Theban Legion
Encyclopedia
The Theban Legion figures in Christian
hagiography
as an entire Roman legion
— of "six thousand six hundred and sixty-six men" — who had converted en masse to Christianity
and were martyr
ed together, in 286, according to the hagiographies
of Saint Maurice
, the chief among the Legion's saints. Their feast day is held on September 22.
, the garrison
of the Legion was the city of Thebes, Egypt
. There the Legion were quartered in the east until the emperor Maximian
ordered them to march to Gaul, to assist him against the rebels of Burgundy. The Theban Legion was commanded in its march by Saint Maurice
(Mauritius), Candidus
, Innocent, and Exupernis (Exuperius), all of whom are venerated as saints. At the Swiss
town of Saint Maurice-en-Valais, then called Agaunum
, so it was said, the orders were given— since the Legion had refused to a man, to sacrifice to the Emperor— to "decimate
" it by putting to death a tenth of its men. This act was repeated until none were left.
According to a letter from Eucherius, bishop of Lyon
written about 450, bodies identified as the martyrs of Agaunum were discovered and identified by Theodore (Theodulus), the first historically identified Bishop of Octudurum, who was present at the Council of Aquileia, 381
and died in 391. The basilica he built in their honor attracted the pilgrim trade; its remains can still be seen, part of the abbey begun in the early sixth century on land donated by King Sigismund of Burgundy
.
The earliest surviving document describing "the holy Martyrs who have made Aguanum illustrious with their blood" is the letter of Eucherius, which describes the succession of witnesses from the martyrdom to his time, a span of about 150 years. The bishop had made the journey to Agaunum himself, and his report of his visit multiplied a thousandfold the standard formula of the martyrologies
:
As with many hagiographies, Eucherius' letter to Bishop Salvius reinforced an existing pilgrimage
site. Many of the faithful were coming from diverse provinces of the empire, according to Eucherius, devoutly to honor these saints, and (important for the abbey of Aguanum) to offer presents of gold, silver and other things. He mentions many miracles, such as casting out of devils and other kinds of healing "which the power of the Lord works there every day through the intercession of his saints."
In the late sixth century Gregory of Tours
was convinced of the miraculous powers of the Theban Legion, though he transferred the event to Cologne
, where there was an early cult devoted to Maurice and the Theban Legion:
The tale of steadfast conduct and faith was embroidered in later retellings and figured in the Golden Legend
of Jacobus de Voragine
and was included among the persecution of Christians
detailed in Foxe's Book of Martyrs
, an early Protestant stand-by.
The strength of the account is based on the historical reputation for the eremites and other hermit
saints of the Egyptian desert, the "Desert Fathers
" of whom the most famous was Saint Anthony
and the almost fanatical Christian following they inspired during the first two centuries. The first monks in the Christian tradition are known as the "Desert Fathers
."
Accounts of the moral inculcated by the exemplum
of the Theban Legion resonate with the immediate culture of each teller. The miraculous whole-hearted unanimity of the Legion, to the last individual, was downplayed by Hugo Grotius
, for whom the moral of the Theban Legion was employed to condemn atrocities committed under military orders. For Donald O'Reilly, an apologist for the historicity of the account in 1978, it was "the moral issue of organized violence".
It should be noted at the outset that Thebaei is the proper name of one particular military unit: The existence of Legio I Maximiana
, also known as Maximiana Thebaeorum is recorded in the Notitia Dignitatum
.
Denis Van Berchem, of the University of Geneva
,proposed that Eucherius' presentation of the legend of the Theban legion was a literary production, not based on a local tradition; by isolating its hagiographic conventions
from the anachronisms of local narrative elements, he sought to demonstrate that Eucherius derived his formulas from Lactantius
and Orosius and that the decimation
was an anachronism
: the practice of decimation had not been practiced for at least a century (see Ammianus Marcellinus
for Julian's misinterpretation of decimation) and that service by Christians in the legions before Emperor Constantine I
was relatively rare. David Woods, Professor of Classics at the University College Cork, alleges that the model of Maurice and the Theban Legion based on Eucherius of Lyon
's letter was a complete fiction.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
hagiography
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
as an entire Roman legion
Roman legion
A Roman legion normally indicates the basic ancient Roman army unit recruited specifically from Roman citizens. The organization of legions varied greatly over time but they were typically composed of perhaps 5,000 soldiers, divided into maniples and later into "cohorts"...
— of "six thousand six hundred and sixty-six men" — who had converted en masse to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and were martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
ed together, in 286, according to the hagiographies
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
of Saint Maurice
Saint Maurice
Saint Maurice was the leader of the legendary Roman Theban Legion in the 3rd century, and one of the favorite and most widely venerated saints of that group. He was the patron saint of several professions, locales, and kingdoms...
, the chief among the Legion's saints. Their feast day is held on September 22.
The account
According to ca. 443–450 by Eucherius of LyonEucherius of Lyon
Saint Eucherius, bishop of Lyon, was a high-born and high-ranking ecclesiastic in the Christian Church of Gaul. He is remembered for his letters advocating extreme self-abnegation. Henry Wace ranked him "except perhaps St. Irenaeus the most distinguished occupant of that see".On the death of his...
, the garrison
Garrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
of the Legion was the city of Thebes, Egypt
Thebes, Egypt
Thebes is the Greek name for a city in Ancient Egypt located about 800 km south of the Mediterranean, on the east bank of the river Nile within the modern city of Luxor. The Theban Necropolis is situated nearby on the west bank of the Nile.-History:...
. There the Legion were quartered in the east until the emperor Maximian
Maximian
Maximian was Roman Emperor from 286 to 305. He was Caesar from 285 to 286, then Augustus from 286 to 305. He shared the latter title with his co-emperor and superior, Diocletian, whose political brain complemented Maximian's military brawn. Maximian established his residence at Trier but spent...
ordered them to march to Gaul, to assist him against the rebels of Burgundy. The Theban Legion was commanded in its march by Saint Maurice
Saint Maurice
Saint Maurice was the leader of the legendary Roman Theban Legion in the 3rd century, and one of the favorite and most widely venerated saints of that group. He was the patron saint of several professions, locales, and kingdoms...
(Mauritius), Candidus
Saint Candidus
Saint Candidus was, according to legend, a commander of the Theban Legion. The Golden Legend states: "And the noble man, Maurice, was duke of this holy legion; and they that governed under him, which bare the banners, were named Saint Candidus, Saint Innocent, Saint Exsuperius, Saint Victor, and...
, Innocent, and Exupernis (Exuperius), all of whom are venerated as saints. At the Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
town of Saint Maurice-en-Valais, then called Agaunum
Agaunum
Roman Agaunum, the modern Saint-Maurice in the canton Valais in southwesternmost Switzerland, was a minor post confined between the Rhône and the mountains along the well-travelled road that led from Roman Genava, modern Geneva, over the Alps by the Great St...
, so it was said, the orders were given— since the Legion had refused to a man, to sacrifice to the Emperor— to "decimate
Decimation (Roman Army)
Decimation |ten]]") was a form of military discipline used by officers in the Roman Army to punish mutinous or cowardly soldiers. The word decimation is derived from Latin meaning "removal of a tenth".-Procedure:...
" it by putting to death a tenth of its men. This act was repeated until none were left.
According to a letter from Eucherius, bishop of Lyon
Eucherius of Lyon
Saint Eucherius, bishop of Lyon, was a high-born and high-ranking ecclesiastic in the Christian Church of Gaul. He is remembered for his letters advocating extreme self-abnegation. Henry Wace ranked him "except perhaps St. Irenaeus the most distinguished occupant of that see".On the death of his...
written about 450, bodies identified as the martyrs of Agaunum were discovered and identified by Theodore (Theodulus), the first historically identified Bishop of Octudurum, who was present at the Council of Aquileia, 381
Council of Aquileia, 381
The Council of Aquileia in 381 AD was a church synod which was part of the struggle between Arian and orthodox ideas in Christianity. It was one of five councils of Aquileia....
and died in 391. The basilica he built in their honor attracted the pilgrim trade; its remains can still be seen, part of the abbey begun in the early sixth century on land donated by King Sigismund of Burgundy
King of Burgundy
The following is a list of the Kings of the two Kingdoms of Burgundy, and a number of related political entities devolving from Carolingian machinations over family relations.- Kings of the Burgundians :...
.
The earliest surviving document describing "the holy Martyrs who have made Aguanum illustrious with their blood" is the letter of Eucherius, which describes the succession of witnesses from the martyrdom to his time, a span of about 150 years. The bishop had made the journey to Agaunum himself, and his report of his visit multiplied a thousandfold the standard formula of the martyrologies
Martyrology
A martyrology is a catalogue or list of martyrs , arranged in the calendar order of their anniversaries or feasts. Local martyrologies record exclusively the custom of a particular Church. Local lists were enriched by names borrowed from neighbouring churches...
:
"We often hear, do we not, a particular locality or city is held in high honour because of one single martyr who died there, and quite rightly, because in each case the saint gave his precious soul to the most high God. How much more should this sacred place, Aguanum, be reverenced, where so many thousands of martyrs have been slain, with the sword, for the sake of Christ."
As with many hagiographies, Eucherius' letter to Bishop Salvius reinforced an existing pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
site. Many of the faithful were coming from diverse provinces of the empire, according to Eucherius, devoutly to honor these saints, and (important for the abbey of Aguanum) to offer presents of gold, silver and other things. He mentions many miracles, such as casting out of devils and other kinds of healing "which the power of the Lord works there every day through the intercession of his saints."
In the late sixth century Gregory of Tours
Gregory of Tours
Saint Gregory of Tours was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of Gaul. He was born Georgius Florentius, later adding the name Gregorius in honour of his maternal great-grandfather...
was convinced of the miraculous powers of the Theban Legion, though he transferred the event to Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, where there was an early cult devoted to Maurice and the Theban Legion:
"At Cologne there is a church in which the fifty men from the holy Theban Legion are said to have consummated their martyrdom for the name of Christ. And because the church, with its wonderful construction and mosaics, shines as if somehow gilded, the inhabitants prefer to call it the "Church of the Golden Saints". Once Eberigisilus, who was at the time bishop of Cologne, was racked with severe pains in half his head. He was then in a villa near a village. Eberigisilus sent his deacon to the church of the saints. Since there was said to be in the middle of the church a pit into which the saints were thrown together after their martyrdom, the deacon collected some dust there and brought it to the bishop. As soon as the dust touched Eberigisilus' head, immediately all pain was gone."
The tale of steadfast conduct and faith was embroidered in later retellings and figured in the Golden Legend
Golden Legend
The Golden Legend is a collection of hagiographies by Jacobus de Voragine that became a late medieval bestseller. More than a thousand manuscripts of the text have survived, compared to twenty or so of its nearest rivals...
of Jacobus de Voragine
Jacobus de Voragine
Blessed Jacobus de Varagine or Voragine was an Italian chronicler and archbishop of Genoa. He was the author, or more accurately the compiler, of Legenda Aurea, the Golden Legend, a collection of the legendary lives of the greater saints of the medieval church that was one of the most popular...
and was included among the persecution of Christians
Persecution of Christians
Persecution of Christians as a consequence of professing their faith can be traced both historically and in the current era. Early Christians were persecuted for their faith, at the hands of both Jews from whose religion Christianity arose, and the Roman Empire which controlled much of the land...
detailed in Foxe's Book of Martyrs
Foxe's Book of Martyrs
The Book of Martyrs, by John Foxe, more accurately Acts and Monuments, is an account from a Protestant point of view of Christian church history and martyrology...
, an early Protestant stand-by.
The strength of the account is based on the historical reputation for the eremites and other hermit
Hermit
A hermit is a person who lives, to some degree, in seclusion from society.In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Christian who lives the eremitic life out of a religious conviction, namely the Desert Theology of the Old Testament .In the...
saints of the Egyptian desert, the "Desert Fathers
Desert Fathers
The Desert Fathers were hermits, ascetics, monks, and nuns who lived mainly in the Scetes desert of Egypt beginning around the third century AD. The most well known was Anthony the Great, who moved to the desert in 270–271 and became known as both the father and founder of desert monasticism...
" of whom the most famous was Saint Anthony
Anthony the Great
Anthony the Great or Antony the Great , , also known as Saint Anthony, Anthony the Abbot, Anthony of Egypt, Anthony of the Desert, Anthony the Anchorite, Abba Antonius , and Father of All Monks, was a Christian saint from Egypt, a prominent leader among the Desert Fathers...
and the almost fanatical Christian following they inspired during the first two centuries. The first monks in the Christian tradition are known as the "Desert Fathers
Desert Fathers
The Desert Fathers were hermits, ascetics, monks, and nuns who lived mainly in the Scetes desert of Egypt beginning around the third century AD. The most well known was Anthony the Great, who moved to the desert in 270–271 and became known as both the father and founder of desert monasticism...
."
Accounts of the moral inculcated by the exemplum
Exemplum
An exemplum is a moral anecdote, brief or extended, real or fictitious, used to illustrate a point.-Exemplary literature:...
of the Theban Legion resonate with the immediate culture of each teller. The miraculous whole-hearted unanimity of the Legion, to the last individual, was downplayed by Hugo Grotius
Hugo Grotius
Hugo Grotius , also known as Huig de Groot, Hugo Grocio or Hugo de Groot, was a jurist in the Dutch Republic. With Francisco de Vitoria and Alberico Gentili he laid the foundations for international law, based on natural law...
, for whom the moral of the Theban Legion was employed to condemn atrocities committed under military orders. For Donald O'Reilly, an apologist for the historicity of the account in 1978, it was "the moral issue of organized violence".
Criticism of the account
Legio I Maximiana
The Legio I Maximiana was a comitatensis Roman legion, probably created in the year 296 or 297 by the Emperor Diocletian....
, also known as Maximiana Thebaeorum is recorded in the Notitia Dignitatum
Notitia Dignitatum
The Notitia Dignitatum is a unique document of the Roman imperial chanceries. One of the very few surviving documents of Roman government, it details the administrative organisation of the eastern and western empires, listing several thousand offices from the imperial court down to the provincial...
.
Denis Van Berchem, of the University of Geneva
University of Geneva
The University of Geneva is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland.It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin, as a theological seminary and law school. It remained focused on theology until the 17th century, when it became a center for Enlightenment scholarship. In 1873, it...
,proposed that Eucherius' presentation of the legend of the Theban legion was a literary production, not based on a local tradition; by isolating its hagiographic conventions
Trope (literature)
A literary trope is the usage of figurative language in literature, or a figure of speech in which words are used in a sense different from their literal meaning...
from the anachronisms of local narrative elements, he sought to demonstrate that Eucherius derived his formulas from Lactantius
Lactantius
Lucius Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius was an early Christian author who became an advisor to the first Christian Roman emperor, Constantine I, guiding his religious policy as it developed, and tutor to his son.-Biography:...
and Orosius and that the decimation
Decimation
Decimation may refer to:* Decimation , a form of military discipline used by officers in the Roman army for punishment* Decimation , a reduction in the number of samples...
was an anachronism
Anachronism
An anachronism—from the Greek ανά and χρόνος — is an inconsistency in some chronological arrangement, especially a chronological misplacing of persons, events, objects, or customs in regard to each other...
: the practice of decimation had not been practiced for at least a century (see Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus was a fourth-century Roman historian. He wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from Antiquity...
for Julian's misinterpretation of decimation) and that service by Christians in the legions before Emperor Constantine I
Constantine I
Constantine the Great , also known as Constantine I or Saint Constantine, was Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, Constantine and co-Emperor Licinius issued the Edict of Milan in 313, which proclaimed religious tolerance of all...
was relatively rare. David Woods, Professor of Classics at the University College Cork, alleges that the model of Maurice and the Theban Legion based on Eucherius of Lyon
Eucherius of Lyon
Saint Eucherius, bishop of Lyon, was a high-born and high-ranking ecclesiastic in the Christian Church of Gaul. He is remembered for his letters advocating extreme self-abnegation. Henry Wace ranked him "except perhaps St. Irenaeus the most distinguished occupant of that see".On the death of his...
's letter was a complete fiction.
Saints associated with the Theban legion
- MauriceSaint MauriceSaint Maurice was the leader of the legendary Roman Theban Legion in the 3rd century, and one of the favorite and most widely venerated saints of that group. He was the patron saint of several professions, locales, and kingdoms...
- Alexander of BergamoAlexander of BergamoSaint Alexander of Bergamo is the patron saint of Bergamo. Alexander may simply have been a Roman soldier or resident of Bergamo who was tortured and killed for not renouncing his Christian faith. Details of his life are uncertain, but subsequent Christian legends consider him a centurion of the...
- BessusSaint BessusSaint Bessus, sometimes Besse, is venerated as a member of the legendary Theban Legion, whose members were led by Saint Maurice and were martyred for their Christian faith in the 3rd century. Except for St. Maurice's cult, veneration for Bessus enjoyed a wider popularity than those associated...
- CandidusSaint CandidusSaint Candidus was, according to legend, a commander of the Theban Legion. The Golden Legend states: "And the noble man, Maurice, was duke of this holy legion; and they that governed under him, which bare the banners, were named Saint Candidus, Saint Innocent, Saint Exsuperius, Saint Victor, and...
- Cassius and FlorentiusBonn MinsterThe Bonn Minster is one of Germany's oldest churches, having been built between the 11th and 13th centuries. At one point the church served as the cathedral for the Archbishopric of Cologne...
- ChiaffredoChiaffredoSaint Chiaffredo is venerated as the patron saint of Saluzzo, Italy...
(Theofredus) - ConstantiusConstantius (Theban Legion)Saint Constantius is venerated as a member of the legendary Theban Legion. Similar to the cults of Saint Chiaffredo at Crissolo, Saint Bessus at Val Soana, Saint Tegulus at Ivrea, Saint Magnus at Castelmagno, and Saint Dalmatius at Borgo San Dalmazzo, the cult of Saint Constantius was linked with...
- DefendensDefendensSaint Defendens of Thebes is venerated as a martyr by the Catholic Church. Venerated as a soldier-saint, Defendens was, according to Christian tradition, a member of the Theban Legion, and thus martyred at Agaunum....
- ExuperiusExuperius (Theban Legion)Exuperius or Exupernis is venerated as a saint and martyr by the Catholic Church; according to tradition, he was the standard-bearer of the Theban Legion and thus a companion to Saint Maurice.-Veneration:...
(Exupernis) - Felix and RegulaFelix and RegulaThe saints Felix and Regula are Coptic Orthodox and Roman Catholic saints, together with their servant Exuperantius, and are the patron saints of Zürich, their feast day being 11 September at the head of the Coptic Calendar....
, the patron saints of ZürichZürichZurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich... - Fidelis of ComoFidelis of Como-Legends:Fidelis' cult is associated with Carpophorus and Exanthus, two soldier-saints. Variations on their legend are applied to Fidelis. The first says that he, with Carpophorus and Exanthus, were Roman soldiers, members of the legendary Theban Legion, who deserted during the persecution of...
- Fortunatus of Casei
- Gereon
- Magnus of CuneoMagnus of CuneoSaint Magnus of Cuneo is venerated as a member of the legendary Theban Legion. The center of his cult is situated at the mountain sanctuary known as the Santuario di San Magno, in the Valle Grana, Castelmagno, in the province of Cuneo....
- Solutor, Octavius, and AdventorSolutorSolutor, along with Octavius and Adventor , is patron saint of Turin.Historical detail regarding these martyrs is sparse; their memory is preserved because the three were mentioned in a sermon by Maximus of Turin...
- TegulusTegulusSaint Tegulus is venerated as a member of the legendary Theban Legion, whose members were led by Saint Maurice in the 3rd century. The center of Tegulus' cult is at Ivrea....
- Ursus of SolothurnUrsus of SolothurnUrsus of Solothurn was a 3rd century Roman Christian venerated as a saint. He is the patron of the main Roman Catholic Church church in Solothurn, Switzerland, where his body is located. He was associated very early with the Theban Legion and Victor of Solothurn, for instance in the Roman Martyrology...
- Victor of Xanten
- VerenaVerenaVerena is venerated as a saint by the Coptic Orthodox Church and by the Roman Catholic Church. According to tradition, she was associated with the Theban Legion and died on the 4th day of Thout ....
External links
- Catholic Encyclopedia: "Agaunum"
- BibleProbe.com: The Theban Legion
- Martyrs of the Theban Legion: in Switzerland at Agaunum, Solothurn, Zürich, Zurzach; in Italy at Bergamo, Turin, Piacenza, in the Cottian Alps, Pinerolo, Milian, Ventimilia; in Germany at Trier, Bonn, Cologne, Xanten
- David Woods, "The origin of the cult of St. Maurice" Legione Tebea (references to and images of all of the saints associated with the Theban Legion)