E06600: The Greek Martyrdom of *Adrianos and Natalia (martyr of Nicomedia and his pious wife, S01342) recounts the trial and execution in Nicomedia (north-west Asia Minor) of Adrianos, a convert to Christianity, the support given him by his Christian wife Natalia, the translation of his and his companions' relics to the shrine of Argyropolis near Byzantion, and Natalia's final journey to the shrine and her death there. Probably written in Constantinople at some point in the 5th-7th centuries.
Creators: name: Dlambert
Publisher: name: University of Oxford
Year: 2018
Subjects: History

description: Martyrdom of Adrianos and Natalia (BHG 27)<br><br>Summary:<br><br>§ 1: During the second 'tour' (περίοδος) of the emperor Maximianos, he comes to Nicomedia and the city is filled with animal sacrifices, while the emperor's agents scour the city and the regiones [ῥεγεῶνες, estates outside the city] for Christians in order to deliver them to the provincial governor. Many inform on their fellow citizens.<br><br>§§ 2-5: A group of Christians is found and arrested while singing psalms in a cave; they mock the emperor's edict compelling all to sacrifice, and are tortured. They are then led to the prison. <br><br>§§ 6-7: Adrianos, a leading official [lit. τις τῶν ἡγουμένων τῆς τάξεως], questions the saints (ἅγιοι) about their faith and is himself converted and declares himself publicly a Christian, causing the enraged emperor to have him imprisoned together with the others to await trial. <br><br>§§ 8-12: Upon being informed of these events, Natalia, the wife of Adrianos, who is herself secretly a Christian, is filled with joy and runs to congratulate her husband for his discovery of the faith; he then sends her home to await his trial and execution. Natalia leaves after kissing the saints' fetters and speaking words of encouragement to her husband. <br><br>§§ 13-15: When the day of the trial draws nigh, Adrianos bribes the prison guards in order to go home and fetch his wife, leaving the company of the saints as guarantors for his return; but he is seen on the road by servants who mistakenly report to Natalia that he has been released. Thinking that her husband has renounced the cause, Natalia is grieved and, when Adrianos arrives, she rebukes him harshly and refuses to let him in, disbelieving his explanations. <br><br>§§ 16-17: At length Adrianos manages to convince Natalia and praises her for her virtue. They then depart together in harmony for the prison, where Natalia stays with them for seven days, treating and bandaging the wounds of the saints. <br><br>§ 18: On the day of the trial, guards arrive and transport the saints to the courthouse. The emperor orders them to be brought in for interrogation and torture, but the presiding official (ὁ ἐπιτεταγμένος τὰς δίκας) convinces him that the others are not in a condition to suffer more torture and would merely expire at once; Adrianos, however, is in perfect shape to be interrogated.<br><br>§§ 19-21: The emperor duly orders him to be brought in, while the other saints and Natalia speak to him words of encouragement. The emperor then tries to convince Adrianos to renounce his 'folly', but the martyr remains firm; he is then beaten with wooden sticks. <br><br>§§ 22-24: In the meantime, Natalia constantly informs the imprisoned saints about the events taking place in the courthouse. The emperor again attempts to win Adrianos over, but in vain; the martyr is then beaten in the stomach by four men until his insides fall out. The emperor offers to have him treated by physicians, but the martyr's resolve does not falter. The saints are then sent back to the prison to await further proceedings. <br><br>§§ 25-27: Adrianos is badly bruised and asks for the others to pray for him. The saints' wounds are treated by Natalia and other noblewomen, female deacons. When the emperor forbids any women to visit them, Natalia shaves her head, dresses as a man and continues to visit the prison. She begs her husband to ask God to take her with him, so that she may escape being married off by the tyrant to a pagan after his passing. <br><br>§§ 28-29: Other women follow her in dressing as men in order to administer to the saints. The emperor, upon learning of this and that the saints are near death, orders their legs to be broken by iron bars upon bronze anvils rather than allowing them to die on their own. Natalia requests that they begin with her husband, lest he lose heart; after his legs are cut off, she asks him to extend his hand and places it too on the anvil for the executioners to cut off. Adrianos surrenders his spirit to the Lord. <br><br>§ 30: The other saints are killed in the same manner, and the emperor orders their bodies to be burnt in a furnace so that they may not be worshipped by the Christians. Natalia, however, takes with her the hand of Adrianos, and anoints herself with the blood dripping from the bodies as they are carried to the furnace; other women as well collect the blood with purple cloth and other valuable fabrics, and even purchase later the bloodstained garments of the executioners. Natalia and the other women stand near the furnace and beseech the martyrs to remember them. <br><br>§ 31: When the bodies have been thrown into the furnace, the fire is suddenly put out by a thunderstorm accompanied by an earthquake. Some of the executioners flee, while others fall down and die. <br><br>§ 32: The women seize their chance to recover the bodies of the martyrs, which are found miraculously unharmed by the fire. A man named Eusebios and his wife approach them, explaining that they used to live outside the city but left for Byzantion due to the prevailing godlessness. They request to be allowed to take away in a ship the relics and deposit them in their land for safekeeping until the death of the persecutor, after which they could be buried with the proper ceremonial. <br><br>§ 33: The request is duly granted and the relics are taken away to Byzantion, but Natalia keeps the hand of Adrianos just in case the security of the other relics should be compromised; secretly, she wraps the hand in a purple cloth doused with myrrh, and hides it in her pillow. After a while a tribune (χιλίαρχος, lit. 'chiliarch') petitions the emperor to marry her, seeing as she is at once beautiful, noble and rich, and approaches her through certain familiar women. Natalia pretends to acquiesce and asks for three months' time, ostensibly in order to prepare for the wedding, but in reality planning to make her escape and travel to where the the relics are located. <br><br>§§ 34-35: She pleads with God to rescue her from the suitor, and one of her husband's companion saints appears to her in a dream, revealing that Adrianos too was accepted by God and summons her to journey to the location of the relics. Taking up company with a band of others also fleeing the tyrant, Natalia makes the sea voyage taking nothing with her save the hand of Adrianos. <br><br>§ 36: The tribune, learning of her flight, gives chase accompanied by many soldiers, but a contrary wind and waves force them back. Next, a demonic apparition in the form of a ship with an experienced crew tries to lure Natalia and her companions to their doom in the open sea by insisting that they are off course and should make a leftward turn. <br><br>§ 37: Even as the pilgrims attempt to change their course, Adrianos himself appears, warning them of the devil's ruse; at once the phantom ship disappears. A favourable wind leads them to their destination, and before dawn they arrive at Argyropolis opposite Byzantion [i.e. on the northern side of the Golden Horn, at modern Fındıklı/Gümüşsuyu]. After landing, Natalia venerates the relics, laying Adrianos' hand to rest next to his body, and prays.<br><br>§ 38: By now weary of her toils, Natalia sees Adrianos in a dream summoning her to God, and surrenders her spirit. Her companions bury her close to the martyrs and, after praying, seal the domed structure (τὸ τρουλοειδὲς ἐκεῖνο οἴκημα). <br><br>§ 39: Many men and women remain there, having renounced the world, and serve God in fasting and prayer. The martyrdom of the saints took place on 26 August.<br><br>Text: AASS, Sept. III, 218-230. <br>Summary: Nikolaos Kälviäinen.