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Cilicia () was an early Roman province, located on what is today the southern (Mediterranean) coast of Turkey. Cilicia was annexed to the Roman Republic in 64 BC by Pompey, as a consequence of its military presence in the east, after pursuing victory in the Third Mithridatic War. It was subdivided by Diocletian in around 297, and it remained under Roman rule for several centuries, until falling to the Islamic conquests.


First contact and establishment of the province (103–47 BC)

The area was a haven for pirates that profited from the slave trade with the Romans. When the Cilician pirates began to attack Roman shipping and towns, the Roman senate decided to send various commanders to deal with the threat. It was during the course of these interventions that the province of Cilicia came into being. Parts of Cilicia Pedias became Roman territory in 103 BC, during Marcus Antonius Orator’s first campaign against the pirates. While the entire area of "Cilicia" was his “province”, or more correctly, his area of '' imperium'' during his propraetorial command, only a small portion of that region was made a Roman province at that time. In 96 BC, Lucius Cornelius Sulla was appointed the propraetorial governor of Cilicia, during which time he stopped an invasion by Mithridates II of Parthia. In 80 BC, the governor of Cilicia was Gnaeus Cornelius Dolabella, who was later convicted of illegally plundering the province. His replacement in 78 BC was Publius Servilius Vatia Isauricus. He was given the responsibility of clearing out the pirates, and his posting lasted until 74 BC. From 77 to 76 BC, he achieved a number of naval victories against the pirates off the Cilician coast, and was able to occupy the Lycian and Pamphylian coasts. After the pirates fled to their fortified strongholds, Vatia Isauricus began attacking their coastal fortresses. He captured the town of
Olympos Olympus or Olympos ( grc, Ὄλυμπος, link=no) may refer to: Mountains In antiquity Greece * Mount Olympus in Thessaly, northern Greece, the home of the twelve gods of Olympus in Greek mythology * Mount Olympus (Lesvos), located in Les ...
before going on to capture
Phaselis Phaselis ( grc, Φασηλίς) or Faselis ( tr, Faselis) was a Greek and Roman city on the coast of ancient Lycia. Its ruins are located north of the modern town Tekirova in the Kemer district of Antalya Province in Turkey. It lies between ...
and subduing
Corycus Corycus ( el, Κώρυκος; also transliterated Corycos or Korykos; hy, Կոռիկոս, translit=Koṙikos; tr, Kız Kalesi, lit. "maiden castle") was an ancient city in Cilicia Trachaea, Anatolia, located at the mouth of the valley calle ...
and a number of minor pirate strongholds.Smith, pg. 1233 Then in 75 BC Vatia Isauricus advanced across the
Taurus Mountains The Taurus Mountains ( Turkish: ''Toros Dağları'' or ''Toroslar'') are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, separating the Mediterranean coastal region from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a curve from Lake Eğirdi ...
(the first time the Roman army had crossed these mountains) and succeeded in defeating the Isauri along the northern slopes. He laid siege to their principal town, Isaura, and managed to capture it after diverting the course of a river, thereby depriving the defenders in the town from their only source of water, after which they soon surrendered. By 74 BC, Vatia Isauricus had organized the territory he had conquered and incorporated it into the province of Cilicia. Nevertheless, much of Cilicia Pedias was still held by Tigranes the Great and belonged to the kingdom of
Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
., while Cilicia Trachea was still under the domination of the pirates. Vatia Isauricus was succeeded as proconsul of Cilicia by Lucius Licinius Lucullus who used Isauricus' veterans and fleet to fight in the war against Mithridates IV of Pontus (see: Third Mithridatic War). Since Tigranes was Mithridates' ally Lucullus eventually moved against his possessions in Cilicia Pedias and added them to the Roman province of Cilicia. It was not until
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...
was granted his extraordinary command against the pirates in 67 BC, and the decisive
Battle of Korakesion The Battle of Korakesion, also known as the Battle of Coracaesium, was a naval battle fought in 67 BC between the Cilician Pirates and the Roman Republic. It was the culmination of Pompey the Great's campaign against the pirates of the Mediterrane ...
(in modern
Alanya Alanya (; ), formerly Alaiye, is a beach resort city and a district of Antalya Province on the southern coast of Turkey, in the country's Mediterranean Region, east of the city of Antalya. As of Turkey's 2010 census, the city had a population o ...
), that the pirates were finally driven out and subdued, and Cilicia Trachea was brought under Roman control. After Pompey was granted command of the Third Mithridatic War, he forced the surrender of King Triganes and proceeded to strip off of the king the parts of Cilicia Pedias that Triganes still possessed. By 64 BC, Pompey had organized the new province, adding all of his recent conquests to the original province of Cilicia, and made Tarsus the capital of the new province. Pompey's reorganized Cilicia had six parts: Cilicia Campestris, Cilicia Aspera, Pamphylia, Pisidia,
Isauria Isauria ( or ; grc, Ἰσαυρία), in ancient geography, is a rugged, isolated, district in the interior of Asia Minor, of very different extent at different periods, but generally covering what is now the district of Bozkır and its surro ...
, and Lycaonia; with the largest part of Phrygia, including the ''
Conventus iuridicus In Ancient Rome territorial organization, a ''conventus iuridicus'' was the capital city of a subdivision of some provinces ( Dalmatia, Hispania, Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either co ...
'' of Laodicea, Apamea, and Synnada. To the east of Cilicia Campestris, Pompey left a local dynast, Tarcondimotus, in control of Anazarbos and Mount Amanus. The Tarcondimotid dynasty would continue to hold the region as loyal allies of Rome until the reign of Tiberius. In 58 BC, the island of Cyprus was added, which the Romans had taken from the king of Egypt. This was the extent of the Roman province of Cilicia when
Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...
was proconsul of Cilicia in 51–50 BC. The Romans had by now divided it into eight Conventus (or Fora): the Conventus of Tarsus, where the governor resided; the Forum of Iconium for Lycaonia; the Forum Isauricum, possibly at Philornelium; the Forum Pamphylium, the place of which is unknown; the Forum Cibyraticum, at Laodicea on the Lycus; the Forum of Apamea; the Forum of Synnada; and Cyprus.


Provincial changes (47 BC – 14 AD)

The province was reorganized by Julius Caesar in 47 BC. The Forum (or Conventus) of Cibyra was attached to the province of
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
, together with the greater part of Pisidia, Pamphylia, as well as possibly the Conventus of Apamea and Synnada. Further changes were made by Marcus Antonius in 36 BC, when he gave Cyprus and Cilicia Aspera to
Cleopatra VII Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...
, and eastern Phrygia with Lycaonia, Isauria, and Pisidia, to king
Amyntas of Galatia Amyntas ( grc, Ἀμύντας), Tetrarch of the Trocmi was a King of Galatia and of several adjacent countries between 36 and 25 BC, mentioned by StraboStrabo, ''Geographia'', xii as contemporary with himself. He was the son of Brogitarus, king ...
. In 27 BC, the Roman emperor
Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
made further changes, reducing the province of Cilicia still further. Cyprus was made a separate province; and Pamphylia with Isauria and Pisidia, after the death of Amyntas in 25 BC, was also made a separate province ( the province of Galatia), to which Lycaonia was also attached. The result was that Cilicia was reduced to the original parts Campestris and Aspera, and renamed Syria-Cilicia Phoenice. Under Augustus, Cilicia was an imperial province, administered by a consular ''
Legatus Augusti pro praetore A ''legatus Augusti pro praetore'' (literally: "envoy of the emperor – acting for the praetor") was the official title of the governor or general of some Imperial provincess of the Roman Empire during the Principate era, normally the larger ones ...
''. As per the late Republican and early imperial methods of provincial rule, the western mountainous parts of Cilicia, which were not easy for a governor to manage, were left to the native princes. There were a total of three of these independent native dynasties. One was that of Olba, in the mountains between Soli and
Cyinda Cyinda ( el, Κὐινδα) was an ancient Cilician city, situated in Anatolia in modern Turkey. Cyinda in western Cilicia was famous as a treasure city in the wars of Eumenes of Cardia. It apparently served as a collection point where booty from t ...
, ruled by priest-dynasts. A second was Cilicia Aspera, which Marc Antony had originally given to Cleopatra. Augustus placed this territory under the rule of king Archelaus of Cappadocia in 25 BC. The son of Tarcondimotos in eastern Cilicia had lost his throne in 30 BC because of his father's unwavering support of Mark Antony, but the kingdom was restored in 20 BC; it was to last another 37 years before Tiberius finally abolished this client kingdom and changed it to a full province.


Under the Principate (14–297 AD)

In 72 AD, during the reign of Vespasian, all three remaining client kingdoms established by Augustus were disestablished, and merged with the imperial province of Cilicia. By the reign of
Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...
, the proconsular governor was named as a Consularis, and it contained 47 known cities.For a full list of ancient cities se
Asia Minor Coins - Killikia
/ref>


Under the late empire (297 – c. 700 AD)

Sometime during the rule of the Diocletian and the Tetrarchy (probably around 297 AD), Cilicia was divided into three parts: Cilicia Prima, under a '' consularis'', with its capital at Tarsus; Cilicia Secunda, under a '' praeses'', with its capital at Anazarbus; and Isauria (originally Cilicia Aspera), under a ''praeses'', with its capital at Seleucia. These 3 Cilician provinces, plus the Syrian, Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Libyan provinces, formed the
Diocese of the East The Diocese of the East ( la, Dioecesis Orientis; el, ) was a diocese of the later Roman Empire, incorporating the provinces of the western Middle East, between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia. During late Antiquity, it was one of the majo ...
(in the late 4th century the African component was split off as
Diocese of Egypt The Diocese of Egypt ( la, Dioecesis Aegypti; el, Διοίκησις Αἰγύπτου) was a diocese of the later Roman Empire (from 395 the Eastern Roman Empire), incorporating the provinces of Egypt and Cyrenaica. Its capital was at Alexa ...
), part of the praetorian prefecture of the East, the rich bulk of the eastern Roman Empire. Cilicia proper remained under East Roman (Byzantine) control until the early 8th century, when it was conquered by the Umayyad Caliphate and became part of the Islamic borderlands ('' thughur'') with the Romans. The region had, however, been almost completely depopulated already since the middle of the 7th century and formed a no man's land between the Romans and the Caliphate. The western parts of the old province of Cilicia remained in Roman hands and became part of the Cibyrrhaeot Theme. The status quo would remain unchanged for over 260 years before Cilicia was eventually reconquered for the Romans in the 950s and 960s by
Nikephoros Phokas Nikephoros II Phokas (; – 11 December 969), Latinized Nicephorus II Phocas, was Byzantine emperor from 963 to 969. His career, not uniformly successful in matters of statecraft or of war, nonetheless included brilliant military exploits whi ...
and John Tzimiskes.


See also

*
List of Roman governors of Cilicia This is a list of known governors of the Roman province of Cilicia. Although '' imperium'' along the southern coast of Asia Minor had been assigned to various propraetors beginning in 104 BC, it was only annexed to the Roman Republic as a provinc ...


References


Sources

* Pilhofer, Philipp. 2018. ''Das frühe Christentum im kilikisch-isaurischen Bergland. Die Christen der Kalykadnos-Region in den ersten fünf Jahrhunderten'' (Texte und Untersuchungen zur Geschichte der altchristlichen Literatur, vol. 184). Berlin/Boston: De Gruyter (), p. 25–49. * Broughton, T. Robert S., ''The Magistrates of the Roman Republic'', Vol. I (1951) * Smith, William, ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', Vol III (1867) * Smith, William, ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography'' (1854) {{coord missing, Turkey Provinces of the Roman Empire Roman provinces in Anatolia Former countries in Western Asia States and territories established in the 1st century BC States and territories disestablished in the 7th century 1st-century BC establishments in the Roman Republic 1st-century BC establishments 7th-century disestablishments in the Byzantine Empire