Demetrius of Thessaloniki
St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki (Greek Άγιος Δημήτριος της Θεσσαλονίκης; Bulgarian Димитър Тесалонийски; Russian Деметрий; * 3rd century; † about 306) is a saint of the Orthodox Churches and the Roman Catholic Church. According to legend, he was a Christian martyr, his historical existence is, however, unoccupied and doubtful.
Written records about the life of Demetrios found only since the 9th century. He should therefore have been a son of an influential Roman family, to 306, during the persecution of Christians under Diocletian and Maximinus Daia, have been killed in Thessaloniki by pierced him with spears because he refused to follow his coreligionists. In later times, when his picture changed to the soldier saint, a Roman soldier him or even governor of the province of Achaea was attributed to have been.
The first evidence of the veneration of saints of Demetrius dating from around 150 years after his supposed death. The Basilica of Saint Demetrios in Thessaloniki, the center of the Demetriosverehrung, dates from the 5th century. There, his relics are kept, however, were found until late.
Especially in the Middle Ages Demetrios was an important saint. In addition to Saint George, he was one of the patron saints of the Crusades. As the patron saint of the city of Thessaloniki, he should have protected them several times before conquest. Today Demetrios is especially venerated in the Orthodox churches. He is still a patron saint of soldiers.
The feast of Saint Demetrios is the 8th of October ( ostkirchlich: October 26 ). On representations he finds himself as a young man in the costume of the Roman upper classes, but also as a legionnaire or knight. Some of the White Tower of Thessaloniki (16th century) can be seen in the background.