Encyclopedia > Helena, mother of Constantine the Great
Flavia Iulia Helena, also known as Saint Helena and Helena of Constantinople, (AD c.248 - c.329) probably born in Drepanum (afterwards re-named Helenopolis) on the Gulf of Nicomedia, was the first wife of Constantius Chlorus, and allegedly the daughter of an innkeeper. Later legend, mentioned by Geoffrey of Monmouth, claimed that she was a daughter of Briton King Coel, who allied with Constantius to avoid more war between the Britons and Rome. Monmouth further states that she was brought up in the manner of a queen, as she had no brothers to inherit the throne of Britain.
Constantius Chlorus divorced her (circa292) to marry the step-daughter of Maximian, Flavia Maximiana Theodora. Helena's son, Constantine later became emperor of the Roman Empire, and following his elevation she became a presence at the imperial court.
She is also considered by some Christians to be a saint, famed for her piety. Eusebius records the details of her pilgrimage to Palestine and other eastern provinces. She is traditionally credited with the finding of relics of the cross of Christ (see True Cross for the story), and finding the remains of the Three Wise Men, which currently reside in the Shrine of the Three Kings at Cologne Cathedral. Her feast day (as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church) falls on August 18 and as a saint of the Orthodox Christian Church is on 21 May, together with her son's feast day, since Orthodox Christian Church also honours Constantine the Great as a saint.
Her son Constantine renamed the city of Drepanum on the Gulf of Nicomedia as 'Helenopolis' in her honor, which led to later interpretions that Drepanum was her birthplace.
Helena's son, Constantine, became emperor of the Roman Empire, and following his elevation she became a presence at the imperial court, and received the title Augusta.
Helena is the main character of "Priestess of Avalon" (2000), a fantasy novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley and Diana L. Paxson.
Constantine the Great was born Flavius Valerius Constantinus at Niš, in what is now Serbia and Montenegro, son of the commander Constantius Chlorus (later Constantius I) and Helena (later Saint Helena), a camp follower.
Constantine’s adherence to this faith is evident from his claim of having had a vision of the sun god in 310 while in a grove of Apollo in Gaul.
Constantine the Great unified a tottering empire, reorganized the Roman state, and set the stage for the final victory of Christianity at the end of the 4th century.
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