Diocese of Oriens
| Diocese of the East Dioecesis Orientis Ἑῴα Διοίκησις |
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| Diocese of the Roman Empire | |||||
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| Capital | Antioch | ||||
| Historical era | Late Antiquity | ||||
| • | Established | 314 | |||
| • | Diocese abolished by Justinian I | 535 or 636 | |||
| Today part of | |||||
The Diocese of the East (Latin: Dioecesis Orientis, Greek: Ἑῴα Διοίκησις Heoa Dioíkesis) was a diocese of the later Roman Empire, incorporating the provinces of the western Middle East, between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia. During late Antiquity, 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 unruly desert tribes gave it exceptional military importance.
Its capital 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.
The diocese included originally all Middle Eastern provinces of the Empire: Isauria, Cilicia, Cyprus, Euphratensis, Mesopotamia, Osroene, Syria Coele, Phoenice, Palaestina Prima, Palaestina Secunda, 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). 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.
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