The Ante-Nicene Church · AD 180–313
Caius (Gaius) of Rome
d. c. 296 · Bishop of Rome · Rome
The Ante-Nicene Church
Who Caius (Gaius) of Rome was
Bishop of Rome (283–296) through the long final peace before the Great Persecution, a contemporary Eusebius mentions with a note of personal nearness (“Gaius, our contemporary”). Tradition made him a kinsman of Diocletian and a martyr, but the early evidence gives only a fifteen-year episcopate spanning the church’s last quiet generation. He was buried in the Catacomb of Callistus with the epitaph of a bishop; his death fell seven years before Diocletian’s edicts fell.
Also listed in the bishops of Rome.
Common questions
When did Caius die?
Caius (Gaius) of Rome is dated d. c. 296 in the archive, which places Caius 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 Caius?
Caius (Gaius) of Rome is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Eusebius of Caesarea and The chronographer of 354. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Caius from?
The archive associates Caius (Gaius) of Rome with Rome.
Who were Caius’ contemporaries?
The archive links Caius (Gaius) of Rome to 1 other figure, including Eutychian of Rome. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (2)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Ecclesiastical History VII.32
c. AD 325Gaius, our contemporary, received the episcopate of Rome, and having held it about fifteen years was in turn succeeded by Marcellinus.Eusebius of Caesarea · VII.32 · source text
Depositio episcoporum: 'Gai in Callisti'
c. AD 354X Kal. Mai.: Gai in Callisti — Gaius, in the cemetery of Callistus.The chronographer of 354 · Depositio episcoporum · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 235 · Maximinus Thrax targets the clergy, AD 235
- AD 250 · The Decian persecution, AD 250
- AD 251 · The Novatianist schism, AD 251
- AD 257 · The Valerian persecution, AD 257
- AD 260 · Gallienus’ edict of toleration, AD 260
- AD 268 · Antioch deposes Paul of Samosata, AD 268
- AD 272 · Aurelian awards the Antioch church, AD 272
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Caius.
- 1Rome