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(V D).
Roman Emperor and persecutor of theChurch, born ofparents who had beenslaves, at Dioclea, nearSalona, inDalmatia, 245; d. atSalona, 313.
He entered the army and by his marked abilities attained the offices of Governor of Mœsia, consul, and commander of the guards of the palace. In the Persianwar, under Carus, he especially distinguished himself. When the son and successor of Carus, Numerian, wasmurdered atChalcedon, the choice of the army fell upon Diocletian, who immediately slew with his own hand the murderer Aper (17 Sept., 284). His career as emperor belongs to secular history. Here only a summary will be given. The reign of Diocletian (284-305) marked an era both in the military and political history of the empire. The triumph which he celebrated together with his colleagueMaximian (20 Nov., 303) was the last triumph whichRome ever beheld. Britain, the Rhine, the Danube, and the Nile furnished trophies; but the proudest boast of the conqueror was thatPersia, the persistent enemy ofRome, had at last been subdued. Soon after his accession to power Diocletian realized that the empire was too unwieldy and too much exposed to attack to be safely ruled by a single head. Accordingly, he associated with himselfMaximian, a bold but rude soldier, at first as Cæsar and afterwards as Augustus (286). Later on, he further distributed his power by granting the inferior title of Cæsar to two generals, Galerius and Constantius (292). He reserved for his own portion Thrace,Egypt, andAsia;Italy and Africa wereMaximian's provinces, while Galerius was stationed on the Danube, and Constantius had charge of Gaul,Spain, and Britain. But the supreme control remained in Diocletian's hands. None of the rulers resided inRome, and thus the way was prepared for the downfall of the imperial city. Moreover, Diocletian undermined the authority of the Senate, assumed the diadem, and introduced the servile ceremonial of the Persian court. After a prosperous reign of nearly twenty-one years, he abdicated the throne and retired toSalona, where he lived in magnificent seclusion until his death.
Diocletian's name is associated with the last and most terrible of all the ten persecutions of the early Church. Nevertheless it is a fact that theChristians enjoyed peace and prosperity during the greater portion of his reign.Eusebius, who lived at this time, describes in glowing terms "the glory and the liberty with which the doctrine of piety was honoured", and he extols the clemency of the emperors towards theChristian governors whom they appointed, and towards theChristian members of their households. He tells us that the rulers of theChurch "were courted andhonoured with the greatest subserviency by all the rulers and governors". He speaks of the vast multitudes that flocked to the religion ofChrist, and of the spacious and splendid churches erected in the place of the humbler buildings of earlier days. At the same time he bewails the falling from ancient fervour "by reason of excessive liberty" (Church History VIII.1). Diocletian remained sole emperor, he would probably have allowed this toleration to continue undisturbed. It was his subordinate Galerius who first induced him to turn persecutor. These two rulers of the East, at a council held atNicomedia in 302, resolved to suppressChristianity throughout the empire. Thecathedral ofNicomedia was demolished (24 Feb., 303). An edict was issued "to tear down the churches to the foundations and to destroy theSacred Scriptures by fire; and commanding also that those who were in honourable stations should be degraded if they persevered in their adherence toChristianity" (Eusebius, op. cit., VIII, ii). Three further edicts (303-304) marked successive stages in the severity of thepersecution: the first ordering that thebishops,presbyters, anddeacons should beimprisoned; the second that they should be tortured and compelled by every means to sacrifice; the third including thelaity as well as theclergy. The atrocious cruelty with which these edicts were enforced, and the vast numbers of those who suffered for the Faith are attested byEusebius and the Acts of the Martyrs. We read even of the massacre of the whole population of a town because they declared themselvesChristians (Eusebius, loc. cit., xi, xii; Lactant., "Div. Instit.", V, xi). The abdication of Diocletian (1 May, 305) and the subsequent partition of the empire brought relief to many provinces. In the East, however, where Galerius andMaximian held sway, thepersecution continued to rage. Thus it will be seen that the so-called Diocletianpersecution should be attributed to the influence of Galerius; it continued for seven years after Diocletian's abdication. (SeePERSECUTIONS.)
EUSEBIUS,Church History inP.G., XX;De Mart. Palæstinæ, P.G., XX, 1457-1520; LACTANTIUS,Divinæ Institutiones, V, inP.L., VI;De Mortibus Persecutorum, P.L., VII; GIBBON,Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, xiii, xvi; ALLARD,Le persécution de Dioclétien et le triomphe de l'église (Paris, 1890); IDEM,Le christianisme et l'empire romain (Paris, 1898); IDEM,Ten Lectures on the Martyrs, tr. (London, 1907); DUCHESNE,Histoire ancienne de l'église (Paris, 1907), II.
APA citation.Scannell, T.(1909).Diocletian. InThe Catholic Encyclopedia.New York: Robert Appleton Company.http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05007b.htm
MLA citation.Scannell, Thomas."Diocletian."The Catholic Encyclopedia.Vol. 5.New York: Robert Appleton Company,1909.<http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05007b.htm>.
Transcription.This article was transcribed for New Advent by WGKofron.With thanks to St. Mary's Church, Akron, Ohio.
Ecclesiastical approbation.Nihil Obstat. May 1, 1909. Remy Lafort, Censor.Imprimatur. +John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York.
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