The Hieromartyrs of Cherson were a group of early 4th-century bishops who were martyred in Cherson, at the time in the

Bosporan Kingdom The Bosporan Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of the Cimmerian Bosporus (, ''Vasíleio toú Kimmerikoú Vospórou''), was an ancient Greco-Scythian state located in eastern Crimea and the Taman Peninsula on the shores of the Cimmerian Bosporus, ...

in Taurica (Crimea) under the Roman client king

Tiberius Julius Rhadamsades Rhadamsades ( el, Τιβέριος Ἰούλιος Ραδαμσάδης, translit=Tiberios Ioulios Radamsades), also known as Radamsad, Rhadamsadius or Rhadampsadius, was the king of the Bosporan Kingdom, a Roman client state, from 309 to 322. Fo ...

, during the

Diocletian persecution The Diocletianic or Great Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. In 303, the emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding Christians' legal rights ...

(303–313). They are commemorated on March 7. The group consists of seven saints. They were not killed on one occasion, but in succession, as they were sent to Crimea by Hermon, the 38th bishop of Jerusalem (r. c. 302–314).Who is Who in the Early Jerusalem Church
The first two were Basil and Ephraim (''Ephrem''). After they were killed, they were followed by Eugene, Elpidius, and Agathodorus, who were in turn replaced by Aetherius (''Etherius'') and Capiton (''Capito''). Capiton was killed, but Aetherius avoided martyrdom, as

Constantine the Great Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterran ...

placed him under his protection. Aetherius travelled to Constantinople to thank the emperor, and he died from illness on the return journey. Also associated with the group are saints Nestor and Arcadius, who were possibly martyred in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

References

{{reflist

External links

orthodoxwiki.org
Hieromartyrs 4th-century bishops 4th-century Christian martyrs People of the Bosporan Kingdom Christians martyred during the reign of Diocletian