Biography Of Constantine
Constantine I, one of the most significant emperors of Rome, was born in 274 AD. He is well known in the history of Rome for making Christianity the official religion of the whole Roman Empire. He was conferred the title of Great for playing a crucial role in the advancement of the Christian religion and is remembered as Constantine, the Great. |
His chances of becoming the Roman Emperor were great as his father Constantius Chlorus was made a royal leader in the year 292 AD, in the external states of Britain, Gaul (present day France), and Spain, run by the Roman Empire. Though the masses in Britain, Gaul, and Spain were very faithful to his father, he never had the absolute power of the Empire in the West. But after his death in 306 AD, these masses conveyed their loyalty to his son Constantine and made him the emperor.
Constantine, just like his father, did not get power of the whole Roman Empire. Maxentius was his competitor for power and their fight for absolute power continued for many years till 312 AD. But the situation changed when during the Battle of Milvian Ridge in the year 312 AD, he observed the symbol of a crucifix in the sky. He won the battle and declared that Christianity was to be the official religion of the Roman Empire. It was a great step for the Christian church after centuries of harassment by the various Roman emperors.
After that, Constantine I ended becoming the emperor of the eastern and western parts of the Roman Empire. He tried to strengthen the economy and military forces of the Roman Empire. Besides strengthening the empire, he was dedicated to the Christian church and summoned the Council of Nicea to restructure and put together the constitution and principles of the church. After making Christianity the only religion in the entire Roman Empire, his major success was the establishment of Constantinople, on the remains of the old city of Byzantium. But the whole empire was split into two. Paradoxically, the Western Empire remained only up to 471 AD whereas the Byzantium Empire lasted for thousand years.
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