Clement of Rome, also known as Pope Clement I, was a bishop of Rome in the late first century AD. He is considered to be the first of the Apostolic Fathers of the Church, and a leading member of the Church in Rome in the late 1st century.
Pope Caius, also called Gaius, was the bishop of Rome from 17 December 283 to his death in 296. Little information on Caius is available except that given by the Liber Pontificalis, which relies on a legendary account of the martyrdom of Susanna of Rome for its information. According to legend, Caius baptized the men and women who had been converted by Tiburtius and Castulus. His legend states that Caius took refuge in the catacombs of Rome and died a martyr.
Pope Marcellinus was the bishop of Rome from 30 June 296 to his death in 304. A historical accusation was levelled at him by some sources to the effect that he might have renounced Christianity during Emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians before repenting afterwards, which would explain why he is omitted from lists of martyrs. The accusation is rejected, among others, by Augustine of Hippo. He is today venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church and in the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Erasmus of Formia, also known as Saint Elmo, was a Christian saint and martyr. He is venerated as the patron saint of sailors and abdominal pain. Erasmus or Elmo is also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, saintly figures of Christian religion who are venerated especially as intercessors.
The Theban Legion figures in Christian hagiography as a Roman legion from Egypt —"six thousand six hundred and sixty-six men" — consisting of Christian soldiers who were martyred together in 286, according to the hagiographies of Maurice, the chief among the Legion's saints. Their feast day is held on September 22.
The Diocletianic or Great Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. In 303, the emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding Christians' legal rights and demanding that they comply with traditional religious practices. Later edicts targeted the clergy and demanded universal sacrifice, ordering all inhabitants to sacrifice to the 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 Licinius' Edict of Milan in 313 has traditionally marked the end of the persecution.
Eulalia of Mérida was a young Roman Christian martyred in Augusta Emerita, the capital of Lusitania, during the Persecution of Christians under Diocletian. Other views place her death at the time of Trajan Decius. There is debate whether Saint Eulalia of Barcelona, whose story is similar, is the same person. Up till the proclamation of James, son of Zebedee, Eulalia was invoked as the protector of Christian troops in the Reconquista and was patron of the territories of Spain during their formation.
Saints Cyprian and Justina are honored in the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church and Oriental Orthodoxy as Christians of Antioch, who in 304, during the Diocletianic Persecution, suffered martyrdom at Nicomedia on September 26. According to Roman Catholic sources, no Bishop of Antioch bore the name of Cyprian.
This page is an index of lists of people considered martyrs. A martyr is someone 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.
Sabinus of Spoleto was a bishop in the early Christian church who resisted the Diocletianic Persecution and was martyred.
Saint Colluthus is a Coptic saint and martyr of the 3rd century AD said to be from Antinoöpolis.
Christians were persecuted throughout the Roman Empire, beginning in the 1st century AD and ending in the 4th century. Originally a polytheistic empire in the traditions of Roman paganism and the Hellenistic religion, as Christianity spread through the empire, it came into ideological conflict with the imperial cult of ancient Rome. Pagan practices such as making sacrifices to the deified emperors or other gods were abhorrent to Christians as their beliefs prohibited idolatry. The state and other members of civic society punished Christians for treason, various rumored crimes, illegal assembly, and for introducing an alien cult that led to Roman apostasy. The first, localized Neronian persecution occurred under Emperor Nero in Rome. A number of mostly localized persecutions occurred during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. After a lull, persecution resumed under Emperors Decius and Trebonianus Gallus. The Decian persecution was particularly extensive. The persecution under Emperor Valerian ceased with his notable capture by the Sasanian Empire's Shapur I at the Battle of Edessa during the Roman–Persian Wars. His successor, Gallienus, halted the persecutions.
Saint Domnina and her daughters Berenice and Prosdoce are venerated as Christian martyrs by the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches. St. Domnina is not to be confused with Domnina of Syria, a 5th century figure.
Pope Peter I of Alexandria was the 17th Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria. He is revered as a saint by the Coptic Orthodox Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Catholic Church.
Mercurius was a Roman soldier of Scythian descent who became a Christian saint and martyr. He was born in the city of Eskentos in Cappadocia, in Eastern Asia Minor. According to Christian tradition, he was the soldier who killed Julian the apostate during his campaign in Persia. Saint Mercurius was also widely known by his Arabic-language name Abu-Sayfain, Abu-Sifin or Abu-Sefein in Egyptian Arabic which means "father of two swords", referring to the second sword given to him by the Archangel Michael.
Saint Demiana and the 40 virgins was a Coptic martyr of the early fourth century.
Abanoub or Abanop or Abanoub Al-Nahisy, is a 4th-century Christian saint and martyr from Egypt. His name means Father of Gold in Coptic. He was born in Nehisa in the Nile Delta to Christian parents. Abanoub was 12 years old when he was killed and beheaded, after being tortured for refusing to leave Christianity. His feast day is July 31. His relics are preserved in St. Virgin Mary and St. Abanoub Churches in Sebennytos, Egypt. His title is often The Child Martyr.
The Young Martyr is an oil painting by the French painter Paul Delaroche. It was completed in 1855 and is based on the Romantic style of genre painting. It is held at the Louvre, in Paris. The first version of the painting is from 1853 and is held at the Hermitage Museum, in Saint Petersburg.
The Enaton was a monastic district in Egypt during the Middle Ages. It lasted into the 15th century, but it was at its height between the 5th and 7th centuries. It takes its name, which means "ninth", from its location at the ninth milestone southwest of Alexandria along the coastal road.
Saint Arianus was a historically attested governor of Ansena in Egypt and a notable figure in the Diocletianic persecution. He is a recurring character in Coptic hagiography, wherein he often attempts to torture Christian martyrs into worshiping idols, gets frustrated with their resilience and has them beheaded. In these hagiographies he is depicted with a sadistic fondness for torture, employing various methods such as beating, combing, nailing, burning, imprisoning, crucifying, and spearing Christians.
