Church council convened by Constantine in AD 325 that established orthodox Christian doctrine and condemned Arianism.
Council of Nicaea
General and ally of Julius Caesar who formed the Second Triumvirate; later allied with Cleopatra and defeated by Octavian.
Marc Antony
Last Julio-Claudian emperor, blamed for the Great Fire of Rome and the persecution of early Christians.
Nero
"Year of the Four Emperors," a period of civil war in which four men claimed the throne in a single year.
AD 69
Roman educator and rhetorician who wrote influentially about the proper training of an orator.
Quintillian
Bishop of Alexandria who fiercely defended Trinitarian Christianity against the Arian controversy.
Athanasisus
First Roman Emperor: heir of Julius Caesar who transformed Rome from republic to empire.
Octavian/Augustus
Emperor who reorganized and stabilized the late empire, instituted the Tetrarchy, and launched the last major persecution of Christians.
Diocletian
Roman city preserved in ash after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, offering a snapshot of Roman daily life.
Pompeii
One of two elected officials who jointly held the highest executive power in the Roman Republic each year.
Consul