Below is a list of all of the popes who reigned during the fourth century. The first number is which pope they were. This is followed by their chosen name, the starting and ending dates of their reigns, and finally the number of years they were pope. Follow the links to read short biographies of each pope and learn about what they did, what they believed, and what impact they had on the course of the Roman Catholic Church.
29. St. Marcellinus:
June 30, 296 - ?
When Marcellinus became pope Diocletian was already emperor but he had no yet begun his infamous persecutions of Christians. Gradually, however, the tolerance turned to intolerance.
30. St. Marcellus I:
May or June, 308 - 309
Due to confusion and problems resulting from the persecution under emperor Diocletian, there was a four year gap between popes before Marcellus I was elected.
31. St. Eusebius:
April 18, 310 - October 21, 310 (6 months)
Pope Eusebius suffered the same problems and the same fate as his predecessor, Pope Marcellus I. Eusebius tried to take a conciliatory attitude towards the lapsed Christians who sought to return to the Church.
32. St. Miltiades:
July 2, 311 - January 11, 314 (2 years)
Miltiades was pope when the Roman Emperors Galerius and of Constantine and Licinius published Edicts of Toleration, each marking improvements in the relationship between the Roman government and Christianity.
33. St. Sylvester I:
January 31, 314 - December 31, 335 (21 years, 11 months)
Not a great deal is known about Pope Sylvester I - the material in the Liber Pontificalis is mostly a record of gifts supposedly conferred by Constantine the Great to the Church. It is strange that the details of his reign would be so unknown even though the reign itself was relatively long. Apparently he didn't even attend the First Council of Nicea.
34. St. Marcus:
January 18, 336 - October 7, 336 (8 months, 20 days)
Pope Mark's pontificate was uneventful - we really don't know much of anything about it except that, perhaps, his reign may have still been affected by the tremors caused by the Council of Nicea the previous decade.
35. St. Julius I:
February 6, 337 - April 12, 352 (15 years)
Pope Julius I was an important defender of the orthodox doctrines established during the Council of Nicea. This was particularly significant because, at this early date, not everyone accepted the Nicene teachings and Julius was required to help and even shelter bishops and other clergy who held to the Nicene position...
36. Liberius:
May 17, 352 - September 24, 366 (14 years)
Pope Liberius has the dubious distinction of being the first pope ever not to be canonized by the Roman Catholic Church.
37. St. Damasus I:
October 1, 366 - December 11, 384 (18 years)
The reign Damasus I was plagued with controversy which began immediately with his election. At the time, the Church was not united and a powerful faction supported another person, Ursinus, as pope.
38. St. Siricius:
December 384 - November 26, 398 (14 years, 10 months)
Pope Siricius was a strong supporter of the doctrine of papal authority. He was the first of the popes to issue decrees in the same style as imperial edicts and the first to use the title "pope" in the modern sense.
39. St. Anastasius I:
November 27, 399 - December 19, 401 (2 years)
Anastasius I is perhaps best known for the fact that he condemned the works of Origen without ever having read or understood them.
