Chapter VIII.—That he wrote also to the King of Persia,^33143314    Sapor II. (310–381) called the Great, one of the Sassanidæ and afterwards the persistent enemy of the sons of Constantine. He was at various times a bitter persecutor of the Christians, and it is said (Plate) that “no Persian king had ever caused such terror to Rome as this monarch.” Compare article by Plate on the Sassanidæ in Smith, Dict. of Gr. and R. Biog. and Mythol.who had sent him an Embassy, on Behalf of the Christians in his Realm.

The king of the Persians also having testified a desire to form an alliance with Constantine, by sending an embassy and presents as assurances of peace and friendship, the emperor, in negotiating this treaty, far surpassed the monarch who had first done him honor, in the magnificence with which he acknowledged his gifts. Having heard, too, that there were many churches of God in Persia, and that large numbers there were gathered into the fold of Christ, full of joy at this intelligence, he resolved to extend his anxiety for the general welfare to that country also, as one whose aim it was to care for all alike in every nation.