Nicola Ernst: Athanasius and the Sons of Constantine: The Case of Constantine II

The reign of Constantine’s eldest surviving heir, Constantine II is the least documented of all his successors. While the younger Constantine would only reign as Augustus for three years, he made religious decisions early in his reign which had major impacts on the relationship between the emperors and bishops. On June 17 337, only a month following the death of Constantine I, Athanasius of Alexandria received a letter from the dead emperor’s eldest son, Constantine II remitting his exile that had been imposed upon him in 335. Athanasius praises the actions of the eldest son of Constantine, and it seems the two met in Trier following the bishop’s remittance, before he journeyed back to his see in Alexandria. This paper will discuss how this letter and episode can help modern scholars to further understand the reign of Constantine II, whose life and rule are difficult to reconstruct. I will argue that the remittance of Athanasius’ exile was an attempt by the younger Constantine to further assert his father’s Christian agenda, as well as his imperial power, in order to present a new period of religious cooperation throughout the empire.