Diocese of the East

Diocese of the East Dioecesis Orientis Ἑῴα Διοίκησις
Diocese of the Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire
314–535/536
The Diocese of the East c. 400
Capital	Antioch
Historical era	Late Antiquity
• Established	314
• Diocese abolished by Justinian I	535 or 536
Succeeded by Al-Jazira (caliphal province) Bilad al-Sham Roman Cyprus Roman Isauria

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The Diocese of the East, also called the Diocese of Oriens (Latin: Dioecesis Orientis; Greek: Διοίκησις Ἑῴα), was a diocese of the later Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire, incorporating the provinces of the western Middle East, between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia. During Late Antiquity and the period of late antique Syria, it was one of the major commercial, agricultural, religious and intellectual areas of the empire, and its strategic location facing the Sassanid Empire and the nomadic tribes gave it exceptional military importance.^[1]

History

The capital of the diocese was at Antioch, and its governor had the special title of comes Orientis ("Count of the East", of the rank vir spectabilis and later vir gloriosus) instead of the ordinary "vicarius". The diocese was established after the reforms of Diocletian (r. 284–305), and was subordinate to the praetorian prefecture of the East.^[1][2]

The diocese included originally all Middle Eastern provinces of the Empire: Isauria, Cilicia, Cyprus, Euphratensis, Mesopotamia, Osroene, Syria Coele, Phoenice, Syria Palaestina, Arabia, and the Egyptian provinces Aegyptus, Augustamnica, Thebais, Libya Superior and Libya Inferior, which were grouped into the separate Diocese of Egypt under Valens (r. 364–378).^[1] During the course of the 4th century, several provinces were split, resulting in the new provinces of Cilicia I and Cilicia II, Syria I and Syria II Salutaris, Phoenice I and Phoenice II Libanensis (east of Mt. Lebanon), Palaestina I, Palaestina II and Palaestina Salutaris (or Palaestina III). The last creation of a new province dated in the reign of Justinian I (r. 527–565), when Theodorias, the region around Laodicea, was split off from Syria I. At about the same time, Cyprus was split off and became part of a new super-province, the quaestura exercitus.^[2]

In 535, as part of his administrative reforms, Justinian I abolished the diocese, and the comes Orientis became the provincial governor of Syria I, while retaining his previous rank of vir spectabilis and his salary.^[3]

The entire area of the former diocese came under Sassanid Persian occupation in the 610s and 620s, during the Byzantine–Sassanid War of 602–628. Shortly after the Byzantine victory in the war and the recovery of the region, it was again lost, this time permanently, to the Muslims, with the exception of Cilicia and most of the Levantine coasts later reconquered: by the 640s, Cilicia formed the border (Al-Awasim) between Byzantium and the new Arab Rashidun Caliphate and its successors, while Cyprus became a disputed territory. From the old provinces of the Diocese of the East, only Isauria and parts of the two Cilicias remained under Byzantine rule, grouped under the new Anatolic Theme.^[2]

List of Comites Orientis

Names and dates are taken from the Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire.^[4][5][6] Dates given are those in which the comites are known to have held office, but not necessarily when they started or ended their terms.

See also

• Arabia in late antiquity
• Late antique Egypt
• Late antique literature

References

Sources

• Jones, A. H. M.; Martindale, J. R; Morris, John (1971). The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire. Vol. I: A.D. 260–395. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-07233-5.
• Jones, A. H. M.; Martindale, J. R; Morris, John (1980). The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire. Vol. II: A.D. 395–527. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-20159-9.
• Jones, A. H. M.; Martindale, J. R; Morris, John (1992). The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire. Vol. III: A.D. 527–641. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-20160-5.