On This Day In History: Edict Of Milan Is Signed – Persecution of Christians Ends – June 13, 313 AD

MessageToEagle.com – On June 13, 313 AD, Edict of Milan is signed by Roman Emperor Constantine and the persecution of Christians ends.

When Emperor Constantine ascended to the throne, he took the opposite track, extending an offer of peace and recognition to Christians.

Christianity was a persecuted religion in Rome (just remember what they did to its early leader, Jesus of Nazareth). Roman emperors Diocletian and Galerius in particular took the measures to the extreme, banning all Christian practices, imprisoning violators or throwing them to the lions.

Thousands of Christians suffered; many more went underground, but Christianity as a movement would not be denied.

On this day in 313 AD, Emperor Constantine in the West and Emperor Licinius in the East jointly issued the Edict of Milan, ending the persecution of Christians and restoring their property seized during the persecutions.

The edict did not make Christianity the official or even the sole religion of the state; instead, it put Christianity on par with other religions in Constantine’s empire.

With the emperor having converted to Christianity himself, however, it was obvious which way the wind was blowing.

Constantine the Great, (Latin: Flavius Valerius Constantinus) was born after 280 AD ; he was the first Roman emperor to profess Christianity.

He not only initiated the evolution of the empire into a Christian state but also provided the impulse for a distinctively Christian culture that prepared the way for the growth of Byzantine and Western medieval culture.

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