At the beginning of September we went to York, we being a group of friends with tickets to see the Mavericks; however, much as we love the band and were looking forward to the gig, we were also looking forward to being together as we always seem to have fun and some interesting experiences.
As we wandered round the lovely city we, of course, went past the minster; outside was a stature of Constantine, the first Christian Roman emperor who was proclaimed Emperor in York in 306AD. At this time, York, known as Eboracum, was an important city for the Romans, it was a legionary headquarters, founded in about 71AD when the ninth legion arrived here from Lincoln. In 1998 the sculptor Philip Jackson created this wonderful work which was sited near York Minster.
I knew that Constantine was the first Christian emperor, however I didn’t realise that there is no actual evidence that he was Christian! Certainly he supported Christianity in its form at the time. He had come to Britain with his father, the emperor Constantius who died in York; at the time supposedly another Caesar should become emperor, however the army in York immediately proclaimed Constantine their leader. He united the Roman Empire and restored stability and security… there is no doubt why he was known as Constantine the Great.
As a mark of the times, my friend and I took a selfie beside him!
Lois Elsden 