Abstract :
Constantius’ biography of Saint Germanus, written c. a.d. 480, includes accounts of two missions
undertaken to counter the spread of Pelagianism in Britain. Germanus’ first mission is also
mentioned in the chronicle of Prosper, dated to a.d. 429. The second mission is undated, and is
almost certainly a fantasy. Germanus’ supposed initial victory by persuasion is implausible. Also,
Prosper’s account of Pope Celestine I’s anti-Pelagian campaigns demonstrates that the heresy
was suppressed in Britain in the first mission. The chronology of Tibatto’s rebellion precludes a
second mission, and its chronological anomalies arise from the need to accommodate just such
a second mission.
