EUSEBIUS (c. 260/70–c. 339), a Christian bishop of Caesarea in Palestine from 314, was a leading early Christian historian, exegete, and apologist. A disciple of Pamphilus at Caesarea, Eusebius wrote a life of his master and called himself "of Pamphilus." He traced his intellectual descent to Origen, and with Pamphilus wrote a defense of Origen against the theological and personal criticisms current during the persecution of 303–313. Little is known of Eusebius's early life, but it seems clear that he wrote his Historia ecclesiastica (History of the church) at Caesarea during the persecution, possibly though not certainly after composing at a slightly earlier date a first draft of it as well as a first draft of his Chronicon (Chronicle). At the end of the persecution, in spite of occasional slanders concerning apostasy spread by his enemies, he became bishop of Caesarea. During this time he continued to update his Historia and...