E01270: Sozomen, in his Ecclesiastical History, mentions *Martin (ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397, S00050) and *Hilary (bishop of Poitiers, ob. 367, S00183) as the most prominent ascetic figures of 'Europe' in the late 4th century. Written in Greek at Constantinople, 439/450.

Sozomen, Ecclesiastical History, 3.14. 38-41

(38) Θρᾷκες δὲ καὶ Ἰλλυριοὶ καὶ ὅσοι τὴν καλουμένην Εὐρώπην οἰκοῦσιν, εἰ καὶ ἀπείρατοι ἔτι μοναχικῶν συνοικιῶν ἦσαν, ἀλλ’ οὐ παντελῶς φιλοσόφων ἀνδρῶν ἠτύχουν. ἐγνωρίζετο δὲ τότε παρ’ αὐτοῖς Μαρτῖνος, ὃς ἀπὸ Σαβαρείας τῆς Παννονίας ἐπίσημος ἦν τὸ γένος, ἐν ὅπλοις δὲ λαμπρῶς στρατευσάμενος καὶ συνταγματάρχης ἐγένετο. προτιμήσας δὲ τὸ θεῖον τὸν φιλόσοφον μετῄει βίον. (39) διέτριβε δὲ τὰ πρῶτα παρ’ Ἰλλυριοῖς· ἐπεὶ δὲ προθύμως ὑπὲρ τοῦ δόγματος ἀγωνιζόμενός τινας τῶν ἐνθάδε ἐπισκόπων ἐφώρασε τὰ Ἀρείου φρονοῦντας, ἐπιβουλευθεὶς καὶ πολλάκις δημοσίᾳ τυπτηθεὶς ἐξηλάθη, καὶ εἰς Μεδιόλανον ἐλθὼν καθ’ ἑαυτὸν διέτριβεν. ὑπεχώρησε δὲ ἔνθεν ἐπιβουλευόμενος παρὰ Αὐξεντίου τοῦ τῇδε ἐπισκόπου, οὐδὲ αὐτοῦ ὑγιῶς ἔχοντος περὶ τὴν πίστιν τῶν ἐν Νικαίᾳ συνελθόντων. (40) καὶ ἐπί τινα χρόνον ῥίζαις βοτανῶν ἀρκούμενος νῆσον ᾤκησεν ἣν Γαλληναρίαν καλοῦσι· μικρὰ δὲ αὕτη καὶ ἀοίκητος, ἐν τῷ Τυρρηνικῷ πελάγει κειμένη. χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον καὶ ἐπισκοπεῖν ἐπετράπη τὴν ἐν Ταρρακίναις ἐκκλησίαν. ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον δὲ θαυματουργίας προελθεῖν παραδέδοται, ὡς καὶ νεκρὸν ἐγεῖραι πιστεύεσθαι ἄλλα τε σημεῖα ἐπιτελέσαι ἀποστολικῶν οὐ λειπόμενα. (41) Κατὰ τόδε τὸ ὑπήκοον ἐν τῷ τότε καὶ Ἱλάριον γενέσθαι παρειλήφαμεν, ἄνδρα βίῳ καὶ λόγῳ θεσπέσιον, ὃς Μαρτίνῳ τῆς φυγῆς ἐκοινώνησε διὰ τὴν περὶ τὸ δόγμα σπουδήν.

‘(38) Even though the Thracians, Illyrians, and those inhabiting the land called Europe still had no experience of monastic communities, they were not completely deprived of ascetic men. At that time, a famous man in their lands was Martin who was of prominent lineage from Savaria in Pannonia. He had a brilliant career in the army, and became a tribune. Yet he was more inclined to religion and converted to ascetic life. (39) He first lived in Illyricum, but because, in his eager struggle for orthodoxy, he revealed many of the local bishops as being followers of the Arian creed, he was assaulted, publicly flogged several times, and exiled. He then went to Mediolanum [Milan] and lived on his own, but he left that place as well, because of the hostility of the local bishop, Auxentius, whose disposition towards the faith of the Fathers of Nicaea was not sound either. (40) For some time he lived eating only roots of herbs, on an island called Gallenaria. This is a small uninhabited island in the Tyrrhenian Sea. After some time, he was ordained as bishop of the church in Tarrakinai [for Tours]. Tradition has it that he reached such a great level of miracle working that he is even believed to have raised a dead man, and to have performed other wonders by no means inferior to those of the Apostles. (41) In the same region, during that period, we hear also about Hilary, a divine man both in living and words, who joined Martin in exile on account of his struggle for orthodoxy.'

Text: Bidez and Hansen 1995. Translation: E. Rizos.