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===Background===
After the Third Century Crisis, the Roman Empire had been stabilized by a series of Illyrian Emperors. Christianity at this time had been growing more popular especially in the urban areas of the Empire, despite periodic bouts of persecution. At the time of Constantine’s birth, the empire was experiencing something of a revival under the system known as the Tetrarchy established by Diocletian. During this emperor’s reign, there was a prolonged persecution of the Christians. The Tetrarchy involved several co-Emperor’s cooperating in the administration of the far-flung Empire and in the defence of its long borders.</ref> Cameron, A. <i>The later Roman Empire, AD 284-430</i> (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. 1993), p 56</ref> This system after the death of Diocletian’s main heir, Galerius, collapsed. The co-emperors who had under the Diocletian system worked together, now fought each other for supreme power and there was a civil war throughout the Empire.
Constantine’s father had been one of the co-emperors. He had succeeded his father and was the de-facto ruler of much of western Europe. When Maxentius deposed the co-emperor in Italy, Constantine saw an opportunity to gain new territories. The Christian bishop Eusebius of Caesarea claimed that Constantine wanted to save Rome from a tyranny.<ref> Eusebius, xviiii</ref> Constantine had advanced quickly from his base in France but his army was significantly smaller than his enemy’s. He approached Rome and camped his army before the Milvian Bridge in 312 AD.<ref>Cameron, p 113</ref> Then according to Christian accounts, he had a dream or vision. The traditional account states that Constantine saw a Christian emblem in the sky. He saw this as a portent and this that led him to order his legionnaires to mark their shields with the Christian sign, the Chi Rho, similar to a cross. Lacentius relates how According to the Roman writer Lacentius Constantine ‘had marked on their shields the letter Χ, with a perpendicular line drawn through it and turned round thus at the top, being the cipher of CHRIST. <ref> Lactantius, De Mortibus Persecutorum Chapter XLIV </ref>
[[File: Constantine Chiaramonti Inv1749.jpg|300px|thumbnail|left|A bust of Constantine]]
If Constantine did have a conversion experience before the Milvian Bridge then he would have championed the Church in the years after it. The relationship of Constantine to the Church is essential if we are to understand if he had a genuine conversion experience in 312 AD. He began immediately to favor the Christians after his victory over Maxentius. In 313 AD he reached an agreement with the Emperor in the Licinius, that ended the persecution in the eastern half of the Empire.<ref> Drake, H.A., "The Impact of Constantine on Christianity", in Lenski, N (ed.), <i>The Cambridge Companion to the Age of Constantine</i>, Cambridge, 2006: 111-136 </ref>
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Constantine, after 312 AD began to favor the Christian clergy and he began a large scale Church building program in Rome and elsewhere in his empire. He built Basilicas and churches, especially in Rome. Constantine promoted many Christians to important positions in his army and they were very influential at his court as advisors <ref>Drake, 2006, p. 121</ref>. These could be interpreted as the actions of a new convert, who was eager to demonstrate his faith. However, there was much about Constantine that was not Christian and he was noticeably war-like, while most Christians at the time were pacifists. The Church was elevated to a position of influence but it was clearly under the control of Constantine.
===References===
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