# Persecution of Christians in Roman Egypt Source: https://coptic-lore-forge.lovable.app/wiki/persecution-of-christians-in-roman-egypt — Coptic Orthodox Wiki (updated 2026-10-01) Christians in Roman Egypt experienced repeated persecution, especially under Decius, Valerian, and the tetrarchy, leaving a lasting legacy in church discipline, martyr veneration, and the Coptic calendar.[^1][^2][^3][^4] ## Religious and political context The persecution of Christians in Egypt was closely connected with Roman religious policy and the imperial ruler cult. Authorities sought to demonstrate political loyalty through sacrifice to the empire’s gods, often sparing Christians who complied. Large-scale persecution became a feature of imperial religious policy in the third century.[^1] ## Decius and Valerian Under Decius, between 249 and 251, an imperial decree required sacrifice and libation to the gods, with certificates known as *libelli* recording compliance. Numerous examples survive from Egypt.[^2] These ceremonies included offering incense, pouring a libation, and eating sacrificial meat before a local commission; the requirement extended even to people who already held priesthoods in traditional cults.[^6][^7] Christian responses varied. Dionysius of Alexandria described panic, confusion, and acceptance of the decree, but also resistance and martyrdom. His account names seventeen martyrs and describes Christians killed by hostile crowds or driven into the desert.[^7] Persecution resumed under Valerian in 257. Dionysius and members of the Alexandrian clergy were deported to Libya, while other Christians suffered more severe penalties. Following Valerian’s capture by the Persians in 260, Gallienus permitted Christianity to continue unmolested, a policy largely maintained until the end of the century.[^3] ## The Great Persecution The Great Persecution began in 303 under Diocletian. Successive edicts intensified repression of Christian leaders and congregations; in Egypt, the prefect Clodius Culcianus was responsible for their implementation.[^4] The persecution developed in stages. Churches in the countryside were destroyed or dismantled, and measures initially concentrated on clergy and prominent Christians. A fourth edict in 304 required universal sacrifice under threat of punishment, including death. One account emphasizes that many martyrdoms recorded by Eusebius belonged to the subsequent reign of Maximinus rather than Diocletian’s own rule.[^8] Neither Diocletian’s abdication in 305 nor Galerius’s toleration edict of 311 brought lasting relief in Egypt. Maximinus Daia continued persecution until his defeat by Licinius in 313. Peter I, bishop of Alexandria, was executed on 25 November 311, during the prefecture of Sossianus Hierocles.[^9] Licinius renewed persecution in 322–323 before his defeat by Constantine in 324. Constantine’s victory inaugurated what the source calls the “Peace of the Church.”[^10] ## Evidence and disputed details Important evidence includes Egyptian papyri and Eusebius’s *Ecclesiastical History*, which preserves letters by Dionysius of Alexandria and Phileas of Thmuis. Eusebius also reported martyrdoms that he witnessed in Egypt.[^5] The supplied sources differ over the execution date of Phileas: the martyrology entry reports 4 February 306 from the heading of his *Apologia*, whereas the persecution survey proposes 4 February 307.[^5][^11] The number of victims cannot be securely established. One entry regards approximately one million Coptic martyrs as a reasonable estimate, while another explicitly states that this figure lacks strict historical substantiation. A separate survey says reliable victim totals are unavailable and cites an estimate of 2,500–3,000 martyrs throughout the East during the Great Persecution alone; these figures therefore also differ in geographical and chronological scope.[^12][^13][^14] ## Coptic legacy Disagreements over the readmission of Christians who had sacrificed contributed to lasting divisions, including the Melitian schism in Egypt.[^1] The Coptic Era of the Martyrs commemorates persecution by beginning with Diocletian’s accession in 284, rather than the outbreak of the Great Persecution in 303.[^4] Martyr veneration flourished after persecution ended. By about 600, a network of martyrs’ sanctuaries covered Egypt, and shrines such as Abu Mina attracted pilgrims from abroad.[^15] ## Sources [^1]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 589) [^2]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 412) [^3]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 591) [^4]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 592) [^5]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 5, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 494) [^6]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 540) [^7]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 541) [^8]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 588) [^9]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 592) [^10]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 593) [^11]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 592) [^12]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 5, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 497) [^13]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 5, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 491) [^14]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 593) [^15]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 5, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 494)