Constantine I was Roman emperor from 306 to 337 CE. Realizing that the Roman Empire was too large for one man to adequately rule, Emperor Diocletian (284-305 CE) split the empire into two, creating a tetrachy or rule of four. While he ruled the east from Nicomedia as an “augustus” with Galerius as his “caesar,” Maximian and Constantius the Pale ruled the west. It was the son of Constantius, Constantine, who would one day rise to defeat all challengers to the throne and reunite the split empire, moving the capital away from Old Rome and build a new capital, a capital that one day would bear his name, Constantinople.
When in Constantius Chlorus in AD 293 was elevated to the rank of Caesar, Constantine became a member of the court of Diocletian.
Constantine proved an officer of much promise when serving under Diocletian's Caesar Galerius against the Persians.
He was still with Galerius when Diocletian and Maximian abdicated in AD 305, finding himself in the precarious situation of a virtual hostage to Galerius.
In AD 306 though Galerius, now sure of his position as dominant Augustus (despite Constantius being senior by rank) let Constantine return to his father to accompany him on a campaign to Britain.
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