Presented by the UCR History Department and the Center for Ideas and Society.

Flavia Iulia Helena Augusta, mother the emperor Constantine the Great
(306-337), started to live in Rome after her son had conquered the city in the
battle at the Milvian bridge on 28 October 312. She took up residence in the
Sessorian Palace in the south east corner of Rome. The focus in this lecture
will be on Helena’s stay in Rome as representative of the imperial house, the
connection with the city of Rome during her lifetime and the still visible
traces that remind of her sojourn in the eternal city.

Jan Willem Drijvers is professor of Ancient History (emeritus) at the University of Groningen (NL). His research
focuses on culture of leadership in the late Roman Empire, Christianization of the Roman Empire, Jewish-Christian
relations, late-antique historiography (Ammianus Marcellinus), and Latin panegyrics.

See also https://myuniversity.rug.nl/infonet/medewerkers/profiles/j.w.drijvers/