Victorian, Frumentius and Companions
Encyclopedia
Saints Victorian, Frumentius and Companions are venerated as Christian martyrs
of the Roman Catholic Church
. They were killed at Adrumetum in 484 by the Arian
Vandals
. Accounts of their martyrdom state that Huneric
, King of the Vandals, began persecuting Catholic priests and virgins in 480, and by 484 began persecuting simple believers as well. Victorian was a wealthy Catholic of Adrumetum who had been appointed proconsul
by Hunneric. He served as an obedient administrator to the king until he was asked to convert to Arianism. Victorian refused and was torture
d and killed.
The Roman Martyrology
states that four other wealthy merchants were martyred on the same day as Victorian's death. Two were named Frumentius; they were merchant
s of Carthage
. The other two were brothers of the city of Aquae Regiae
, Byzacena
, who were killed at Tabaia.
Christian martyrs
A Christian martyr is one who is killed for following Christianity, through stoning, crucifixion, burning at the stake or other forms of torture and capital punishment. The word "martyr" comes from the Greek word μάρτυς, mártys, which means "witness."...
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. They were killed at Adrumetum in 484 by the Arian
Arianism
Arianism is the theological teaching attributed to Arius , a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt, concerning the relationship of the entities of the Trinity and the precise nature of the Son of God as being a subordinate entity to God the Father...
Vandals
Vandals
The Vandals were an East Germanic tribe that entered the late Roman Empire during the 5th century. The Vandals under king Genseric entered Africa in 429 and by 439 established a kingdom which included the Roman Africa province, besides the islands of Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia and the Balearics....
. Accounts of their martyrdom state that Huneric
Huneric
Huneric or Honeric was King of the Vandals and the oldest son of Genseric. He dropped the imperial politics of his father and concentrated mainly on internal affairs. He was married to Eudocia, daughter of western Roman Emperor Valentinian III and Licinia Eudoxia. She left him, probably in 472...
, King of the Vandals, began persecuting Catholic priests and virgins in 480, and by 484 began persecuting simple believers as well. Victorian was a wealthy Catholic of Adrumetum who had been appointed proconsul
Proconsul
A proconsul was a governor of a province in the Roman Republic appointed for one year by the senate. In modern usage, the title has been used for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a...
by Hunneric. He served as an obedient administrator to the king until he was asked to convert to Arianism. Victorian refused and was torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
d and killed.
The Roman Martyrology
Roman Martyrology
The Roman Martyrology is the official martyrology of the Roman Rite of the Roman Catholic Church. It provides an extensive but not exhaustive list of the saints recognized by the Church.-History:...
states that four other wealthy merchants were martyred on the same day as Victorian's death. Two were named Frumentius; they were merchant
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
s of Carthage
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
. The other two were brothers of the city of Aquae Regiae
Aquae Regiae
The Diocese of Aquae Regiae is a Titular See of present-day Tunisia in the Roman Catholic Church. The first Titular Bishop was appointed to this See on 17 March 1964. In Latin the diocese is known as Aquaregiensis. It is situated in the old Roman province of Byzacena....
, Byzacena
Byzacena
Byzacena was a Roman province in what is now Tunisia.At the end of the third century AD, the Emperor Diocletian divided the great Roman province of Africa Proconsularis into three smaller provinces: Zeugitana in the north, still governed by a proconsul and referred to as Proconsularis, Byzacena,...
, who were killed at Tabaia.