He was the son of a Byzantine emperor. He was first a monk, then an abbot, and then a patriarch of Constantinople. He suffered much from Photius, who was the father of the Greek Schism that eventually led to the so-called Greek Orthodox Church, which divided people from unity with the Holy Roman Catholic Church, outside of which no one can be saved.
Painting showing the death of Ignatius from the Menologion of Basil II (c. 1000 AD) source
