A monk by age 12, Antony Kauleas became a priest and the abbot of an unnamed monastery. He came to the attention of Stylianos Zaoutzes, the all-powerful minister of Emperor Leo VI the Wise. Antony had supported Leo VI against the former Patriarch Photius I of Constantinople and had contributed to the pacification of the Church by effecting a compromise between the supporters of Photius and Patriarch Ignatius. The emperor appointed Antony patriarch after the death of his own brother, Patriarch Stephen I of Constantinople in 893.[1]
Patriarch Antony II was a pious man who generously endowed monastic foundations and founded or re-founded the Kaulea monastery with the support of the emperor, who preached at the church's dedication. Buried in the church of his monastery, Antony was held responsible for various miracles. He was canonized as a saint by both the Orthodox and Catholic Churches and he is commemorated on 12 February.[1]