Theodosius's Nician Extremism

The Empress Justina was an Aryan, and as a result, her young son Valentinian was too. This led to all kinds of nasty little disputes between the imperial family and the bishop. Maximus figured that if he could prove his Nician bona fides, eventually Ambrose might get sick of supporting those damned heretics in the imperial palace and throw his weight behind the Nician-U surper up in trir. Priscillium and six of his followers were arrested and then beheaded. It was the first recorded case of an execution on charges of heresy in history.