Roman Syria was an early
Roman province
The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...
annexed to the
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...
in 64 BC by
Pompey
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 ...
in the
Third Mithridatic War
The Third Mithridatic War (73–63 BC), the last and longest of the three Mithridatic Wars, was fought between Mithridates VI of Pontus and the Roman Republic. Both sides were joined by a great number of allies dragging the entire east of th ...
following the defeat of
King of Armenia Tigranes the Great.
Following the partition of the
Herodian Kingdom of Judea
The Herodian Kingdom of Judea was a client state of the Roman Republic from 37 BCE, when Herod the Great, who had been appointed "King of the Jews" by the Roman Senate in 40/39 BCE, took actual control over the country. When Herod died in 4 BCE, ...
into
tetrarchies in 6 AD, it was gradually absorbed into Roman provinces, with Roman Syria annexing
Iturea and Trachonitis.
Provincia Syria
Syria was annexed to the
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...
in 64 BC, when
Pompey the Great had the
Seleucid king Antiochus XIII Asiaticus executed and deposed his successor
Philip II Philoromaeus. Pompey appointed
Marcus Aemilius Scaurus to the post of
Proconsul
A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority.
In the Roman Republic, military command, or ' ...
of Syria.
Following the
fall of the Roman Republic
The crisis of the Roman Republic refers to an extended period of political instability and social unrest from about 134 BC to 44 BC that culminated in the demise of the Roman Republic and the advent of the Roman Empire.
The causes and attribute ...
and its transformation into the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
, Syria became a Roman imperial province, governed by a
Legate
Legate may refer to:
* Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class
:*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period
*A member of a legation
*A representative, ...
. During the early empire, the Roman army in Syria accounted for three legions with auxiliaries who defended the border with
Parthia
Parthia ( peo, 𐎱𐎼𐎰𐎺 ''Parθava''; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭕𐭅 ''Parθaw''; pal, 𐭯𐭫𐭮𐭥𐭡𐭥 ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Med ...
.
In 6 AD 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 Pr ...
deposed the
ethnarch Herod Archelaus
Herod Archelaus (, ''Hērōidēs Archelaos''; 23 BC – ) was ethnarch of Samaria, Judea, and Idumea, including the cities Caesarea and Jaffa, for a period of nine years (). He was the son of Herod the Great and Malthace the Samar ...
and united
Judea
Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous Latin, and the modern-day name of the mountainous so ...
,
Samaria
Samaria (; he, שֹׁמְרוֹן, translit=Šōmrōn, ar, السامرة, translit=as-Sāmirah) is the historic and biblical name used for the central region of Palestine, bordered by Judea to the south and Galilee to the north. The first ...
and
Idumea
Edom (; Edomite: ; he, אֱדוֹם , lit.: "red"; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Egyptian: ) was an ancient kingdom in Transjordan, located between Moab to the northeast, the Arabah to the west, and the Arabian Desert to the south and east ...
into the
Roman province of Judea; such province was placed under the direct authority of the Legate of Syria
Publius Sulpicius Quirinius
Publius Sulpicius Quirinius (c. 51 BC – AD 21), also translated as Cyrenius, was a Roman aristocrat. After the banishment of the ethnarch Herod Archelaus from the tetrarchy of Judea in AD 6, Quirinius was appointed legate governor of Syria, t ...
, who appointed
Coponius as
Prefect
Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area.
A prefect's ...
of Judea. Following the death of
Herod Philip II
Philip the Tetrarch (c. 26 BCE. - 34 CE), sometimes called Herod Philip II by modern writers (see "Naming convention"), son of Herod the Great and his fifth wife, Cleopatra of Jerusalem, ruled over the northeast part of his father's kingdom b ...
(34 AD) and the removal of
Herod Antipas (39 AD)
Ituraea
Iturea ( grc, Ἰτουραία, ''Itouraía'') is the Greek name of a Levantine region north of Galilee during the Late Hellenistic and early Roman periods. It extended from Mount Lebanon across the plain of Marsyas to the Anti-Lebanon Mountai ...
,
Trachonitis,
Galilee and
Perea were also transferred under the jurisdiction of the province of Syria.
From 37 to 41 AD much of Palestine was separated from Syria and transformed into a
client kingdom under
Herod Agrippa I. After Agrippa's death, his kingdom was gradually re-absorbed into the Roman Empire, until it was officially transformed into a Roman province following the death of
Herod Agrippa II.
Syrian province forces were directly engaged in the
First Jewish–Roman War
The First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE), sometimes called the Great Jewish Revolt ( he, המרד הגדול '), or The Jewish War, was the first of three major rebellions by the Jews against the Roman Empire, fought in Roman-controlled ...
of 66–70 AD. In 66 AD,
Cestius Gallus, legate of Syria, brought the Syrian army, based on
Legio XII Fulminata, reinforced by auxiliary troops, to restore order in Judaea and quell the revolt. The legion, however, was ambushed and destroyed by Jewish rebels at the
Battle of Beth Horon, a result that shocked the Roman leadership. The future emperor
Vespasian
Vespasian (; la, Vespasianus ; 17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Emp ...
was then put in charge of subduing the Jewish revolt. In the summer of 69, Vespasian, with the Syrian units supporting him, launched his bid to become Roman emperor. He defeated his rival
Vitellius and ruled as emperor for ten years when he was succeeded by his son
Titus
Titus Caesar Vespasianus ( ; 30 December 39 – 13 September 81 AD) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death.
Before becoming emperor, Titus gained renown as a mili ...
.
Based on an inscription recovered from
Dor in 1948, Gargilius Antiquus was known to have been the governor of a province in the eastern part of the Empire, possibly Syria, between his consulate and governing Asia.
[Dov Gera and Hannah M. Cotton]
"A Dedication from Dor to a Governor of Syria"
''Israel Exploration Journal'', 41 (1991), pp. 258–66 In November 2016, an inscription in Greek was recovered off the coast of Dor by
Haifa University underwater archaeologists, which attests that Antiquus was governor of the province of
Judea
Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous Latin, and the modern-day name of the mountainous so ...
between 120 and 130, possibly prior to the
Bar Kokhba revolt
The Bar Kokhba revolt ( he, , links=yes, ''Mereḏ Bar Kōḵḇāʾ''), or the 'Jewish Expedition' as the Romans named it ( la, Expeditio Judaica), was a rebellion by the Jews of the Roman province of Judea, led by Simon bar Kokhba, ag ...
.
As related by
Theodor Mommsen,
"Hadrian stationed
an extra legion in
Judaea, renaming it Syria Palaestina."
[.] This was following the defeat of the
Bar Kokhba Revolt
The Bar Kokhba revolt ( he, , links=yes, ''Mereḏ Bar Kōḵḇāʾ''), or the 'Jewish Expedition' as the Romans named it ( la, Expeditio Judaica), was a rebellion by the Jews of the Roman province of Judea, led by Simon bar Kokhba, ag ...
in 135 AD. The Syria-based legion,
Legio III Gallica, took part in the quelling of the revolt in 132–136, and in the aftermath, the emperor
Hadrian
Hadrian (; la, Caesar Trâiānus Hadriānus ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman ''municipium'' founded by Italic settlers in Hispania ...
renamed the greatly depopulated province of
Judea
Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous Latin, and the modern-day name of the mountainous so ...
and its extra legion ''Syria Palaestina''.
Aftermath
Division into Coele Syria and Syria Phoenice
Septimius Severus
Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary suc ...
divided the province of Syria proper into
Syria Coele
Coele-Syria (, also spelt Coele Syria, Coelesyria, Celesyria) alternatively Coelo-Syria or Coelosyria (; grc-gre, Κοίλη Συρία, ''Koílē Syría'', 'Hollow Syria'; lat, Cœlē Syria or ), was a region of Syria in classical antiquit ...
and
Syria Phoenice, with Antioch and
Tyre as their respective provincial capitals.
As related by
Theodor Mommsen,
From the later 2nd century, the
Roman Senate
The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...
included several notable Syrians, including
Claudius Pompeianus
Tiberius Claudius Pompeianus ( 125 – 193 AD) was a politician and military commander during the 2nd century in the Roman Empire. A general under the Emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usual ...
and
Avidius Cassius
Gaius Avidius Cassius ( 130 – July 175 AD) was a Syrian Roman general and usurper. He was born in Cyrrhus, and was the son of Gaius Avidius Heliodorus, who served as '' praefectus'' or governor of Roman Egypt, and Julia Cassia Alexandra, wh ...
.
Syria was of crucial strategic importance during the
Crisis of the Third Century. In 244 AD, Rome was ruled by a native Syrian from Philippopolis (modern day
Shahba) in the province of Arabia Petraea. The emperor was Marcus Iulius Philippus, more commonly known as
Philip the Arab. Philip became the 33rd emperor of Rome upon its millennial celebration.
Roman Syria was invaded in 252/253 (the date is disputed) after a Roman field army was destroyed in the
Battle of Barbalissos by the King of Persia
Shapur I which left the Euphrates river unguarded and the region was pillaged by the Persians. In 259/260 a similar event happened when
Shapur I again defeated a Roman field army and captured the Roman emperor, Valerian, alive at the
Battle of Edessa. Again Roman Syria suffered as cities were captured, sacked and pillaged.
From 268 to 273, Syria was part of the breakaway
Palmyrene Empire.
Dominate reform
Following the reforms of
Diocletian
Diocletian (; la, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus, grc, Διοκλητιανός, Diokletianós; c. 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed ''Iovius'', was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Gaius Valerius Diocles ...
, Syria Coele became part of the
Diocese of the East.
Sometime between 330 and 350 (likely c. 341), the province of ''
Euphratensis'' was created out of the territory of ''Syria Coele'' along the western bank of the
Euphrates
The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers'') ...
and the former
Kingdom of Commagene, with
Hierapolis
Hierapolis (; grc, Ἱεράπολις, lit. "Holy City") was originally a Phrygian cult centre of the Anatolian mother goddess of Cybele and later a Greek city. Its location was centred upon the remarkable and copious hot springs in clas ...
as its capital.
Syria in the Byzantine Empire
After c. 415 ''Syria Coele'' was further subdivided into ''Syria I'' (or ''
Syria Prima''), with the capital remaining at
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...
, and ''Syria II'' (''Syria Secunda'') or ''Syria Salutaris'', with capital at
Apamea on the Orontes
ar, آفاميا
, image =Apamea 01.jpg
, alt =
, caption = View of Apamea ruins
, map_type = Syria
, map_alt =
, map_size = 200
, location = Hama Governorate, Syria
, region = Ghab plain
, coordinates =
, type = settlement ...
. In 528,
Justinian I
Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565.
His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized '' renov ...
carved out the small coastal province ''
Theodorias'' out of territory from both provinces.
The region remained one of the most important provinces of the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
. It was
occupied
' ( Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 Octobe ...
by the
Sasanians between 609 and 628, then reconquered by the emperor
Heraclius, but lost again to the
advancing Muslims after the
Battle of Yarmouk and the
fall of Antioch.
The city of
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...
was reconquered by
Nikephorus Phocas in 963, along with other parts of the country, at that time under the
Hamdanids, although still under the official suzerainty of the
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Mutta ...
caliphs and also claimed by the
Fatimid caliphs. After emperor
John Kurkuas failed to conquer Syria up to Jerusalem, a Muslim "reconquest" of Syria followed in the late 970s undertaken by the Fatimid Caliphate that resulted in the ouster of the Byzantines from most parts of Syria. However, Antioch and other northern parts of Syria remained in the empire and other parts were under the protection of the
emperors
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother (empr ...
through their Hamdanid,
Mirdasid, and
Marwanid proxies, until the
Seljuk arrival, who after three decades of incursions, conquered Antioch in 1084. Antioch was captured again during the 12th century by the revived armies of the
Comnenii. However, by that time the city was regarded as part of Asia Minor and not of Syria.
Episcopal sees
Ancient episcopal sees of the late
Roman province
The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...
of Syria Prima (I) listed in the ''
Annuario Pontificio
The ''Annuario Pontificio'' ( Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides name ...
'' as
titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...
s:
[''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 ), "Sedi titolari", pp. 819-1013]
*
Anasartha
Khanasir ( ar, خناصر / ALA-LC: ''Khanāṣir''),France, 2007, p. 243. also spelt Khanaser, is a town located in Syria's as-Safira District. It is one of twenty-four towns and villages located in the Khanasir valley, an area with a population ...
(Khanasir)
*
Barcusus (Baquza or
Banqusa)
*
Beroea (Aleppo)
*
Chalcis in Syria (Qinnasrin)
*
Gabala (Jableh)
*
Gabula (at the marsh of Al-Jabbul)
*
Gindarus
Jindires ( ar, جنديرس, also spelled, Jandairis, Jandires, Jendires, Jendeires, or Jandarus; Kurdish: Cindirês or Cindirêsê) is a town in northern Syria in the Afrin District of the Aleppo Governorate. It is located on the Afrin River, no ...
(Jandairis)
*
Laodicea in Syria (Latakia)
*
Salamias (Salamiyah)
*
Seleucia Pieria
Ancient episcopal sees of the late Roman province of Syria Secunda (II) listed in the ''
Annuario Pontificio
The ''Annuario Pontificio'' ( Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides name ...
'' as
titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...
s:
[
* ]Apamea in Syria
ar, آفاميا
, image =Apamea 01.jpg
, alt =
, caption = View of Apamea ruins
, map_type = Syria
, map_alt =
, map_size = 200
, location = Hama Governorate, Syria
, region = Ghab plain
, coordinates =
, type = settleme ...
, the Metropolitan Archdiocese
* Arethusa (Al-Rastan)
* Balanea (Baniyas)
* Epiphania in Syria (Hama)
* Larissa in Syria (Shaizar)
* Mariamme (Maryamin)
* Raphanea
Raphanea or Raphaneae ( grc, Ῥαφάνεια; ar, الرفنية, al-Rafaniyya; colloquial: ''Rafniye'') was a city of the late Roman province of Syria Secunda. Its bishopric was a suffragan of Apamea.
History
Josephus mentions Raphanea ...
* Seleucobelus (Seleucopolis)
See also
* History of Syria
* Ottoman Syria
*Assyria (Roman province)
Assyria () was reputedly a Roman province that lasted only two years (116–118 AD).
History
According to Eutropius and Festus, two historians who wrote under the direction of the Emperor Valens in the second half of the 4th century, at a time ...
* List of governors of Roman Syria
References
Sources
*
*
*
External links
*
{{coord, 36, 12, N, 36, 09, E, region:TR_type:adm1st_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title
Seleucid Empire successor states
Former countries in Western Asia
60s BC establishments
1st-century BC establishments in the Roman Republic
States and territories disestablished in the 2nd century
198 disestablishments
190s disestablishments in the Roman Empire
1st-century BC establishments
2nd-century disestablishments
Jews and Judaism in the Roman Empire