The Ante-Nicene Church · AD 180–313
Basilides the Soldier
d. c. 202 · Soldier convert · Martyr of Alexandria · Alexandria
The Ante-Nicene Church
Who Basilides the Soldier was
The soldier detailed to lead Potamiaena to execution, who protected her from the crowd and heard her promise to intercede for him. Days later he refused a routine oath, declared himself a Christian, and told his astonished comrades that Potamiaena had appeared to him by night and placed a crown upon his head. Baptized in prison, he was beheaded the next day — the escort converted by the prisoner. Distinguished, emphatically, from the Gnostic teacher of the same city and name.
Eusebius VI.5 only; Palladius retells Potamiaena without naming him.
Also listed in martyrs.
Common questions
When did Basilides die?
Basilides the Soldier is dated d. c. 202 in the archive, which places Basilides in the Ante-Nicene Church (AD 180–313). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Basilides?
Basilides the Soldier is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from Eusebius of Caesarea. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Basilides from?
The archive associates Basilides the Soldier with Alexandria.
Who were Basilides’ contemporaries?
The archive links Basilides the Soldier to 3 other figures, including Potamiaena of Alexandria, Origen of Alexandria and Marcella of Alexandria. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (1)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Ecclesiastical History VI.5
c. AD 325For Basilides, having led the celebrated Potamiaena to execution… not long after, being asked by his fellow-soldiers to swear, declared that it was not lawful for him to swear at all, for he was a Christian.Eusebius of Caesarea · VI.5 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 135 · Bar Kokhba crushed; Aelia Capitolina, AD 135
- AD 144 · Marcion expelled at Rome, AD 144
- AD 156 · The New Prophecy erupts, AD 156
- AD 177 · Persecution at Lyon and Vienne, AD 177
- AD 180 · The Scillitan martyrs, AD 180
- AD 190 · The Quartodeciman controversy, AD 190
- AD 202 · Perpetua and Felicity martyred, AD 202
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Basilides.