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immediately a prayer to the cause of the victory. And by a great inscription and by monuments he proclaimed the saving sign to all men, having raised this great trophy against the enemies in the middle of the ruling city, and having expressly engraved with indelible characters this saving sign as the guardian of the Roman rule 1.40.2 and of the universal empire. Immediately, therefore, having set up a tall spear in the shape of a a cross under the hand of his own image in a statue wrought in the most public place in Rome, he commanded them to engrave this very inscription in the very words in the language of the Romans: "6By this saving sign, the true proof of courage, I have freed your "7city, rescued from the tyrannical yoke; moreover also, having freed "7the senate and the people of Rome, I have restored them to their ancient distinction and splendor."6 1.41.1 The God-beloved emperor therefore, in some such way being glorified by the confession of the victory-bringing cross, with all boldness made the Son of God known to the Romans themselves. 1.41.2 And all who inhabited the city at once, with the senate itself and the multitudes of people, as if having recovered their breath from a bitter and tyrannical rule, seemed to enjoy the light of purer rays and to partake in the rebirth of a new and fresh life. And all the nations that were bounded by the ocean towards the setting sun, having been freed from the evils that formerly held them, rejoicing with joyful festivals, continually praised the beautifully victorious, the pious, the common benefactor, and with one voice and one mouth all confessed that Constantine had shone forth as a common good for mankind by the grace of God. 1.41.3 And an imperial letter was spread everywhere, granting to those who had been deprived of their possessions the enjoyment of their own property, and recalling to their own homes those who had endured unjust exile, and it freed from bonds and from all danger and fear those who had been subjected to these things by the tyrannical cruelty. 1.42.1 And the emperor himself, summoning the ministers of God, deemed them worthy of the highest consideration, treating them with honor, showing kindness in deeds and words to the men as consecrated to his own God. Indeed, they were his table-companions, men humble indeed to be seen in the garb of their station, but not considered as such by him, because he seemed to behold not the man seen by the many, but the God honored in each. And he took them with him wherever he might make a journey, being persuaded that in this the one served by them 1.42.2 would be with him as a favorable presence. Yea, moreover, he also provided rich assistance from himself to the churches of God, on the one hand enlarging and raising to a height the houses of prayer, and on the other making splendid with very many offerings the sacred consecrated places of the church. 1.43.1 And making distributions of money of all kinds to the needy, and besides these things, he also showed himself humane and beneficent to those from outside who came to him, for certain pitiable and outcast persons begging in the marketplace, he took thought not only for money, nor indeed for necessary food, but also for decent covering for the body, and for those who were at first well-born but had become unfortunate by a change of life, he provided more lavish supplies, providing magnificent benefactions to those in such a state with a truly imperial mind; for to some 1.43.2 he gave possessions of lands, and others he honored with various dignities. And he cared for those who had suffered the misfortune of orphanhood in the place of a father, and taking upon himself the defenselessness of widowed women, he looked after them through his own care, so that he even joined in marriage to men known to him and wealthy, maidens who had been orphaned by the loss of their parents; and he did these things, giving in addition to the brides as much as was necessary 1.43.3 for the grooms to contribute for the partnership of marriage. And just as the sun rising above the earth generously imparts to all the gleams of its light, in the very same way also Constantine, at the rising of the sun, appearing from the imperial palace, as if rising together with the luminary in the heaven, to all who came into his presence

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παραχρῆμα εὐχὴν τῷ τῆς νίκης αἰτίῳ. γραφῇ τε μεγάλῃ καὶ στήλαις ἅπασιν ἀνθρώποις τὸ σωτήριον ἀνεκήρυττε σημεῖον, μέσῃ τῇ βασιλευούσῃ πόλει μέγα τρόπαιον τουτὶ κατὰ τῶν πολεμίων ἐγείρας, διαρρήδην δὲ ἀνεξαλείπτοις ἐγχαράξας τύποις σωτήριον τουτὶ σημεῖον τῆς 1.40.2 Ῥωμαίων ἀρχῆς καὶ τῆς καθόλου βασιλείας φυλακτήριον. αὐτίκα δ' οὖν ὑψηλὸν δόρυ σταυροῦ σχήματι ὑπὸ χεῖρα ἰδίας εἰκόνος ἐν ἀνδριάντι κατειργασμένης τῶν ἐπὶ Ῥώμης δεδημοσιευμένων ἐν τόπῳ στήσαντας αὐτὴν δὴ ταύτην τὴν γραφὴν ῥήμασιν αὐτοῖς ἐγχαράξαι τῇ Ῥωμαίων ἐγκελεύεται φωνῇ· "6Τούτῳ τῷ σωτηριώδει σημείῳ τῷ ἀληθεῖ ἐλέγχῳ τῆς ἀνδρείας τὴν "7πόλιν ὑμῶν ζυγοῦ τυραννικοῦ διασωθεῖσαν ἠλευθέρωσα· ἔτι μὴν καὶ τὴν "7σύγκλητον καὶ τὸν δῆμον Ῥωμαίων τῇ ἀρχαίᾳ ἐπιφανείᾳ καὶ λαμπρότητι "7ἐλευθερώσας ἀποκατέστησα."6 1.41.1 Ὁ μὲν οὖν θεοφιλὴς βασιλεὺς ὧδέ πῃ τῇ τοῦ νικοποιοῦ σταυροῦ ὁμολογίᾳ λαμπρυνόμενος σὺν παρρησίᾳ πάσῃ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ Ῥωμαίοις αὐτοῖς 1.41.2 γνώριμον ἐποίει. πάντες δ' ἀθρόως οἱ τὴν πόλιν οἰκοῦντες αὐτῇ συγκλήτῳ καὶ δήμων πλήθεσιν, ὡσανεὶ πικρᾶς καὶ τυραννικῆς ἀναπνεύσαντες δυναστείας, φωτὸς ἀπολαύειν ἐδόκουν καθαρωτέρων αὐγῶν καινοῦ τε καὶ νέου βίου παλιγγενεσίας μετέχειν. ἔθνη τε πάνθ' ὅσα ὠκεανῷ τῷ κατὰ δύοντα ἥλιον περιωρίζετο, τῶν πρὶν συνεχόντων κακῶν ἠλευθερωμένα, πανηγύρεσι φαιδραῖς εὐφραινόμενα τὸν καλλίνικον τὸν θεοσεβῆ τὸν κοινὸν εὐεργέτην ἀνυμνοῦντα διετέλει, φωνῇ τε μιᾷ καὶ ἑνὶ στόματι κοινὸν ἀγαθὸν ἀνθρώποις ἐκ θεοῦ χάριτος οἱ πάντες Κωνσταντῖνον ὡμολόγουν ἐπιλάμψαι. 1.41.3 Ἡπλοῦτο δὲ καὶ βασιλικὸν ἁπανταχοῦ γράμμα, τοῖς μὲν τὰς ὑπάρξεις ἀφαρπαγεῖσι τὴν τῶν οἰκείων ἀπόλαυσιν δωρούμενον, τοὺς δ' ἄδικον ἐξορίαν ὑπομείναντας ἐπὶ τὰς σφῶν ἀνακαλούμενον ἑστίας, ἠλευθέρου δὲ καὶ δεσμῶν παντός τε κινδύνου καὶ δέους τοὺς ὑπὸ τῆς τυραννικῆς ὠμότητος τούτοις ὑποβεβλημένους. 1.42.1 Βασιλεὺς δ' αὐτὸς τοὺς τοῦ θεοῦ λειτουργοὺς συγκαλῶν, θεραπείας αὐτοὺς διὰ τιμῆς ἄγων τῆς ἀνωτάτω ἠξίου, ἔργοις καὶ λόγοις τοὺς ἄνδρας ὡσανεὶ τῷ αὐτοῦ θεῷ καθιερωμένους φιλοφρονούμενος. ὁμοτράπεζοι δῆτα συνῆσαν αὐτῷ ἄνδρες εὐτελεῖς μὲν τῇ τοῦ σχήματος ὀφθῆναι περιβολῇ, ἀλλ' οὐ τοιοῦτοι καὶ αὐτῷ νενομισμένοι, ὅτι μὴ τὸν ὁρώμενον τοῖς πολλοῖς ἄνθρωπον τὸν δ' ἐν ἑκάστῳ τιμώμενον ἐποπτεύειν ἐδόκει θεόν. ἐπήγετο δ' αὐτοὺς καὶ ὅποι ποτὲ στέλλοιτο πορείαν, κἀν τούτῳ τὸν θεραπευόμενον πρὸς αὐτῶν 1.42.2 δεξιὸν αὐτῷ παρεῖναι πειθόμενος. ναὶ μὴν καὶ ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις τοῦ θεοῦ πλουσίας τὰς παρ' ἑαυτοῦ παρεῖχεν ἐπικουρίας, ἐπαύξων μὲν καὶ εἰς ὕψος αἴρων τοὺς εὐκτηρίους οἴκους, πλείστοις δ' ἀναθήμασι τὰ σεμνὰ τῶν τῆς ἐκκλησίας καθηγιασμένων φαιδρύνων. 1.43.1 Παντοίας τε χρημάτων διαδόσεις τοῖς ἐνδεέσι ποιούμενος, τούτων δ' ἐκτὸς καὶ τοῖς ἔξωθεν αὐτῷ προσιοῦσι φιλάνθρωπον καὶ εὐεργετικὸν παρέχων ἑαυτόν, τοῖς μὲν ἐπ' ἀγορᾶς μεταιτοῦσιν οἰκτροῖς τισι καὶ ἀπερριμμένοις οὐ χρημάτων μόνον οὐδέ γε τῆς ἀναγκαίας τροφῆς ἀλλὰ καὶ σκέπης εὐσχήμονος τοῦ σώματος προὐνόει, τοῖς δ' εὖ μὲν τὰ πρῶτα γεγονόσι βίου δὲ μεταβολῇ δυστυχήσασι δαψιλεστέρας παρεῖχε τὰς χορηγίας, βασιλικῷ γέ τοι φρονήματι μεγαλοπρεπεῖς τὰς εὐποιίας τοῖς οὕτως ἔχουσι παρέχων· τοῖς μὲν 1.43.2 γὰρ ἀγρῶν κτήσεις ἐδωρεῖτο, τοὺς δὲ διαφόροις ἀξιώμασιν ἐτίμα. καὶ τῶν μὲν ὀρφανίαν δυστυχησάντων ἐν πατρὸς ἐπεμέλετο χώρᾳ, γυναικῶν δὲ χηρῶν τὸ ἀπερίστατον ἀνακτώμενος δι' οἰκείας ἐτημέλει κηδεμονίας, ὥστ' ἤδη καὶ γάμοις ζευγνύναι γνωρίμοις αὐτῷ καὶ πλουσίοις ἀνδράσι κόρας ἐρημίᾳ γονέων ὀρφανισθείσας· καὶ ταῦτ' ἔπραττε προσδιδοὺς ταῖς γαμουμέναις ὅσα ἐχρῆν 1.43.3 τοῖς λαμβάνουσι πρὸς γάμου κοινωνίαν εἰσφέρειν. ὥσπερ δ' ἀνίσχων ὑπὲρ γῆς ἥλιος ἀφθόνως τοῖς πᾶσι τῶν τοῦ φωτὸς μεταδίδωσι μαρμαρυγῶν, κατὰ τὰ αὐτὰ δὴ καὶ Κωνσταντῖνος ἅμα ἡλίῳ ἀνίσχοντι τῶν βασιλικῶν οἴκων προφαινόμενος, ὡσανεὶ συνανατέλλων τῷ κατ' οὐρανὸν φωστῆρι, τοῖς εἰς πρόσωπον αὐτῷ παριοῦσιν ἅπασι