The Nicene Age · AD 313–400
Auxentius of Milan
d. AD 374 · Arian bishop of Milan for twenty years · Cappadocia → Milan
The Nicene Age
Who Auxentius of Milan was
The Cappadocian ordained by Gregory the intruder of Alexandria, installed at Milan in 355 when Constantius drove Dionysius into exile — and immovable there for nineteen years, through synodical condemnation by Damasus's Rome and Hilary's pamphlet war, protected by an emperor's favour and a diplomat's creed. His death in 374 opened the election that produced, to everyone's astonishment, Ambrose: the West's Arian generation ended by a governor sent to keep order at its funeral.
Also listed in bishops beyond the great sees and heretics & schismatics.
Common questions
When did Auxentius die?
Auxentius of Milan is dated d. AD 374 in the archive, which places Auxentius in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400).
Which early sources mention Auxentius?
Auxentius of Milan is named in 3 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Athanasius of Alexandria, Hilary of Poitiers and Paulinus of Milan. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Auxentius from?
The archive associates Auxentius of Milan with Cappadocia, Milan. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Auxentius’ contemporaries?
The archive links Auxentius of Milan to 3 other figures, including Ambrose of Milan, Hilary of Poitiers and Auxentius of Durostorum. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (3)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
History of the Arians 75 (numbered among the party's placemen)
c. AD 358Against Auxentius
c. AD 360One thing I warn you of: beware of Antichrist… Auxentius holds the church, but the church of Christ is not in walls but wherever the truth is confessed — he possesses the basilica; the faith he does not possess.Hilary of Poitiers · source text
Life of Ambrose 6 (the see Ambrose inherited from him)
c. AD 422Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 306 · The Council of Elvira, AD 306
- AD 311 · Galerius’ edict of Serdica, AD 311
- AD 313 · The Edict of Milan, AD 313
- AD 314 · The Council of Arles, AD 314
- AD 320 · Silvanus tried before Zenophilus, AD 320
- AD 325 · The Council of Nicaea, AD 325
- AD 339 · The persecution of Shapur II, AD 339
- AD 343 · The Council of Serdica, AD 343
- AD 361 · Julian’s pagan restoration, AD 361
- AD 366 · Damasus and the catacomb epigrams, AD 366
- AD 367 · Athanasius lists the 27 NT books, AD 367
- AD 372 · The martyrdom of Sabbas the Goth, AD 372
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Auxentius, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.
- 1Cappadociaprovince only
- 2Milan