban precincts mark another stage in dissolution of traditional urbanistic discipline, overpowered by the attraction of saintly shrines, in Roman Britain, the typical 4th- and 5th-century layer of black earth within cities seems to be a result of increased gardening in formerly urban spaces. A similar though less marked decline in population occurred later in Constantinople. In Europe there was also a decline in urban populations. As a whole, the period of antiquity was accompanied by an overall population decline in almost all Europe. Long-distance markets disappeared, and there was a reversion to a degree of local production and consumption, rather than webs of commerce. The degree and extent of discontinuity in the cities of the Greek East is a moot subject among historians. In the western Mediterranean, the new cities known to be founded in Europe between the 5th and 8th centuries were the four or five Visigothic victory cities
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Hagiography
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A hagiography /ˌhæɡiˈɒɡrəfi/ is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader. The term hagiography may be used to refer to the biography of a saint or highly developed spiritual being in any of the spiritual traditions. Hagiographic works, especially those of the Middle Ages, can incorporate a record of institutional and local history, and evidence of popular cults, customs, and traditions. Hagiography constituted an important literary genre in the early Christian church, providing some informational history along with the inspirational stories. A hagiographic account of a saint can consist of a biography, a description of the saints deeds and/or miracles. The genre of lives of the saints first came into being in the Roman Empire as legends about Christian martyrs were recorded, the dates of their deaths formed the basis of martyrologies. In Western Europe hagiography was one of the important vehicles for the study of inspirational history during the Middle Ages. The Golden Legend of Jacob de Voragine compiled a great deal of medieval hagiographic material, Lives were often written to promote the cult of local or national states, and in particular to develop pilgrimages to visit relics. The bronze Gniezno Doors of Gniezno Cathedral in Poland are the only Romanesque doors in Europe to feature the life of a saint. The life of Saint Adalbert of Prague, who is buried in the cathedral, is shown in 18 scenes, the Bollandist Society continues the study, academic assembly, appraisal and publication of materials relating to the lives of Christian saints. Many of the important hagiographical texts composed in medieval England were written in the vernacular dialect Anglo-Norman, with the introduction of Latin literature into England in the 7th and 8th centuries the genre of the life of the saint grew increasingly popular. When one contrasts it to the heroic poem, such as Beowulf. Both genres then focus on the figure, but with the distinction that the saint is of a spiritual sort. Imitation of the life of Christ was then the benchmark against which saints were measured, in Anglo-Saxon and medieval England, hagiography became a literary genre par excellence for the teaching of a largely illiterate audience. Hagiography provided priests and theologians with classical handbooks in a form that allowed them the tools necessary to present their faith through the example of the saints lives. Of all the English hagiographers no one was more prolific nor so aware of the importance of the genre as Abbot Ælfric of Eynsham and his work The Lives of the Saints comprises a set of sermons on saints days, formerly observed by the English Church. The text spans the entire year and describes the lives of many saints, there are two known instances where saints lives were adapted into vernacular plays in Britain. These are the Cornish-language works Beunans Meriasek and Beunans Ke, about the lives of Saints Meriasek and Kea, Irish hagiographers wrote primarily in Latin while some of the later saints lives were written in the hagiographers native vernacular Irish
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Sulpicius Severus
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Sulpicius Severus was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania in modern-day France. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours, born of noble parents in Aquitaine, Severus enjoyed excellent educational advantages. He was imbued with the culture of his time and of his country and he studied jurisprudence and was renowned as an eloquent lawyer, his knowledge of Roman law is reflected in parts of his writings. He married the daughter of a wealthy family, who died young, leaving him no children. This choice incurred his fathers displeasure, but was encouraged in his determination by his mother-in-law, to use the words of his friend Paulinus, he broke with his father, followed Christ, and set the teachings of the fishermen far above all his Tullian learning. He rose to no higher rank in the church than that of presbyter and his ordination is vouched for by Gennadius, but no details of his priestly activity have reached us. He is said to have been led away in his old age by Pelagianism and his time was passed chiefly in the neighbourhood of Toulouse, and such literary efforts as he permitted to himself were made in the interests of Christianity. It is a source of importance for the history of Priscillianism. The book was a textbook, and was used as such in the schools of Europe for about a century, Severus nowhere clearly points to the class of readers for whom his book is designed. He disclaims the intention of making his work a substitute for the narrative contained in the Bible. The literary structure of the shows that Severus had in his mind principally readers on the same level of culture with himself. He was anxious to show that history might be presented in a form which lovers of Sallust and Tacitus could appreciate. The style is lucid and almost classical and it is free from useless digressions. As an authority for times antecedent to his own, Severus is of little moment, at only a few points does he enable us to correct or supplement other records. Jakob Bernays suggested that he based his narrative of the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus on the account given by Tacitus in his Histories and we are enabled thus to contrast Tacitus with Josephus, who warped his narrative to do honour to Titus. In his allusions to the Gentile rulers with whom the Jews came into contact from the time of the Maccabees onwards, the sympathies here betrayed by Severus are wholly those of St. Martin. The bishop had withstood Maximus, who ruled for years a large part of the western portion of the empire. He had reproached him with attacking and overthrowing his predecessors, on the throne, and for his dealings with the church
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Martin of Tours
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St. Martin of Tours was Bishop of Tours, whose shrine in France became a famous stopping-point for pilgrims on the road to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. He has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints, sometimes venerated as a military saint. As he was born in what is now Szombathely, Hungary, spent much of his childhood in Pavia, Italy and his life was recorded by a contemporary, the hagiographer Sulpicius Severus. Some of the accounts of his travels may have been interpolated into his vita to validate early sites of his cult. He is best known for the account of his using his sword to cut his cloak in two, to give half to a beggar clad only in rags in the depth of winter. Conscripted as a soldier into the Roman army, he found the duty incompatible with the Christian faith he had adopted, Martin was born in 316 or 336 AD in Savaria in the Diocese of Pannonia. His father was an officer in the Imperial Horse Guard, a unit of the Roman army, later stationed at Ticinum, in northern Italy. The date of his birth is a matter of controversy, with both 316 and 336 having rationales, at the age of ten he attended the Christian church against the wishes of his parents, and became a catechumen. Christianity had been made a religion in the Roman Empire. It had many adherents in the Eastern Empire, whence it had sprung. Christianity was far from accepted amongst the higher echelons of society, although the conversion of the Emperor Constantine and the subsequent programme of church-building gave a greater impetus to the spread of the religion, it was still a minority faith. As the son of an officer, Martin at fifteen was required to join a cavalry ala. At the age of 18 around 334 or 354, he was stationed at Ambianensium civitas or Samarobriva in Gaul and it is likely that he joined the Equites catafractarii Ambianenses, a heavy cavalry unit listed in the Notitia Dignitatum. Jacques Fontaine thinks that the biographer was somewhat embarrassed about referring to long stint in the army and he was charged with cowardice and jailed, but in response to the charge, he volunteered to go unarmed to the front of the troops. His superiors planned to take him up on the offer, but before they could, the invaders sued for peace, the battle never occurred, and Martin was released from military service. Martin declared his vocation, and made his way to the city of Caesarodunum, where he became a disciple of Hilary of Poitiers and he opposed the Arianism of the Imperial Court. When Hilary was forced into exile from Pictavium, Martin returned to Italy, according to Sulpicius Severus, he converted an Alpine brigand on the way, and confronted the Devil himself. Having heard in a dream a summons to revisit his home, Martin crossed the Alps, there he converted his mother and some other persons, his father he could not win
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Agathius
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Saint Agathius, also known as Achatius or Agathonas or Acacius of Byzantium, according to Christian tradition, was a Cappadocian Greek centurion of the imperial army, martyred around 304. The date of his martyrdom is traditionally May 8, when his feast is observed, constantine the Great built a church in his honour. His relics were translated ca.630 to a spring at Squillace, close by the Vivarium and he was known in Squillace as San Agario. A relic of his arm was brought to Guardavalle in 1584 by the bishop of Squillace, Marcello Sirleto, relics from Squillace were also brought to Cuenca and Ávila in Spain, where he is known as San Acato. St. St. Achatius is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers or Auxiliary Saints
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Saint Andrew Stratelates
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Little is known about his early life except that he was a Syrian by birth and a military commander in the Roman army during the reign of emperor Maximian. When a large Persian army invaded the Syrian territories, the governor Antiochus entrusted St. Andrew with the command of the Roman army, giving him the title of Stratelates. Invoking Christ to aid him and a detachment of pagan soldiers in battle, St Andrew proceeded against the adversary. St. Andrew was summoned to trial and then tortured, some of his soldiers were crucified while others were locked in prison. Antiochus sent the report of charges to the emperor to decide whether to impose the death sentence upon the imprisoned commander, the emperor, who knew how the army loved St. Andrew, feared a rebellion, thus freeing them, while secretly ordering their execution on different pretexts. In a deep gorge inside the mountains, the Roman army ambushed them, slaughtering St. Andrew,20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia Forty Martyrs of Sebaste Saints Sergius and Bacchus
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Maximian
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Maximian was Roman Emperor from 286 to 305. He was Caesar from 285 to 286, then Augustus from 286 to 305 and he shared the latter title with his co-emperor and superior, Diocletian, whose political brain complemented Maximians military brawn. Maximian established his residence at Trier but spent most of his time on campaign, in the late summer of 285, he suppressed rebels in Gaul known as the Bagaudae. From 285 to 288, he fought against Germanic tribes along the Rhine frontier, together with Diocletian, he launched a scorched earth campaign deep into Alamannic territory in 288, temporarily relieving the Rhine provinces from the threat of Germanic invasion. The man he appointed to police the Channel shores, Carausius, rebelled in 286, causing the secession of Britain, Maximian failed to oust Carausius, and his invasion fleet was destroyed by storms in 289 or 290. Maximians subordinate, Constantius, campaigned against Carausius successor, Allectus, the rebel leader was ousted in 296, and Maximian moved south to combat piracy near Hispania and Berber incursions in Mauretania. When these campaigns concluded in 298, he departed for Italy, at Diocletians behest, Maximian abdicated on May 1,305, gave the Augustan office to Constantius, and retired to southern Italy. In late 306, Maximian took the title of Augustus again, in April 307, he attempted to depose his son, but failed and fled to the court of Constantius successor, Constantine, in Trier. At the Council of Carnuntum in November 308, Diocletian and his successor, Galerius, in early 310, Maximian attempted to seize Constantines title while the emperor was on campaign on the Rhine. Few supported him, and he was captured by Constantine in Marseille, Maximian committed suicide in the summer of 310 on Constantines orders. During Constantines war with Maxentius, Maximians image was purged from all public places, however, after Constantine ousted and killed Maxentius, Maximians image was rehabilitated, and he was deified. Maximian was born near Sirmium in the province of Pannonia, around 250 into a family of shopkeepers, beyond that, the ancient sources contain vague allusions to Illyricum as his homeland, to his Pannonian virtues, and to his harsh upbringing along the war-torn Danube frontier. Maximian joined the army, serving with Diocletian under the emperors Aurelian and he probably participated in the Mesopotamian campaign of Carus in 283 and attended Diocletians election as emperor on November 20,284 at Nicomedia. With his great energy, firm aggressive character and disinclination to rebel, the fourth-century historian Aurelius Victor described Maximian as a colleague trustworthy in friendship, if somewhat boorish, and of great military talents. Despite his other qualities, Maximian was uneducated and preferred action to thought, the panegyric of 289, after comparing his actions to Scipio Africanus victories over Hannibal during the Second Punic War, suggested that Maximian had never heard of them. His ambitions were military, he left politics to Diocletian. Maximian had two children with his Syrian wife, Eutropia, Maxentius and Fausta, there is no direct evidence in the ancient sources for their birthdates. Modern estimates of Maxentius birth year have varied from c.277 to 287, barnes concludes that Theodora was born no later than c.275 to an unnamed earlier wife of Maximian, possibly one of Hannibalianus daughters
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Sirmium
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Sirmium was a city in the Roman province of Pannonia. In 294 AD, Sirmium was proclaimed one of four capitals of the Roman Empire and it was also the capital of the Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum and of Pannonia Secunda. Sirmium was located on the Sava river, on the site of modern Sremska Mitrovica in northern Serbia, ¨The site is protected as an Archaeological Site of Exceptional Importance. The modern region of Syrmia was named after the city, Sirmium had 100,000 inhabitants and was one of the biggest cities of its time. Colin McEvedy, however, put the population at only 7,000, Ammianus Marcellinus called it the glorious mother of cities. Remains of Sirmium stand on the site of the modern-day Sremska Mitrovica,55 km west of Belgrade and 145 km away from Kostolac, archaeologists have found traces of organized human life on the site of Sirmium dating from 5,000 BC. The city was mentioned in the 4th century BC and was originally inhabited by the Illyrians. The Triballi king Syrmus was later considered the founder of Sirmium, but the roots are different. The name Sirmium by itself means flow, flowing water, wetland, with the Celtic tribe of Scordisci as allies, the Roman proconsul Marcus Vinicius took Sirmium in around 14 BC. In the 1st century AD, Sirmium gained the status of a Roman colony, the Roman emperors Trajan, Marcus Aurelius, and Claudius II prepared war expeditions in Sirmium. In 103 Pannonia was split into two provinces, Pannonia Superior and Pannonia Inferior, and Sirmium became the city of the latter. In 296 Diocletian reorganized Pannonia into four provinces, Pannonia Prima, Pannonia Valeria, Pannonia Savia and Pannonia Secunda and he joined them with Noricum and Dalmatia to establish the Diocese of Pannonia, with Sirmium as its capital also. In 293, with the establishment of the Tetrarchy, the Roman Empire was split into four parts, Sirmium emerged as one of the four capital cities, the eastern part of Illyricum remained a separate prefecture under the East Roman Empire with its new capital in Thessalonica. From the 4th century, the city was an important Christian center, five church councils, the Councils of Sirmium, took place in Sirmium. The city also had a palace, a horse-racing arena, a mint, an arena theatre. Ancient historian Ammianus Marcellinus called it the mother of cities. The mint in Sirmium was connected with the mint in Salona, at the end of the 4th century Sirmium came under the sway of the Goths, and later, was again annexed to the East Roman Empire. In 441 the Huns conquered Sirmium, it remained for more than a century in the hands of other tribes, such as Eastern Goths
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Emeterius and Celedonius
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Another Saint Emeterius is associated with the legend of Saint Severus of Barcelona. Saints Emeterius and Celedonius are venerated as saints by the Catholic Church, two Roman legionaries, they were martyred for their faith around 300. They are patron saints of Calahorra, which is regarded as the place of their death. They are said to have been serving in city at the end of the third century or at the beginnings of the fourth. According to one legend, they were the sons of the martyr Marcellus the Centurion and it may have been during either the persecutions of Diocletian or of Valerian when they were imprisoned and forced to decide between renouncing the faith or leaving the army. The heads of saints are said to have floated to Santander aboard a boat made of stone. A community of monks who lived in that city became custodians of holy relics. According to Prudentius, the brothers Emeterius and Celedonius, soldiers of the Legio VII Gemina, were martyred at Calahorra, in the fourth century pilgrims from distant lands came to pray at the tomb of these saints, whose relics are still preserved in Calahorra Cathedral. At Santander, Alfonso II of Aragon founded the abbey of Saints Hemeterius and Celedonius, or Santander Abbey, the former abbey church is now Santander Cathedral. They are patron saints of Calahorra, Santander, and other towns of Cantabria and their feast day is August 30
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Calahorra
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Calahorra La Rioja, Spain is a municipality in the comarca of Rioja Baja, near the border with Navarre on the right bank of the Ebro. During Ancient Roman times, Calahorra was a known as Calagurris Fibularia. The city is located on a hill at an altitude of 358 metres at the confluence of the Ebro and Cidacos rivers, Calahorra is the second-largest city in La Rioja in population and importance, after the capital, Logroño. It is well-connected to other cities, especially by highway and its daily bus services link it to such cities as Pamplona, Soria and San Sebastián. Its status as seat of a comarca and judicial district make it a city in administrative, commercial. Calahorra has been inhabited since the Paleolithic, and its stable population dates to the Iron Age, rome conquered the town in 187 BC and brought it to its highest point of importance as an administrative centre for surrounding regions. Calahorra supported Quintus Sertorius in his war against Pompey, whom the city resisted successfully since 76 BC and it was only taken four years later by Pompeys legate Lucius Afranius, after a lot of inhabitants had died from starvation and there had occurred cannibalism. Julius Caesar and Augustus Caesar gave the city numerous distinctions, converted it into a municipality, and developed its city planning, economy and its archeological remains show that it had a circus, baths, an amphitheatre, and other services found in large cities. It minted money and served as an administration centre. Quintilian, well known for his descriptions of the culture of that time, was born in Calahorra, and it has Roman ruins in the grounds. Saints Emeterius and Celedonius, martyred in the city around 305 AD, are the saints of the city. The cathedral is dedicated to them, the Christian Roman poet Prudentius may have inhabited at some point in Calahorra, who pinpoints it on the territory of the Vascones in the 4th century. After the rule of the Moors in the 9th and 10th centuries the Christian king García Sánchez III of Navarre captured the city in 1045, monte Compatri, Italy Caussade, France Official Web Site Calahorra Web Site Calahorra Jewish family in Poland
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Saint Eustace
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Saint Eustace, also known as Eustachius or Eustathius in Latin, St. Esthak in India, or Sh. Staka in Albania, is revered as a Christian martyr and soldier saint, Legend places him in the 2nd century AD. A martyr of that name is venerated as a saint in the Anglican Church and he is commemorated by the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church on September 20. According to legend, prior to his conversion to Christianity Eustace was a Roman general named Placidus, while hunting a stag in Tivoli near Rome, Placidus saw a vision of a crucifix lodged between the stags antlers. He was immediately converted, had himself and his family baptized, like Job, Eustace lamented but did not lose his faith. He was then restored to his former prestige and reunited with his family. However, the Catholic Church rejects this story as completely false, the opening part of this legend, up to Eustaces martyrdom, is a variant of a popular tale in chivalric romance, the Man Tried By Fate. Except for an exemplum in Gesta Romanorum, all such tales are highly developed romances, a distant Indian origin for elements in the Eustace legend has been proposed. The veneration of Eustace originated in the Byzantine church, in the West, an early-medieval church dedicated to him that existed in Rome is mentioned in a letter of Pope Gregory II. An early depiction of Eustace, the earliest one noted in the Duchy of Burgundy, is carved on a Romanesque capital at Vézelay Abbey, the story of Eustace was popularized in Jacobus de Voragines Golden Legend. As with many saints, there is no evidence for Eustaces existence. Elements of his story have been re-attributed to other saints, notably the Belgian Saint Hubert, Saint Eustaces feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is September 20, as is indicated in the Roman Martyrology. However, his feast is observed by Roman Catholics who follow the pre-1970 Roman Calendar. Eustace became known as a saint of hunters and firefighters. He is one of the saints of Madrid, Spain. The island of Sint Eustatius in the Caribbean Netherlands is named after him, the dAfflitto, one of the oldest princely families in Italy, claim to be direct descendants of Saint Eustace. The novels The Herb of Grace by British author Elizabeth Goudge and it has also inspired the film Imagination. The saints cross-and-stag symbol is featured on bottles of Jägermeister, a German alcoholic digestif and this is related to his status as patron of hunters, a Jägermeister was a senior foresters and gamekeeper in the German civil service until 1934, prior to the drinks introduction in 1935
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Expeditus
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Expeditus is said to have been a Roman centurion in Armenia who was martyred around April 303 in what is now Turkey, for converting to Christianity. Considered the patron saint of speedy cases, he is commemorated by the Roman Catholic Church on 19 April, Expeditus was probably born in Armenia. He was a Christian martyr, but not much else is known about him, information concerning Saint Expeditus is found in the Hieronymian Martyrology. According to Delehaye, the word Expeditus is a misreading of Elpidius, the name Expeditus has provoked puns, so he has become the saint of rapidity. At first, he was invoked for urgent causes, he has become the patron of dealers, sailors, students. Given that Expeditus is Latin for a soldier without marching pack, i. e. a soldier with light equipment and his cult was already developed in Turin, Italy, in the Middle Ages. At the beginning of the century, certain bishops tried but failed to abolish the cult of Saint Expeditus. According to tradition, Saint Expeditus was a Roman centurion in Armenia who became a Christian and was beheaded during the Diocletian Persecution in 303 A. D. The day he decided to become a Christian, the Devil took the form of a crow, Expeditus stamped on the bird and killed it, declaring, Ill be a Christian today. Expeditus was included in martyrologies in Italy before 1781, there was a tradition that Saint Expeditus could be called upon to help settle overly long legal cases. His acta have not been reviewed by the Roman Catholic Church, Saint Expedite is venerated in Europe and strongly in Latin America. Brazil has ceremonies in São Paulo and crowds attending ceremonies to mark his April 19 feast day can reach in the hundreds of thousands, many stories circulated about the saints origin say that the cultus of Expeditus began when a package marked expedite arrived with unidentified relics or statues. The recipients assumed that the statuary or relics belonged to a Saint Expeditus, such an account is set in France in 1781. A case containing the relics of a saint, who was buried in the Denfert-Rochereau catacombs of Paris, was delivered at a convent in the city. The senders had written expédit on the case, to ensure fast delivery of the remains, the nuns assumed that Expédit was the name of a martyr, and prayed for his intercession. When their prayers were answered, veneration spread rapidly through France, another version of the story takes place in New Orleans, Louisiana, which was strongly influenced by French Catholic culture through the colonial period. This account says that Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel received a shipment of statues of various saints. It was labeled Expedite, so the residents assumed that must be the saints name, in New Orleans, Saint Expédit still figures prominently in Louisiana Creole folklore and is revered through amulets, flowers, candles, and intercessory prayers
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Malatya
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Malatya is a large city in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital of Malatya Province. The city has been a settlement for thousands of years. The Assyrians called the city Meliddu, Strabo says that the city was known to the ancients as Melitene, a name adopted by the Romans following Roman expansion into the east. According to Strabo, the inhabitants of Melitene shared with the nearby Cappadocians and Cataonians the same language, the site of ancient Melitene lies a few kilometres from the modern city in what is now the village of Arslantepe and near the dependant district center of Battalgazi. Present-day Battalgazi was the location of the city of Malatya until the 19th century, battalgazis official name was Eskimalatya, until recently, it was a name used locally. Arslantepe has been inhabited since the development of agriculture in the Fertile Crescent, from the Bronze Age, the site became an administrative center of a larger region in the kingdom of Isuwa. The city was fortified, probably due to the Hittite menace from the west. The Hittites conquered the city in the fourteenth century B. C, in Hittite, melid or milit means honey, offering a possible etymology for the name, which was mentioned in the contemporary sources of the time under several variations. After the end of the Hittite empire, the city became the center of the Neo-Hittite state of Kammanu, the city continued old Hittite traditions and styles. Researchers have discovered a palace inside the city walls with statues, the people erected a palace, accompanied by monumental stone sculptures of lions and the ruler. Kammanu was vassal state of Urartu between 804 and 743, the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser I forced the kingdom of Malidiya to pay tribute to Assyria. Malidiya continued to prosper until the Assyrian king Sargon II sacked the city in 712 BC, at the same time, the Cimmerians and Scythians invaded Asia Minor and the city declined. Some occupation continued on the site into the Hellenistic and Roman periods — a smithy with four ovens has been excavated from the Roman period, there was a long gap in occupation between the mid-7th century and renewed use of the site in the late 12th or early 13th century. Archeologists first began to excavate the site of Arslantepe in the 1930s, since 1961, an Italian team of archaeologists, today led by Marcella Frangipane, has been working at the site. The Kingdom of Cappadocia, ruled by the House of Ariobarzanes, after the Kingdoms annexation by the Roman Empire in 17 AD, the settlement was re-established as Melitene in 72 AD on a different site, as the base camp of Legio XII Fulminata. The legionary base of Melitene controlled access to southern Armenia and the upper Tigris and it was the end point of the important highway running east from Caesarea. The camp attracted a population and was probably granted city status by Trajan in the early 2nd century AD. It is known for being a source of imperial coins minted from the 3rd to the early 5th centuries
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Cappadocia
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Cappadocia is a historical region in Central Anatolia, largely in the Nevşehir, Kayseri, Kırşehir, Aksaray, and Niğde Provinces in Turkey. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Revolt, in these lists of countries, the Old Persian name is Haspaduya, which according to some researchers is derived from Iranian Huw-aspa-dahyu- the land/country of beautiful horses. Others proposed that Kat-patuka came from the Luwian language, meaning Low Country, subsequent research suggests that the adverb katta meaning down, below is exclusively Hittite, while its Luwian equivalent is zanta. Therefore the recent modification of this proposal operates with the Hittite katta peda-, Herodotus tells us that the name of the Cappadocians was applied to them by the Persians, while they were termed by the Greeks Syrians or White Syrians Leucosyri. Cappadocia appears in the account given in the book of Acts 2,9. The Cappadocians were named as one group hearing the Gospel account from Galileans in their own language on the day of Pentecost shortly after the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Acts 2,5 seems to suggest that the Cappadocians in this account were God-fearing Jews. The region is mentioned in the Jewish Mishnah, in Ketubot 13,11. This division had come about before the time of Xenophon. The kingdom of Cappadocia still existed in the time of Strabo as a independent state. Cilicia was the given to the district in which Caesarea. The only two cities of Cappadocia considered by Strabo to deserve that appellation were Caesarea and Tyana, not far from the foot of the Taurus, Cappadocia lies in central Anatolia, in the heartland of what is now Turkey. The relief consists of a plateau over 1000 m in altitude that is pierced by volcanic peaks. The boundaries of historical Cappadocia are vague, particularly towards the west, to the south, the Taurus Mountains form the boundary with Cilicia and separate Cappadocia from the Mediterranean Sea. To the west, Cappadocia is bounded by the regions of Lycaonia to the southwest. This results in an area approximately 400 km east–west and 250 km north–south, due to its inland location and high altitude, Cappadocia has a markedly continental climate, with hot dry summers and cold snowy winters. Rainfall is sparse and the region is largely semi-arid, Cappadocia was known as Hatti in the late Bronze Age, and was the homeland of the Hittite power centred at Hattusa. After ending the Persian Empire, Alexander the Great tried to rule the area one of his military commanders. But Ariarathes, a Persian aristocrat, somehow became king of the Cappadocians, as Ariarathes I, he was a successful ruler, and he extended the borders of the Cappadocian Kingdom as far as to the Black Sea
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