diasporicroots:diasporicroots:Ethiopian King Ezana II of the Aksumite Empire in the 4th century
diasporicroots: diasporicroots: Ethiopian King Ezana II of the Aksumite Empire in the 4th century AD, he was converted to christianity by his greek slave-teacher Frumentius in 324. The Aksumite Empire became one of the first major empires to convert to Christianity. Along with Constantine I of Rome and Tiridates of Armenia, King Ezana of Axumite Ethiopia was one of the first monarchs in history to convert to Christianity, to establish a Christian state, and to erect many Christian churches of worship. The significance of Christian alliance and King Ezana’s kingdom was given great thought by the Roman Emperor Constantius II (r. 337 - 361 AD), who attempted by persuasive letter to King Ezana and his brother Saizanas to have their favored Frumentius replaced by an Arian bishop known as Theophilus. However, his attempts were in vain, as Frumentius remained in charge of the Coptic Church while Ezana, a new Christian, cemented the religion into Ethiopian culture. illustration by Angus Mcbride For more read: Ancient Civilizations of Africa Volume 2 By G. Mokhtar, Muḥammad Jamāl al-Dīn Mukhtār -- source link