Adelfius () was a

Romano-British The Romano-British culture arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest in AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, ...

bishop, possibly from

Londinium Londinium, also known as Roman London, was the capital of Roman Britain during most of the period of Roman rule. Most twenty-first century historians think that it was originally a settlement established shortly after the Roman conquest of Brit ...

(London),

Lindum Lindum Colonia was the Roman settlement which is now the City of Lincoln in Lincolnshire. It was founded as a Roman Legionary Fortress during the reign of the Emperor Nero (58–68 AD) or possibly later. Evidence from Roman tombstones ...

(Lincoln),

Camulodunum Camulodunum ( ; ), the Roman Empire, Ancient Roman name for what is now Colchester in Essex, was an important Castra, castrum and city in Roman Britain, and the first capital of the province. A temporary "wikt:strapline, strapline" in the 1960s ...

(Colchester) or Legionensium (

Caerleon Caerleon ( ; ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable ...

), who was part of the British delegation who attended the church council held at Arles, in

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

, in AD 314.

Council of Arles (314)

The first council of Arles was the first council called by

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I * Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine g ...

, and took place in

Arelate Arles ( , , ; ; Classical ) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of Provence. A large part of the ...

in 314, a year after the

Edict of Milan The Edict of Milan (; , ''Diatagma tōn Mediolanōn'') was the February 313 agreement to treat Christians benevolently within the Roman Empire. Frend, W. H. C. (1965). ''The Early Church''. SPCK, p. 137. Western Roman Emperor Constantine I and ...

which made Christianity a legal religion."Arles, Synod of" in ''

Chambers's Encyclopædia ''Chambers's Encyclopaedia'' was founded in 1859Chambers, W. & R"Concluding Notice"in ''Chambers's Encyclopaedia''. London: W. & R. Chambers, 1868, Vol. 10, pp. v–viii. by William and Robert Chambers of Edinburgh and became one of the most ...

''. London:

George Newnes Sir George Newnes, 1st Baronet (13 March 1851 – 9 June 1910) was a British publisher and editor and a founding figure in popular journalism. Newnes also served as a Liberal Party Member of Parliament for two decades. His company, George Newne ...

, 1961, Vol. 1, p. 597. The list of those who signed the ''Acta'' – the decisions made by the Council – included three bishops from Britain, along with a

presbyter Presbyter () is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek ''presbyteros'', which means elder or senior, although many in Christian antiquity understood ''presbyteros'' to refer to the bishop functioning as overseer ...

and a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

. W. H. C. Frend in the

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

says that the presbyter and deacon were accompanying Adelfius, suggesting his was the senior see. This list only survives in later manuscript copies, the oldest and best of which (the Corbie Codex, from the 6th or 7th century) names the British bishops as: *

Eborius Eborius or Eburius (fl. 314) is the first bishop of Eboracum (the later York) known by name. Biography Eborius is only mentioned as one of the three bishops from Roman Britain attending the Council of Arles in 314. That council was convoked ...

"de civitate Eboracensi" – from the city of

Eboracum Eboracum () was a castra, fort and later a coloniae, city in the Roman province of Roman Britain, Britannia. In its prime it was the largest town in northern Britain and a provincial capital. The site remained occupied after the decline of the ...

(

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

); *

Restitutus Restitutus () was a Romano-British bishop, probably from Londinium (London), one of the British delegation who attended the church synod or Council held at Arles (Arelate), in Gaul, in AD 314. The list of those who signed the ''Acta'', the decis ...

"de civitate Londenensi" – from the city of

(London); * Adelfius "de civitate Colonia Londenensium" – that is, from the "'' colonia'' of the people of London". The Toulouse codex lists Adelfius as simply "ex civitate Colonia".

Letter to Pope Sylvester

Haddan and Stubbs note that Adelfius also appears as a signatory to a synodal letter to

Pope Sylvester I Pope Sylvester I (also Silvester, before 284 – 31 December 335) was the bishop of Rome from 31 January 314 until his death on 31 December 335. He filled the See of Rome at an important era in the history of the Western Church, though very lit ...

; however, his see is not mentioned.

Uncertainty regarding see

It has been generally agreed that the surviving copies of the ''Acta'' of the Council of Arles must be corrupt in assigning two bishops to London. Since London was not a ''colonia'' - suspicion has fallen on the place of origin of Adelfius, listed as bishop of the "''colonia'' of the people of London". Most authorities have suggested emending "Colonia Londenensium" to "Colonia Lindensium" – the ''colonia'' of the people of

(

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

). Others, including Haddan and Stubbs and the 1885

, proposed reading the location as Legionensium (

Caerleon-on-Usk Caerleon ( ; ) is a town and community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman legionary fo ...

), though Miller disputed this as this was also not a ''colonia'', and seemed an unlikely place to give rise to a bishop. S. N. Miller considered that the word "colonia" was also suspect, noting that although many other ''coloniae'' had sent bishops to Arles, including York as well as

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

and

Lyons Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

, none had been designated "colonia" in the list. Miller argued that "de civitate Colonia Londenensium" was a mistake for "de civitate Camu/lodunensium" – "the city of the people of

" (

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...

). This view was supported by archaeologist Sir

Ian Richmond Sir Ian Archibald Richmond, (10 May 1902 – 5 October 1965) was an English archaeologist and academic. He was Professor of the Archaeology of the Roman Empire at the University of Oxford. In addition, he was Director of the British School at ...

In popular culture

Adelfius is portrayed as a character in the play ''Aaron and Julia'' by Oliver Myers, set in Roman Caerleon.

Notes

References