Julian

Julian (331–363), known to Christian tradition as the Apostate, was Roman emperor from 361 to 363. A nephew of Constantine the Great, he survived the massacre of his family in 337, was raised in seclusion and educated in Greek philosophy, and was made Caesar in Gaul by his cousin Constantius II in 355, where he won victories over the Alamanni. Proclaimed emperor by his troops, he openly renounced Christianity, attempted to restore the worship of the old gods and wrote prolifically in Greek: hymns to Helios and the Mother of the Gods, satires including the Misopogon and the Caesars, letters and a polemic Against the Galileans.