History of the Church of England are known to have been present at the Council of Arles (314). Others attended the Council of Serdica in 347 and that of Ariminum in 360. A number of references to the church in Roman Britain are also found in the writings of 4th century Christian fathers. Britain was the home of Pelagius, who opposed Augustine of Hippo's doctrine of original sin. The first recorded Christian martyr in Britain, St Alban, is thought to have lived in the early 4th century, and his prominence in English hagiography is reflected in the number of parish churches of which he is patron.
The Young Martyr cited in Art, the Persecution would have served as a firm foundation for Delaroche, artistically, and would have given Delaroche ample reason to paint the martyrdom of a young Christian. It should also be noted, however, that Delaroche opted to depict the martyrdom of a "female" Christian in "The Young Martyr." Although Delaroche is known to have “introduced the genii or muses, who symbolize or reign over the arts,” and to have often idealized female figures, the choice to depict the martyrdom of a young woman may, more truly, have been part of Delaroche’s response to the death of his