Ignatius of Constantinople was a 9th-century prelate who served as the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople during two distinct periods. Born Niketas, the son of Emperor Michael I, he was forced into monastic life following his castration by Emperor Leo V. Adopting the name Ignatius, he became an abbot and founded several monasteries. His leadership was defined by the Iconoclast Controversy, during which he supported the veneration of icons, and by intense ecclesiastical disputes involving papal authority and the jurisdiction of the Bulgarian Church.