Division into Coele Syria and Syria Phoenice }}
Septimius Severus divided the province of Syria proper into
Syria Coele 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 included several notable Syrians, including
Claudius Pompeianus and
Avidius Cassius. 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, 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 and the former
Kingdom of Commagene, with
Hierapolis as its capital.
Syria in the Byzantine Empire Under the
Byzantine Empire, Roman Syria was governed as part of the
Diocese of the East, which was collectively one of the major commercial, agricultural, religious and intellectual areas of the empire. Its strategic location facing the
Sassanid Empire and nomadic tribes also gave it exceptional military importance. era mosaic found in
Maryamin,
Syria, currently located in the Hama museum|alt= After c. 415,
Syria Coele was further subdivided into
Syria I (or
Syria Prima), with its capital remaining at
Antioch, and
Syria II (
Syria Secunda) or
Syria Salutaris, with its capital at
Apamea on the Orontes. In 528,
Justinian I carved out the small coastal province
Theodorias out of territory from both provinces. The city of
Antioch 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 caliphs and also claimed by the
Fatimid caliphs. After emperor
John I Tzimiskes 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 ousting 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 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. == Demographics ==