Historical story

He killed his son, his wife, and ... became a saint. Constantine the Great and his victims

Constantine the Great, the first Christian emperor, turned out to be a worthy rival of the matricide Nero in the category of "killing loved ones". He had a father-in-law, brothers-in-law, nephew, wife and son on his conscience. Not a bad balance for a man whom Eusebius of Caesarea wrote about as having "a soul thrice blessed, united with God, free from all earthly impurities" ...

The grim story began on July 25, 306, in the military camp at Eboracum in the northwestern fringe of the Roman Empire, that is - to use the modern name - in York. On that day, Emperor Constantius Chlorus died, appointing his eldest son, 34-year-old Constantine, his successor. Except he shouldn't.

At that time, the Roman empire was ruled by four emperors - two each with the title of Augustus and the title of Caesar. Augustus was to reign for 20 years and then abdicate in favor of his Caesar. New Augustus appointed a new Caesar, which protected against succession fights. Except that Chlorus, who was called Augustus, already had his Caesar. By stuffing his son skip the line, he started a civil war.

Constantine the Great, the first Christian emperor, turned out to be a worthy rival of the matricide Nero in the category of "killing loved ones".

As early as October 306 in Rome, Maxentius, son of Maximian, one of the former Augustus, proclaimed himself emperor. He reasoned that since Constantine could inherit imperial dignity, he might as well. Soon Maximian himself, greedy for power, returned from his political retirement. The number of Roman emperors has started to grow dangerously.

In 307, Konstantyn joined this family, taking Fausta, daughter of Maximian, and sister of Maxentius as his wife. You didn't have to be an augur rummaging through the guts of animals to predict that blood would soon be spilled in this family.

Father-in-law Maximian

Old Maximian was as ambitious as he was stupid. He tried to overthrow his son, Magnentius, but failed and took refuge in Gaul at the court of Constantine. He later tried to dethrone his son-in-law and again his plan failed. Eventually, he stopped in Massalia (today's Marseille), where he was besieged by Constantine's troops. Its inhabitants did not hesitate to open the gates, and the imperial purple was torn off Maximian. He should have understood then that he would never regain his throne. Unfortunately, he didn't understand.

Battle of the Moulin Bridge, in which Constantine the Great defeated Maxentius.

The official version was as follows: humiliated Maximian stays at the court of Constantine. He wants to kill his son-in-law, and drags his daughter Fausta into the plot. She, however, turns out to be a better wife than a daughter. He reveals Maximian's plan to Konstantin. On the day of the assassination attempt in the imperial bed, the king's place is taken by a substituted eunuch. Maximian bursts in at night, kills the slave, and then leaves the imperial bedroom with a bloodied dagger. His joy is short-lived. Suddenly, Constantine stands in his way, surrounded by armed men. She asks him, "How do you want to die?" Maximian is hanging himself.

Some researchers (eg Aleksander Krawczuk) doubt the credibility of this account, but Konstantyna's responsibility for the death of his father-in-law is certain. Whether Maximian tied a rope around his neck himself or was it put on him - this is a secondary issue.

Two-in-law and a nephew

Being the brother-in-law of Constantine the Great was like the kiss of death. In 316, the emperor executed Senator Basianus, the husband of his half-sister Anastasia, on charges of conspiracy. It is not known to what extent the accusations were true. One can only question whether Constantine forestalled his brother-in-law's movement, or whether he decided to get rid of him and had his propagandists come up with a story about the plot.

The historians' distrust is justified inasmuch as surprisingly similarly ended Licinius, the husband of another sister of Constantine - Constance. Licinius was emperor, ruled the eastern part of the Roman Empire, and was the last obstacle on Constantine's path to reign.

On September 18, 324, in the Battle of Chalcedon, Constantine's army defeated Licinius's army.

On September 18, 324, in the Battle of Chalcedon, Constantine's army defeated Licinius's army. The latter took refuge behind the walls of Nicomedia (now Izmit in Turkey). The mediator was Konstancja, the sister and wife of the conflicted emperors. Licinius, in exchange for sparing his life, relinquished power. Constantine sent him back to Thessalonica and had him murdered a few months later. Official Reason:Attempted plot to overthrow Constantine.

In 326 AD Constantine I condemned the son of Licinius and Constance to death. We know the theme of revenge for the death of the father (Orestes, Hamlet, Simba, etc.) from history, literature and film, so the emperor simply protected himself. The problem is, his nephew was an 11-year-old boy at the time of his death.

Son and wife

The elimination of a father-in-law, brothers-in-law and even a nephew can be explained by politics. In the civil war that lasted from 306 to 324, there could be only one winner, and Constantine's competitors also had blood on their hands. However, the emperor did not stop there.

At the time of his marriage to Faust, Konstantyn already had a son from a previous relationship, Crispus. The boy's career was exemplary. He held the consulate three times, his father gave him the title of Caesar, he did a great job as a commander in the war against Licinius. Unexpectedly, in 326, Constantine had his son killed. As for the type of death, he was probably poisoned.

According to one version, Crispus had an affair with his stepmother. According to others, it was Faust who fell in love with her stepson, and when he rejected her - she accused him in front of her husband of a seduction or even rape. In any case, the story resembled the Greek myth of Phaedra and Hippolytus.

Helena, Konstantin's mother, was shocked by the death of her beloved grandson, for which she blamed Faust. She accused her daughter-in-law of adultery, and Constantine, probably already devoured by suspicions, had his wife killed. The woman was locked in a hot bath where she suffocated.

According to a late account Constantine feared punishment for the murder of his wife and son, but none of the pagan priests knew the cleansing rite for crimes of this caliber . At last a certain Egyptian from Spain appeared at the imperial court and assured Constantine that the Christian religion had the power to take away all sins. This determined the conversion of the wife and sicide.

Constantine was not baptized until his deathbed.

In fact, Constantine had pre-empted Christianity over faith in Roman gods, although he delayed literally until the very end of being baptized. He was not baptized until his deathbed in 337. As the subject expert, Teresa Wnętrzak points out:

It must be remembered, however, that this was quite common practice in those days, as the baptismal responsibilities were taken very seriously. Baptism eliminated all sins committed previously, so that the latest possible reception of this sacrament made it possible to violate the rules of Christian morality at will throughout one's life.

Criminal gallery

As Aleksander Krawczuk lists:" In the gloomy gallery of the most criminal Roman emperors, the three occupy the leading places when it comes to deliberate killings committed on loved ones. They are:matkiller Nero, fratricide Caracalla and finally Constantine. "

However, politicians should not be judged in terms of their relationship with the family. Constantine saved the unity of the Roman Empire, defeated the barbarians, and was not afraid of legal, economic and administrative reforms. To quote Krawczuk once again:“There were certainly many ambitions, perhaps excessive, in this. But there was also a sincere concern to ensure the durability of the Empire and the well-being of the lower classes, which he tried to protect against abuses by the nobility and corrupt bureaucracy. "

Constantine's religious choices influenced his assessment. Pagan authors did not spare him words of criticism, for Christian writers he was the one who definitely put an end to the persecution and ensured full tolerance. Only later did it go too far. In the West, this Roman emperor became a hero of pious legends, and in the East, this mendicant and synocide were counted among the saints.