Antioch

Antioch was one of the capitals of the state of the Seleucids . It was founded by Seleucus I Nikator on the left bank of the Oront River (currently called Asi) around 300 BC. e. , during the wars of the Diadoch , after the Battle of Ips .

The city was divided into 4 quarters, each of which was surrounded by a separate wall, and together they were surrounded by an even higher and more fortified wall. Located at the crossroads of caravan routes, Antioch controlled the trade between East and West. In its heyday, more than 500 thousand people lived in the city. Over a century, the male population of the city has reached 6 thousand people. ^[four]

Later Antioch briefly became a part of Greater Armenia ^[5] , then (from 64 BC) it became the residence of the governor of the Roman province of Syria . Antioch was the fourth largest city of the Roman Empire after Rome , Ephesus and Alexandria , the second largest city in the Eastern Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire . In the palace of Seleucus lived Gnei Pompey and Commodus , who organized the Olympic Games here.

According to the New Testament, the followers of Christ first became known as Christians in Antioch ( Acts 11:26 ). Later Antioch began to be called the cradle of Christian theology; the Antioch school of theology is associated with it. The preacher John Chrysostom was born and began the ministry here. In Antioch was the center of one of the four oldest autocephalous churches - the Church of Antioch (after the decline of the city, the administrative center of the patriarchy was moved to Damascus ). The Evangelist Luke, according to legends preserved by some ancient church writers ( Eusebius of Caesarea , Jerome of Stridon , Theophylact, Euthymius Zigaben and others), was born in Antioch .

In the IV-VII centuries, Antioch was part of Byzantium . During the second half of the 4th century, Antioch acquired the role of the largest cultural and intellectual center of the Roman-Byzantine East. Here the rhetorical school of Libania flourished, one of the pupils of which was St. John Chrysostom . The largest late Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus was associated with Antioch. Having visited Antioch before the Persian campaign, Emperor Julian became convinced of the futility of efforts to revive traditional paganism. Here the author of the Chronography lived and worked from Creation to Justinian, John Malala (VI century). Intensive municipal life existed in the city, local "circus parties" competed, horse-drawn circuses and other shows continued to be arranged. Here were erected majestic Christian churches, including the "Great Church", consecrated in 341, as well as the church of St. Thekla, Martyr Martyr of Babylon, etc. In the suburban area of Daphne , numerous villas of wealthy citizens were built, decorated with magnificent mosaics. The Greek-speaking population, which had a municipal organization, predominated, but the Syrians also lived in the city. In the early Byzantine time, destructive natural disasters often occurred in the city (528 and others). The city that suffered from a strong earthquake in the VI century was briefly conquered and destroyed by the Iranian Shah Khosrov I Anushirvan . Justinian I restored Antioch. At the beginning of the VII century. during the Byzantine-Iranian wars, the Persians also captured the city. In 637, Antioch was for a long time captured by Muslim Arabs.

The army of the Righteous Caliphate captured the city in 637 after the Battle of the Iron Bridge . The city received the Arabic name Antakya ( Arabic. أنطاكيّة ). The Umayyads could not continue the offensive through the Anatolian plateau , and the city found itself on the border of two warring empires. Because of this, he fell into decay. The rule of Muslims lasted more than 330 years.

During the great eastern campaigns of Emperor Nicephorus II, Foki Antioch was returned to Byzantium. For the siege of the greatest Christian city, Emperor Nicephorus II founded the castle of Bagras, personally laying the foundations of the fortress in 968. The next, 969, in the absence of the emperor himself, Antioch was captured by the Byzantine army of Peter Eunuch and Michael Vurtza.

Soon Antioch became the center of the theme led by Dooku , who led the empire's forces in northern Syria and Cilicia.

The period of the second Byzantine reign in Antioch and northern Syria (969-1084) was associated with a massive influx of the Christian population - Greek-speaking Romaites, Arabic-speaking Melkites, Armenians; a series of repressions against the Syro-Jacobites; the liturgical Byzantinization of the Church of Antioch; a series of campaigns of Byzantine emperors and governors against the Muslim strongholds of western Syria - Aleppo, Apamea, Arches, Tripoli. Having regained their rule over Antioch, the Romans began large-scale construction within the city. Through the efforts of the Byzantine Vasilevs, St. Peter's Cathedral (Cassian Church) and the patriarchy were rebuilt and re-decorated, new churches (such as the Basilica of St. George, the Church of St. Luke, the Church of St. John Chrysostom) were erected, and the Byzantine church on almost five hundred meters high architects erected the impregnable citadel of Antioch. In the same period, new monasteries were founded near Antioch, such as the Monastery of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Jarajim on Mount Al-Luqkam ("The Wonderful Mountain" at the harbor of St. Simeon), the Lavra of St. Elijah the Prophet on the seashore on the northern slopes of Amanos, the monastery of Betias between Orontes and Antioch, etc. This period can rightfully be considered the golden age for Georgian monasticism on the territory of the Antioch Patriarchate; numerous monasteries were founded by the Iberian monks who came to serve on the lands of their Mother Church, such as the monastery of the Blessed Virgin Mary Kalipos, Kastalia, Tvali, Tskharota, etc. ^[6] .

During the period of Arab, Byzantine and Frankish rule, the Cathedral of Antioch was the Cathedral of St. Apostle Peter, also known as the "Church of Cassian" or "Al-Qusian". The cathedral was the place of intronization and burial of the Antiochian patriarchs and Franco-Norman princes, the repository of the main Antioch relics (the pulpit and chains of the Apostle Peter, the baton of St. John Chrysostom, part of the head of St. John the Baptist), the center of the patriarchy, the patriarchal school and the patriarchal hospital. Another revered temple was the round church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, erected by Justinian I the Great in the VI century. This church was so revered that even the Seljuk Turks (1084-1098) did not touch its utensils and furniture. Thus, the Virginian Church of Justinian was the only temple of Antioch that appeared before the crusaders in its original, Byzantine splendor ^[7] . All churches were destroyed by the Mamelukes during the ruin of the city in May 1268.

After the crushing defeat of the Byzantine army at Manzikert in 1071, Emperor Roman IV Diogenes was forced to give Antioch to the Seljuk Turks in exchange for freedom. However, the Byzantine garrison and governor remained in the city. In 1076, the city passed under the rule of Filaret Varazhnuni . On December 12, 1084, the city was captured by the Rum Sultan Suleiman ibn Kutlumysh (the citadel of the city surrendered a month later). Then Antioch came under the rule of Melik the Shah , who appointed his governor there.

After a long siege, the crusaders captured Antioch in 1098; but they did not transfer the city of Byzantium, but founded their own state here - the Principality of Antioch , which existed until 1268. The prince of Antioch became Bohemund of Tarentum ^[8] . After the destruction of the Principality of Antioch by the Mameluk Sultan Beybars, the city ​​lost its significance.

The Principality of Antioch was the third largest in comparison with other crusader states in the Levant (only the county of Tripoli was second to it). The Principality occupied the north-eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea , bordering the Kingdom of Cilicia and the county of Edessa in the north and the county of Tripoli in the south. In the XIII century, its population was about 30,000 people and consisted mainly of Orthodox Greeks and Armenians . In addition, outside the city there were a number of Muslim communities. The vast majority of crusaders who settled in Antioch were from Normandy and southern Italy ^{[9] [10]} .

At present, Antioch is the city of Antakya , the center of the Turkish province of Hatay (since 1516 ).

• Antioch Zayaksartskaya

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• Antioch // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.