Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus (c. 272-337), or Constantine the Great, was Emperor of Rome from 306 to 337. During the reign of Constantine, the persecution of Christians ceased and the Emperor himself eventually converted to Christianity. As a great leader, warrior, and diplomat, Constantine revolutionized Roman life through his spirit of tolerance for religion, and by overhauling the monetary system of the vast empire.
Constantine was part of a tetrarchy, a Roman Empire divided into four parts, and was in charge of Britain, Gaul, and Spain. The Emperor was particularly disdainful of the people who lived outside the empire, known as barbarians or heathens, and spent much of his time fighting the Germanic tribes along the Rhine River. When Rome conquered the Germanic Alemanni tribe, Constantine had a coin minted that showed an image of his weeping enemy with the words, “Romans’ Rejoicing.” Coins in Rome were used as both currency and an early form of marketing and advertising; the coins were a way of promoting and promulgating one’s reputation and authority.
In 308, Constantine was demoted to Caesar but refused to accept the lesser title. Constantine continued to mint coins that portrayed him as Augustus (or Emperor), even as his detractors minted coins calling him Caesar. Constantine was able to retain the title of emperor even in the face of rebellion, and by 310, Constantine was again the Emperor of the Roman Empire.
In 312, Constantine and fellow Emperor Lucinius developed the Edict of Milan, which allowed Christians to worship openly and without persecution. This monumental shift in Roman policy also allowed for the return of Christian worship to places that had been previously banned. Previously, Christians were frequently the target of stoning, robbery, ridicule, and even murder — all because of their religious beliefs.
Constantine was known for his monetary reforms that helped to curb runaway inflation in the third century. By minting large quantities of gold coins, the solidus, Constantine was able to give the Roman Empire a more stable economy. To further his coin minting endeavor, The Emperor declared that all pagan statues were state property, and the statues were melted down to make new coins for Constantine’s Roman Empire.
In 313, Constantine minted a coin that showed himself in profile along with Sol Invictus, the Roman sun god. The imagery on this coin appealed to both the Roman worshippers of Apollo, as well as to Christians who found the monotheistic worshipers of the sun to be less offensive than traditional, pagan, pantheists. The minting of this particular coin also shows the shift from paganism to Christianity, as previously Constantine’s coins had shown his alliance with the Roman god of war, Mars.
Even after Constantine converted to Christianity, there were few coins minted with overt Christian symbols. The Chi-Rho symbol was sometimes included on coins as the Greek monogram of Jesus Christ. Until the end of Constantine’s rule, most of the coins remained, almost like early advertisements of the power and greatness of the Roman Empire, and of its leaders.
So while one could say that Constantine the Great turned the Roman Empire upside down, one could also say that he was a shrewd and progressive leader who changed his empire for the better.