 Nevertheless, for reasons not explained in the few autobiographical details to be gleaned from his texts, Maximus left public life and took monastic vows at the monastery of Philippicus in Chrysopolis, a city across the Bosporus from Constantinople (later known as Scutari, the modern Turkish city of Üsküdar).Maximus was elevated to the position of abbot of the monastery.When the Persians conquered Anatolia, Maximus was forced to flee to a monastery near Carthage.