person

Decius

Also known as Gaius Messius Quintus Trajanus Decius

high

born. 201high · Wikidata P569
died. 251-07-01high · Wikidata P570

Emperor (249-251) whose universal sacrifice edict (250) produced the first empire-wide crisis for Christians and the problem of the lapsed.

Wikipedia extract

Trajan Decius, or simply Decius, was Roman emperor from 249 to 251. A distinguished politician during the reign of Philip the Arab, Decius was proclaimed emperor by his troops after putting down a rebellion in Moesia. In 249, he defeated and killed Philip near Verona and was recognized as emperor by the Senate afterwards.

CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikipedia contributors. Source page

Sources

Decius · Wikipedia contributorsAccessed 2026-11-12 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Wikidata Q1830 · Wikidata contributorsAccessed 2026-11-12 · CC0 1.0
Catholic Encyclopedia (1907-1912) article · Various (Catholic Encyclopedia)Accessed 2026-11-12 · 1907-1912 text public domain in the US; dated and confessional, use for history of reception

Authority files

roman-emperors · persecution · 3rd-century