acknowledge Arians as Christians; whether
or not he had the boldness to refuse that name to the empress is not
told us. It is certain that Eusebia's kindness to Julian was worthy of a
Christian, even though it succored one who was to be the arch-enemy of
the faith. She befriended and protected him when he was summoned to a
court where it was to the interest of every courtier to report every
action and every chance word to Constantius. She may have been desirous
of making a friend of the heir-apparent, being herself childless; but it
is easy to believe that "the good and beautiful Eusebia," as Julian
calls her, was both sincere and disinterested in her kindness. She
brought it about that the emperor gave his permission to the young man,
who had hitherto been a prisoner, to retire to a beautiful estate which
he had inherited from his mother.

The fortunes of Julian were in good hands at the court. Constantius was
greatly influenced by the eunuchs who surrounded him, and who were the
bureaucratic officers of those times; but Eusebia was stronger than all
others combined. When the emperor complained that the unaided rule was
too much for him, she suggested that he raise his young kinsman to the
Caesarian dignity. Her advice was followed; and the imperial purple, and
with it the hand of Helena, the sister of Constantius, were conferred
upon Julian. As a wedding gift, Eusebia, with the most refined
consideration possible, presented him with a valuable collection of the
best Greek authors. It is likely that he felt more appreciative
gratitude for the books than he did either for the official dignity or
the highborn bride. As Caesar, it was intended by Constantius that he
should be no more than a figure; and for his wife it is doubtful if he
ever felt any real affection. As historians have remarked, in his
numerous writings Julian sometimes mentions the Helen of Homer, but
never once his own Helen. She must have been considerably older than her
husband, and was probably a Christian, as were her brothers. That there
was no offspring of this marriage was imputed to the arts of Eusebia,
who, according to Ammianus Marcellinus, exercised a close and unnatural
supervision over the household of her protege. Inasmuch as there appears
no motive for a wish on the part of the empress that Helena should be
childless, we are inclined, as Gibbon says, "to hope that the public
malignity imputed the effects of accident as the guilt of Eusebia."