Helena of Constantinople
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Follis-Helena-trier_RIC_465.jpg
Flavia Iulia Helena, also known as Saint Helena, Saint Helen, and Helena of Constantinople, (AD c.248 - c.329) probably born in Drepanum (afterwards re-named Helenopolis by her son Constantine) on the Gulf of Nicomedia, was the first wife of Constantius Chlorus, and allegedly the daughter of an innkeeper.
Constantius Chlorus divorced her (c.292) to marry the step-daughter of Maximian, Flavia Maximiana Theodora. Helena's son, Constantine, became emperor of the Roman Empire, and following his elevation she became a presence at the imperial court.
She is considered by the Orthodox and Catholic churches as a saint, famed for her piety. Eusebius records the details of her pilgrimage to Palestine and other eastern provinces. She is traditionally credited (but not by Eusebius) 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 Orthodox Christian Church is celebrated with her son, St. Constantine on May 21. Her feast day in the Roman Catholic Church falls on August 18.
In England, 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.
Depictions in fiction
Helena is the main character of "Priestess of Avalon" (2000), a fantasy novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley and Diana L. Paxson. She is given the name Elian and depicted as a trained priestess of Avalon. She is also the protagonist of the eponymous novel by Evelyn Waugh.
External links
- A more detailed biography of the Augusta based on the historical sources (http://www.roman-emperors.org/helena.htm)
- coinage of Helena (http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/ric/helena/t.html)de:Flavia Iulia Helena Augusta
it:Sant'Elena Imperatrice nl:Helena (heilige) pl:Święta Helena (osoba) fi:Pyhä Helena