Cappadocia (Roman province)
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Provincia Cappadocia Καππαδοκία |
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| Province of the Roman Empire | |||||
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| Capital | Caesarea | ||||
| Historical era | Antiquity | ||||
| • | Annexed by Emperor Tiberius | 18 AD | |||
| • | Byzantine reorganization | 7th Century | |||
| Today part of |
 Turkey
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Cappadocia was a province of the Roman Empire in Anatolia (modern central-eastern Turkey), with its capital at Caesarea. It was established in 17 AD by the Emperor Tiberius (ruled 14-37 AD), following the death of Cappadocia's last king, Archelaus.
Cappadocia was an imperial province, meaning that its governor (legatus Augusti) was directly appointed by the emperor. During the latter 1st century, the province also incorporated the regions of Pontus and Armenia Minor.
Prior to direct imperial rule, Cappadocia was one of the successor kingdoms of Alexander the Great's empire. The Kingdom of Cappadocia was ruled by the Ariarathid dynasty from 331 BC until 95 BC. Under Ariarathes IV, Cappadocia first came into contact with the Roman Republic as a foe allied with Selecuid King Antiochus the Great during the Roman-Syrian War from 192-188 BC.
Following Rome's victory over Antiochus, Ariarathes IV entered friendly relations with the Republic by betrothing his daughter to the king of Pergamum, a Roman ally. The Ariarathid kings would thereafter become a major ally of Rome in the East. The kingdom supported the Republic as a counterweight against the Seleucid Empire, which claimed dominion over the Cappadocian kingdom. Cappadocia would also support Rome in the Third Macedonian War against Perseus of Macedon from 171-166 BC. Rome's defeat of the Selecuids and Macedonia established the Republic as a major power in the eastern Mediterranean.
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