They are venerated in the
Eastern Orthodox Church and more specifically in the
Church of Cyprus as
martyrs on May 19. The story of their martyrdom is partially recounted in a
hagiographic text dating from the 1270s called the Narratio of the Thirteen Martyrs.
History
Sources
The event and the execution of the thirteen monks are known in part through a text written around 1270,[1] called the "Narratio of the Thirteen Martyrs",[2] as well as through letters exchanged between the
Patriarch of ConstantinopleGermanus II and
Pope Gregory IX, where they discussed the event.[2] Later
Dominican sources also mentioned the events, notably by criticizing the thirteen monks.[3]
Apart from these sources, there are other relatively numerous occurrences in the literature of the period. The event and the martyrdom are considered historical by historians, although hagiographic accounts may sometimes be questioned.[4]
Background
After the conquest of Cyprus by
Richard the Lionheart from the hands of the Byzantine usurper
Isaac Komnenos of Cyprus,[5] following a series of events, he sold the island to
Guy of Lusignan.[6] After the establishment of the
Kingdom of Cyprus, a parallel
Catholic religious hierarchy was established alongside the pre-existing
Orthodox hierarchy. Assisted by royal power and supported by successive popes, they embarked on a campaign of conversions, religious pressures, and power struggles targeting the Orthodox communities on the island.[5]
They were aided by the forced exile of a large majority of Orthodox bishops from the island, usually leaving only the Orthodox monasteries in the forefront, among which the
Machairas monastery and the
Kantara monastery stood out, to resist against royal and papal authority.[5]
Gregory IX was known as a particularly uncompromising and violent pope; in 1231, the same year as the death of the monks, he issued the bull "Excommunicatus", confirming that the punishment for heretics was death.[3]
Persecution and executions
Pope Gregory IX took measures to convert the island to
Catholicism; he ordered that no position be given to anyone who did not recognize Latin practices.[5] Subsequently, he sent a
Dominican emissary to the island, Andrew, who engaged in a policy of persecutions targeting the Orthodox population.[5][7]
Between 1231 and 1233, a series of persecutions befell the Orthodox clergy of
Cyprus.[2] In particular, thirteen monks from the Kantara Monastery were persecuted for their refusal to use
unleavened bread for the
Eucharist.[2][3][8][9] This element indicates that the main point of conflict was the
liturgical question, primarily. They underwent an inquisition trial for heresy and were then imprisoned for three years[1][10] by order of the high-court of the Kingdom, composed of
Frankishbarons and
Catholic clergy.[11]
The monks were subsequently
tortured,[3] at least once in public.[1] One of them died during imprisonment and was not executed.[1]
Since they weren't changing their minds,
Gregory IX directly instructed[3][12] the Catholic archbishop of the island, Eustorgus, to consider them as heretics,[1] they were then killed[2][13][14][15] by being burned alive.[5][10][16] The execution took place in May 1231.[3] Their bones were then mixed with those of animals to avoid producing relics.[12]
Monasteries became the centers of Orthodox resistance on the island, and tensions remained violent and strained between the two communities until 1260 when
Pope Alexander IV issued the Bulla Cypria. This sought a position of coexistence, although heavily favoring the Catholic Church,[21] and helped alleviate tensions to some extent.[5]
Legacy
Scientific research
The fact that certain Western Catholic researchers, such as
Louis de Mas Latrie, avoided mentioning the event in their studies on the
history of Cyprus, has been criticized in more recent studies, for example, by A. Nicolaou-Konnari.[22]
^
abcdefSmith, Damian J., ed. (2023). Pope Gregory IX (1227-1241): power and authority. Church, faith and culture in the Medieval West. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.
ISBN978-90-485-5460-7.
^Bádenas, Pedro (1988), Balard, Michel; Ducellier, Alain (eds.),
"Le choc des mentalités pendant l'occupation Franque de Chypre", Le partage du monde : Échanges et colonisation dans la Méditerranée médiévale, Byzantina Sorbonensia (in French), Paris: Éditions de la Sorbonne, pp. 335–344,
ISBN979-10-351-0598-3,
archived from the original on 2023-10-27, retrieved 2024-02-02
^Jeffreys, Elizabeth; Haarer, Fiona K., eds. (2006). Proceedings of the 21st International Congress of Byzantine Studies: London 21 - 26 August 2006. Aldershot: Ashgate.
ISBN978-0-7546-5740-8.
^Theofanous, Konstantinos (2020-05-19).
"Οι 13 μάρτυρες της Καντάρας". Εκκλησία της Κύπρου (in Greek).
Archived from the original on 2024-02-02. Retrieved 2024-02-02.