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and having allotted the eastern portion to Galerius Maximinus along with Illyricum, and having assigned the western parts with Africa to Constantius Chlorus. When these things had happened thus, the soldiers, who were called Praetorians, proclaimed Maxentius, the son of Maximian Herculius, emperor in Rome. Now of these three, Constantius, ruling in the Britains and the Cottian Alps and the Gauls, behaved very graciously toward those who worshipped Christ, and indeed toward all those under him, and he happened to be a despiser of money. But Maximinus, ruling the East, both stirred up a most grievous persecution against Christians and behaved most harshly toward his other subjects. For being most woman-crazy and most adulterous, he not only took common women upon hearing of them and committed adultery with them, but also tore the wives of distinguished men by force from their husbands, and after violating them, sent them back to their own spouses. And he was so devoted to divinations as to do not even the slightest thing without them, and those who performed the secret rites were held in honor by him. This man condemned the 3.165 pious to utter destruction, and decreed that their property be confiscated, bringing no other charge against the innocent than the knowledge of God and faith in Christ. And Maxentius in Rome happened to be no more moderate a tyrant to his subjects, but administered his rule on an equal footing with Maximinus, he too raging against the Christians under his hand, and subjecting them to all kinds of torments, and being most bitterly disposed towards all those under him. For he was causing the slaughters of many distinguished men without any just trial, and daily he dared adulteries with noble women and the defilement of virgins, treating them most shamelessly, and he inflicted unjust confiscations of property on the wealthy, and oppressed his subjects with new and heavy taxes. This man in Rome, having conceived a licentious passion for a certain most noble, but indeed also chaste woman, living with a husband who was one of the distinguished men in Rome, sent those who served him in such matters to bring the woman. But when she recognized the procurers arriving at her house, and had learned the reason for their visit, and perceived that her departure to the tyrant was inevitable (for her husband, cowering in fear of death, allowed them to take his wife and lead her away), and as there was no help for her from any other quarter, she asked that a short hour be granted her, so that she might adorn herself and thus depart with them. And the woman also worshipped Christ and had been initiated into the divine mystery. She therefore entered her own little bedchamb3.166er, and having been left alone, she did away with herself, so that she might remain inviolate and not surrender her chastity, choosing a voluntary death, and leaving her dead body to the procurers and to her accursed lover. So they ruled thus, while Diocletian and Maximian died as private citizens. But concerning their death the writers disagree. For Eusebius in the eighth book of the Ecclesiastical History says that Diocletian suffered a madness of mind and, his body having been emaciated by a chronic illness, violently belched forth his wretched soul, and that Maximian Herculius took himself from life by a noose; but others do not relate that they died thus, but that, having repented and planning to take up the rule again, they were discovered and were executed by a decree of the senate. And there are also those who say that Herculius, desiring the imperial power again, communicated to Diocletian the idea of trying again to take back the empire; but that he refused. And that he, having gone before the Roman senate, said that his son was not sufficient for the administration of public affairs. But when the soldiers were moved to anger at his speech, as if he were usurping the rule, Herculius, fearing the danger, said that he did not hold this opinion, but was making a test of the troops, as to what their disposition was toward his son,